David Harris was found guilty by a jury - after five hours of deliberation - at the Old Bailey of three charges of soliciting murder.
Referring to the 68 year old from Amberley, Judge Anne Molyneux QC said: "There was a prolonged period of almost a year where he actively sought to murder his life partner. During that year, he displayed an ability to lie almost instinctively."
Harris offered £200,000 for the murder of Hazel Allinson in order to inherit her fortune, sell her home and be with another woman, a 28 year old from Lithuania.
The former producer of The Bill television series confessed to a web of complex lies and rising debts as he lavished former professional basketball player Ugne Cekaviciute with gifts.
The trial heard how he spent £50,000 of Allinson's savings and exploited her reputation as a church choir singer and a parish councillor to borrow money from their neighbours.
Harris had denied wanting Allinson dead and claimed his only motivation behind wanting to talk to hitmen was in order to research a murder mystery novel.
Prosecutor William Boyce QC told the court Harris believe the only solution for his predicament was to hire a hitman to kill Allinson in a staged mugging or car-jacking.
Sentencing has been adjourned until 14th July for a report about whether Harris has a personality disorder.