Neville Smith (born January 1940, in

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

Eva Orbany (1981) ''Journey to a Legend and Back: The British Realistic Film''. New York: Zoetrope; p. 198) is a British screenwriter and actor who has contributed to numerous television productions, radio plays and movies. After studying politics and history at

Hull University , mottoeng = Bearing the Torch f learning, established = 1927 – University College Hull1954 – university status , type = Public , endowment = £18.8 million (2016) , budget = £190 million ...

Smith worked as a teacher. Subsequently, he became an announcer and, from 1965, wrote for BBC Radio. He took part in a total of 57 radio dramas. In 1964 he made his TV acting debut in the premiere episode of the

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

comedy drama series ''

Villains A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...

'' He was also seen in an episode of the ''

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 ...

'' story '' The Reign of Terror''. In 1968 he wrote his first screenplay, ''The Golden Vision'', for the BBC TV series ''

The Wednesday Play ''The Wednesday Play'' is an anthology series of United Kingdom, British television plays which ran on BBC One, BBC1 for six seasons from October 1964 to May 1970. The plays were usually original works written for television, although dramati ...

''. In the following years he appeared in episodes of ''

Cluff Cluff was a BBC TV detective television series set in the fictional town of Gunnershaw in the Yorkshire Dales. Based on the eponymous novels by Gil North, it featured Leslie Sands in the title role as Sergeant Caleb Cluff, and ran for two serie ...

'', ''

Z-Cars ''Z-Cars'' or ''Z Cars'' (pronounced "zed cars") is a British television police procedural series centred on the work of mobile uniformed police in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, near Liverpool. Produced by the BBC, it debuted ...

'', ''

Thirty-Minute Theatre ''Thirty-Minute Theatre'' was a British anthology drama series of short plays shown on BBC Television between 1965 and 1973, which was used in part at least as a training ground for new writers, on account of its short running length, and which t ...

'', '' Softly Softly'', ''

Her Majesty's Pleasure At His Majesty's pleasure (sometimes abbreviated to King's pleasure or, when the reigning monarch is female, at Her Majesty's pleasure or Queen's pleasure) is a legal term of art referring to the indeterminate or undetermined length of service of c ...

'' and ''

''. In 1971 the film '' Gumshoe'', based on Smith's novel of the same title, was the first major film-directlng assignment for

Stephen Frears Stephen Arthur Frears (born 20 June 1941) is an English director and producer of film and television often depicting real life stories as well as projects that explore social class through sharply drawn characters. He's received numerous accola ...

. Smith also played a small role in the film, as Arthur, a character whom Eddie Ginley (played by Albert Finney) consults about the gun before entering

Liverpool Docks The Port of Liverpool is the enclosed dock system that runs from Brunswick Dock in Liverpool to Seaforth Dock, Seaforth, on the east side of the River Mersey and the Birkenhead Docks between Birkenhead and Wallasey on the west side of the ...

. In 1977 Smith wrote the screenplay for ''

Apaches The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño and ...

'', a short

public information film Public information films (PIFs) are a series of government-commissioned short films, shown during television advertising breaks in the United Kingdom. The name is sometimes also applied, ''faute de mieux'', to similar films from other countries, ...

(government-funded documentary) directed by John Mackenzie, about the dangers to children playing on farms. In the late 1970s Smith played the protagonist in two television plays directed by Stephen Frears: ''

Me! I'm Afraid of Virginia Woolf ''Me! I'm Afraid of Virginia Woolf'' is a 1978 television play by Alan Bennett, produced by London Weekend Television and directed by Stephen Frears. The title of the play is a parody of ''Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?'', which in turn plays on ...

'' (1978) by

Alan Bennett Alan Bennett (born 9 May 1934) is an English actor, author, playwright and screenwriter. Over his distinguished entertainment career he has received numerous awards and honours including two BAFTA Awards, four Laurence Olivier Awards, and tw ...

, and ''Long Distance Information'' (1979), his own play about the

death of Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

. Smith's most recent appearances on screen have been in ''

Wish You Were Here Wish You Were Here may refer to: Film, television, and theater Film * Wish You Were Here (1987 film), ''Wish You Were Here'' (1987 film), a British comedy-drama film by David Leland * Wish You Were Here (2012 film), ''Wish You Were Here'' (2012 ...

'' (1987) and in the TV film '' Friends in Space'' (1990).

References

External links

* * English male film actors English screenwriters English male screenwriters English male television actors Living people 1940 births {{UK-film-bio-stub