Donald Herbert Houghton (2 February 1930 – 2 July 1991) was a British television screenwriter and producer.

Career

Born in Paris to Scottish parents, Houghton started writing for radio in 1951 before moving into film and television in 1958. In the 1970s, he was a primary writer for Hammer Films including for ''

Dracula AD 1972 ''Dracula A.D. 1972'' is a 1972 British horror film, directed by Alan Gibson and produced by Hammer Film Productions. It was written by Don Houghton and stars Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and Stephanie Beacham. Unlike earlier films in Hamme ...

'', ''

The Satanic Rites of Dracula ''The Satanic Rites of Dracula'' is a 1973 British horror film directed by Alan Gibson and produced by Hammer Film Productions. It is the eighth film in Hammer's ''Dracula'' series, and the seventh and final one to feature Christopher Lee as Dr ...

'', ''

The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires ''The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires'' () is a 1974 martial arts horror film. The film opens in 1804, when seven vampires clad in gold masks are resurrected by Count Dracula, played by John Forbes-Robertson. A century later, Peter Cushing as P ...

'' and '' Shatter''. His television work includes ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' for which he wrote the serials ''

Inferno Inferno may refer to: * Hell, an afterlife place of suffering * Conflagration, a large uncontrolled fire Film * ''L'Inferno'', a 1911 Italian film * Inferno (1953 film), ''Inferno'' (1953 film), a film noir by Roy Ward Baker * Inferno (1973 fi ...

'' (1970) and ''

The Mind of Evil ''The Mind of Evil'' is the second serial of the Doctor Who (season 8), eighth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 30 January to 6 March 1971. In th ...

'' (1971), the fifth ''

Sapphire & Steel ''Sapphire & Steel'' is a British television supernatural sci-fi/fantasy series starring David McCallum as Steel and Joanna Lumley as Sapphire. Produced by ATV, it ran from 1979 to 1982 on the ITV network. The series was created by Peter J. ...

'' television story (known informally as ''Dr McDee Must Die'') co-written with

Anthony Read Anthony Read (21 April 1935 – 21 November 2015) was an English television producer, screenwriter, script editor and author. He was principally active in British television from the 1960s to the mid-1980s, which included a period as a script ...

, ''

Emergency – Ward 10 ''Emergency Ward 10'' is a British medical soap opera series shown on ITV between 1957 and 1967. Like ''The Grove Family'', a series shown by the BBC between 1954 and 1957, ''Emergency Ward 10'' is considered to be one of British television's fi ...

'', ''

Crossroads Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to: * Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet Film and television Films * ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa * ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...

'', '' Ace of Wands'', ''

New Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London' ...

'', '' The Professionals'' and at least one episode of ''

C.A.T.S. Eyes ''C.A.T.S. Eyes'' is a British television series made by TVS for ITV between 1985 and 1987. The series was a spin-off from ''The Gentle Touch'', and saw Jill Gascoine reprise her role as Maggie Forbes, portrayed as having left the police forc ...

'' (1985). Houghton created and wrote for the soap opera ''

Take the High Road ''Take the High Road'' (renamed ''High Road'' from 1994 to 2003) was a Scottish soap opera produced by Scottish Television, which started in February 1980 as an ITV network daytime programme, and was broadcast until 2003. It was set in the ficti ...

'' (1980).Elder, pp. 12–22. He also wrote three novels: ''Column of Thieves'' and ''Blood Brigade'' and ''Take the High Road: Summer's Gloaming''.

Personal life

Houghton was married to actress

Pik-Sen Lim Pik-Sen Lim (, born 15 September 1944) is a Malaysian-British actress. According to the British Film Institute, Lim was "the most familiar Chinese actor on British television screens in the 1970s and 80s." Her notable roles include Chin Lee i ...

. Their daughter

Sara Houghton Sara may refer to: Arts, media and entertainment Film and television * ''Sara'' (1992 film), 1992 Iranian film by Dariush Merhjui * ''Sara'' (1997 film), 1997 Polish film starring Bogusław Linda * ''Sara'' (2010 film), 2010 Sri Lankan Sinhal ...

is also an actress.

Writing credits

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Houghton, Don 1930 births 1991 deaths British male screenwriters British film producers British television writers British science fiction writers British horror writers British male television writers 20th-century British male writers 20th-century British screenwriters Take the High Road 20th-century British businesspeople