David Spenser

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David Spenser (born March 12, 1934 in Colombo , Ceylon as David De Saram , † July 20, 2013 in Spain ) was a British actor in film and television. He played in around 35 film productions, including Play It Cool , The Adventures of Captain Grant or Everything under Control - Nobody sees it . In his later years he also worked as a producer of radio plays for the BBC .

life and career

David Spenser, born in Ceylon in 1934 , began his acting career at the age of eleven for BBC Radio with his contribution to Children's Hour . The author Richmal Crompton cast him in 1948 in the title role as William Brown in the first Funk adaptation of their series of short stories. As a member of the BBC drama Repertory Company , he played some of the great Shakespeare roles for the radio, including Romeo alongside actress Judi Dench , who played Juliet.

In 1950 David Spenser also turned successfully to television, starring in episodes of popular series. His appearances in the new medium include the BBC Sunday-Night Theater (1950), The Bell Family (1951), Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School (1952), Overseas Press Club - Exclusive! (1957), Paul of Tarsus (1960), Studio 4 (1962), Z Cars (1964), Simon Templar (1966), Doctor Who (1967) or Pretenders (1972).

He made his screen debut in 1954 in John Eldridge's war comedy Conflict of Wings . He had other supporting roles in 1959 in Terence Fisher's adventure film Die Würger von Bombay , in 1962 in Michael Winners musical Play It Cool in Robert Stevenson's literary film The Adventures of Captain Grant by Jules Verne , or in 1968 in the comedy Everything under control - nobody looks through by director Gerald Thomas from the well-known British carry on film series .

His partner since the 1960s was the screenwriter Victor Pemberton. In 1987 they jointly founded the production company Saffron Productions Ltd , which produced TV documentaries, some of which Spenser directed himself, for example the 1991 film about comedian Benny Hill for the BBC, or the productions about the writer Angus Wilson , which Author Dodie Smith or actress Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies .

He spent the last years of his life in Spain where he died on July 20, 2013 at the age of 79.

David Spenser was the brother of actor Jeremy Spenser .

Filmography (selection)

movie theater

watch TV

  • 1950: BBC Sunday-Night Theater (TV series, one episode)
  • 1951: The Bell Family (TV series, six episodes)
  • 1952: Billy Bunter of Greyfriars School (TV series, six episodes)
  • 1952: Anne of Green Gables (TV series, two episodes)
  • 1957: Overseas Press Club - Exclusive! (TV series, one episode)
  • 1960: Paul of Tarsus (TV series, two episodes)
  • 1961: Armchair Theater (TV series, one episode)
  • 1961: Frontier Drums (TV series, one episode)
  • 1962: Studio 4 (TV series, three episodes)
  • 1962: No Hiding Place (TV series, one episode)
  • 1963: Secret Beneath the Sea (TV series, one episode)
  • 1963: Sergeant Cork (TV series, one episode)
  • 1964: Espionage (TV series, one episode)
  • 1964: Z Cars (TV series, one episode)
  • 1965: Dixon of Dock Green (TV series, one episode)
  • 1966: A Farewell to Arms (TV series, two episodes)
  • 1966: The Spies (TV series, one episode)
  • 1966: King of the River (TV series, one episode)
  • 1966: Adam Adamant Lives! (TV series, one episode)
  • 1966: Simon Templar (TV series, one episode)
  • 1967: Thirty-Minute Theater (TV series, one episode)
  • 1967: Pitchi Poi or The Given Word (TV movie)
  • 1967: Doctor Who (TV series, six episodes)
  • 1971: Softly Softly: Task Force (TV series, one episode)
  • 1971: Play for Today (TV series, one episode)
  • 1971–1972: BBC Play of the Month (TV series, two episodes)
  • 1972: Pretenders (TV series, two episodes)

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Portrait of David Spenser in: Doctor Who
  2. ↑ David Spenser in: About Acting , by Peter Barkworth, Bloomsbury USA, 1991, p. 72
  3. ↑ John Tydeman: David Spenser obituary , The Guardian, August 1, 2013, accessed March 9, 2015.
personal data
SURNAME Spenser, David
ALTERNATIVE NAMES De Saram, David (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British actor in film and television
DATE OF BIRTH March 12, 1934
PLACE OF BIRTH Colombo , Ceylon
DATE OF DEATH 20th July 2013
Place of death Spain