David John Lee Maloney (14 December 1933 – 18 July 2006) was a British

television director A television director is in charge of the activities involved in making a television program or section of a program. They are generally responsible for decisions about the editorial content and creative style of a program, and ensuring the prod ...

and producer, best known for his work on the BBC science-fiction series ''

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 ...

'', ''

Blake's 7 ''Blake's 7'' (sometimes styled ''Blakes7'') is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. Four 13-episode series were broadcast on BBC1 between 1978 and 1981. It was created by Terry Nation, who also wrote the first ...

'' and ''

The Day of the Triffids ''The Day of the Triffids'' is a 1951 post-apocalyptic novel by the English science fiction author John Wyndham. After most people in the world are blinded by an apparent meteor shower, an aggressive species of plant starts killing people. A ...

''. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'' described him on his death as "one of that old school who could turn out 30-minute dramas in two days shooting time".

Early life

Maloney was born in

Alvechurch Alvechurch ( ) is a large village and civil parish in the Bromsgrove district in northeast Worcestershire, England, in the valley of the River Arrow. The Lickey Hills Country Park is 2.5 miles (4 km) to the northwest. It is south of Bir ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

, educated at

King Edward VI Five Ways King Edward VI Five Ways (KEFW) is a highly selective co-educational state grammar school for ages 11–18 in Bartley Green, Birmingham, England. One of the seven establishments of the Foundation of the Schools of King Edward VI, it is a volu ...

and served in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

before becoming an actor in repertory theatre.

Career

Maloney joined the BBC as a television production assistant and trained to be a director at the corporation. His directing credits included the police series ''

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 deb ...

'', '' Softly, Softly: Taskforce'' and ''

Juliet Bravo ''Juliet Bravo'' is a British television police procedural drama series, first broadcast on 30 August 1980, that ran for six series and a total of 88 episodes on BBC1. The theme of the series concerned a female police inspector who took over con ...

'', and an adaptation of the

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy ...

novel ''

Ivanhoe ''Ivanhoe: A Romance'' () by Walter Scott is a historical novel published in three volumes, in 1819, as one of the Waverley novels. Set in England in the Middle Ages, this novel marked a shift away from Scott’s prior practice of setting ...

'' (1970). He first worked on ''

'' as a production assistant to

Christopher Barry Christopher Chisholm Barry (20 September 1925 – 7 February 2014) was a British television director. He worked extensively in BBC television drama and became best known for his work on the science fiction series ''Doctor Who''. He also direct ...

on the serial '' The Rescue'' (1965). He directed eight ''Doctor Who'' serials between 1968 and 1977. He became, along with Douglas Camfield, one of producer

Philip Hinchcliffe Philip Michael Hinchcliffe (born October 1944) is a retired English television producer, screenwriter and script editor. After graduating from Cambridge University, he began his career as a writer and script editor at Associated Television befo ...

's two favourite directors.Voice-over commentary on the BBC DVD "

The Seeds of Doom ''The Seeds of Doom'' is the sixth and final serial of the 13th season of the British science fiction television Science fiction first appeared in television programming in the late 1930s, during what is called the Golden Age of Science Fic ...

" (1976, 2010) He then became the producer of the first three seasons of ''

'' (1978–80), which included directing three episodes himself. He left ''Blake's 7'' to produce the last series of ''

When the Boat Comes In ''When the Boat Comes In'' is a British television period drama produced by the BBC between 1976 and 1981. The series stars James Bolam as Jack Ford, a First World War veteran who returns to his poverty-stricken (fictional) town of Gallowshi ...

'' (1981). He also produced the BBC's adaptation of

John Wyndham John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris (; 10 July 1903 – 11 March 1969) was an English science fiction writer best known for his works published under the pen name John Wyndham, although he also used other combinations of his names ...

's novel ''

'' (1981).

Later work

Subsequent to his work in television drama, Maloney moved to factual programme-making and travelled the world making various documentaries for the ITV contractor

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

. Towards the end of his life, he appeared in a number of TV and DVD documentaries about his work on ''Doctor Who''. He also provided DVD commentaries for three of the serials he directed, ''

The Mind Robber ''The Mind Robber'' is the second serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in five weekly parts from 14 September to 12 October 1968. The serial is set outside of time ...

'' (1968), ''

Genesis of the Daleks ''Genesis of the Daleks'' is the fourth serial of the twelfth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. It was written by Terry Nation and directed by David Maloney, and originally broadcast in six weekly parts fr ...

'' (1975) and '' The Talons of Weng-Chiang'' (1977).

Death

Maloney died on 18 July 2006.

''Doctor Who''

:(director only) *''

'' (1968) *''

The Krotons ''The Krotons'' is the fourth serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 28 December 1968 to 18 January 1969. In the serial, the time travel ...

'' (1968–69) *''

The War Games ''The War Games'' is the seventh and final serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which originally aired in ten weekly parts from 19 April to 21 June 1969. In the serial, an unnamed alien r ...

'' (1969) *''

Planet of the Daleks ''Planet of the Daleks'' is the fourth serial of the tenth season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in six weekly parts on BBC1 from 7 April to 12 May 1973. Continuing from the events of t ...

'' (1973) (also the final scene of the preceding '' Frontier in Space'' (1973)) *''

'' (1975) *'' Planet of Evil'' (1975) *'' The Deadly Assassin'' (1976) *'' The Talons of Weng-Chiang'' (1977)

''Blake's 7''

As well as producing the first three seasons of ''Blake's 7'', Maloney also directed the following three episodes: *''Deliverance'' (with

Michael E. Briant Michael Edwin Briant (born 14 February 1942) is a retired English television director and author, best known for his work as a director for BBC television drama in the 1970s and 1980s. Career At the age of 21 Briant joined the BBC as an assistan ...

) (Episode 12 of Season 1) *''Star One'' (Episode 13 of Season 2) *''Powerplay'' (Episode 2 of Season 3)

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Maloney, David 1933 births 2006 deaths 20th-century Royal Air Force personnel BBC television producers British television directors Deaths from cancer in England People educated at King Edward VI Five Ways People from Alvechurch