David Leland has died: “Wish You Were Here” director and “The Borgias” co-showrunner was 82

The British director and actor David Leland has died at the age of 82, reports his old agency Casarotto Ramsay & Associates.

The theater, film and television star died on Christmas Eve (December 24) surrounded by his family.

Leland’s career spanned more than five decades. He is known for writing two films about British suburbanite BAFTA nominee Cynthia Payne Personal Services in 1987 and a hit at the Cannes Film Festival Wish you Were Here.

The former was directed by Terry Jones and starred Julie Walters, while the latter was directed by Leland himself and starred Emily Lloyd.

Leland won the BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay Wish you Were Here and the film won the FIPRESCI prize in Cannes.

He is also known as the co-showrunner of the Showtime series The Borgias and for Pierce Brosnan his first stage opportunity in the UK premiere of Tennessee Williams’ The Red Devil battery sign in “The Round House,” directed by Leland.

“David Leland has a strong place in my heart,” Brosnan said in his tribute. “I have just come from the Drama Centre, where David was also a graduate. It was the thrill of my young life to be cast as McCabe and to work with David and Tennessee. David will forever be an integral part of my story and that of all who knew and loved him.”

Leland initially trained as an actor at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and was one of a group of teachers and students who split to form the Drama Center London, where he gained several credits before moving to stage management at the Crucible theater passed. director. . Here he worked with the future Monty Python starring Michael Palin and Jones and directed from the first play by the late British comedian Victoria Wood. talent.

He later became a screenwriter for film and television, including for Alan Clarke Made in Britain (1982), Mike Newells Birth of a Nation (1983) and that of Neil Jordan Mona Lisa (1986), the latter nominated Bob Hoskins for a BAFTA and Oscar, Golden Globe and Writers Guild of America Award.

Leland directed films starring Liam Neeson The tall man And Country girl and directed the musical A tribute to the Blues Brotherswhich played in the West End and then toured the UK and Australia for ten years.

On television, he directed an Emmy Award-winning episode of an HBO miniseries Brotherhood and became a director and writer on the Showtime drama The Borgias, with Jeremy Irons. He returned for the second season as co-showrunner.

Leland was a close friend of Beatles star George Harrison and worked as a director on his 1988 film Unsubscribe and as director of several Traveling Wilbur music videos. After Harrison’s death, he made a documentary Concert for George in 2003, which took place at the Royal Albert Hall and was attended by the surviving Beatles, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, as well as Eric Clapton, Tom Petty and many others. The doctor won a Grammy.

Tim Roth, who played the lead role Made in BritainHe said: “David was there at the start of this crazy adventure. He changed my life and I love him for it. I will always keep him with me.”

“David was a dream to work with,” says Neeson, who played the lead role The tall man for Leland. “He was a true collaborator; He loved and admired actors very much. We developed a close bond. I loved his mischievous sense of humor. You’re always in my heart, mate. See you on your way.”

Gilliam, a longtime friend and early collaborator, added: “The loss of David is very sad. As a friend and as a writer/director he was always down to earth… always sensitive and brutally honest. His 1987 film, Wish you Were Hereis still one of my favorite British films of all time.

Leland is survived by his wife, four daughters, a son and six grandchildren.