David Butler (screenwriter)
Encyclopedia
David Butler was a Scottish
writer of numerous screenplays and teleplays who won an Emmy Award
and was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe. He specialised in period-piece drama and is particularly remembered for a string of hit British TV shows, including Within These Walls
, Lillie
, We'll Meet Again
and Edward the Seventh, as well as for his acting, most specifically as Dr. Nick Williams on British television's first medical soap opera
, Emergency - Ward 10 in 1960–62.
in South Lanarkshire
, less than 30 km from Glasgow
, David Dalrymple Butler was born into a well-educated family, with his parents working as teachers. At the age of 18, as World War II
came to an end, he enrolled at Scotland's oldest institution of higher learning, University of St Andrews
, but ultimately abandoned his studies before attaining a degree, upon becoming interested in acting with the university drama society. He subsequently trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and began his performing career in West End revues
. In 1956, at the age of 29, he played a prison officer in Joan Littlewood
's Theatre Workshop
production of Brendan Behan
's The Quare Fellow
.
and, by the early 1960s, was supplementing his acting career with scriptwriting. Following a 1966 divorce, his 1969 marriage to Mary McPhail lasted for the remainder of his life and produced two daughters. By 1971 he had mostly given up acting and began to devote all of his energies to turning out teleplays. One of his first successes in the historical genre
was 1972's The Strauss Family
followed by many other productions, including The Duchess of Duke Street
in 1976–77, 1978's Disraeli, starring Ian McShane
and his 1986 Emmy-winning Mountbatten: The Last Viceroy with Nicol Williamson
in the title role.
Circumstances also permitted an occasional return to acting, as in his own teleplays of the 1974–78 TV prison series Within These Walls, in some episodes of which he played the penal institution chaplain, Rev. Henry Prentice. During this time, he also received the honor of being nominated for American cinema's Academy Award for his historical screenplay of 1976's Voyage of the Damned
, depicting the 1939 attempt by 937 Jews to escape the looming Holocaust via a ship traveling from Hitler's Germany to Havana
, but denied permission to disembark in Cuba
or in the United States.
David Butler died in London
at the age of 78.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
writer of numerous screenplays and teleplays who won an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
and was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe. He specialised in period-piece drama and is particularly remembered for a string of hit British TV shows, including Within These Walls
Within These Walls
Within These Walls is a British television drama programme made by London Weekend Television for ITV and shown between 1974 and 1978. It portrayed life in HMP Stone Park, a fictional women's prison...
, Lillie
Lillie
Lillie is a British television serial made by London Weekend Television for ITV and broadcast in 1978.This period serial starred Francesca Annis in the title role of Lillie Langtry...
, We'll Meet Again
We'll Meet Again (TV series)
We'll Meet Again is a British television drama set in the Second World War. It was produced by London Weekend Television for the ITV network and was broadcast in early 1982 in the Friday primetime slot of 9 pm GMT....
and Edward the Seventh, as well as for his acting, most specifically as Dr. Nick Williams on British television's first medical soap opera
Soap opera
A soap opera, sometimes called "soap" for short, is an ongoing, episodic work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format on radio or as television programming. The name soap opera stems from the original dramatic serials broadcast on radio that had soap manufacturers, such as Procter & Gamble,...
, Emergency - Ward 10 in 1960–62.
Early years
A native of the town of LarkhallLarkhall
Larkhall is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland and is around southeast of Glasgow. It is twinned with Seclin in northern France.Larkhall sits on high ground between the River Clyde to the East and the Avon Water to the West...
in South Lanarkshire
South Lanarkshire
South Lanarkshire is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of the former county of Lanarkshire. It borders the south-east of the city of Glasgow and contains many of Glasgow's suburbs, commuter towns and smaller villages....
, less than 30 km from Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, David Dalrymple Butler was born into a well-educated family, with his parents working as teachers. At the age of 18, as World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
came to an end, he enrolled at Scotland's oldest institution of higher learning, University of St Andrews
University of St Andrews
The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
, but ultimately abandoned his studies before attaining a degree, upon becoming interested in acting with the university drama society. He subsequently trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and began his performing career in West End revues
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
. In 1956, at the age of 29, he played a prison officer in Joan Littlewood
Joan Littlewood
Joan Maud Littlewood was a British theatre director, noted for her work in developing the left-wing Theatre Workshop...
's Theatre Workshop
Theatre Workshop
Theatre Workshop is a theatre group noted for their director, Joan Littlewood. Many actors of the 1950s and 1960s received their training and first exposure with the company...
production of Brendan Behan
Brendan Behan
Brendan Francis Behan was an Irish poet, short story writer, novelist, and playwright who wrote in both Irish and English. He was also an Irish republican and a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army.-Early life:...
's The Quare Fellow
The Quare Fellow
The Quare Fellow is Brendan Behan's first play, first produced in 1954.The title is taken from a Hiberno-English pronunciation of queer, meaning 'strange' or 'unusual'. In context, the word lacks the denotation of homosexuality which it holds today...
.
Career highlights
In 1959 he married actress Norma RonaldNorma Ronald
Norma Ronald was a British actress best known for her appearances as "Mildred Murfin" in the 1960s BBC Radio comedy series The Men from the Ministry, as "Miss Ealand" in the Science Fiction television series UFO and as Sir John Wilder's ever-resourceful secretary Kay Lingard in both The Plane...
and, by the early 1960s, was supplementing his acting career with scriptwriting. Following a 1966 divorce, his 1969 marriage to Mary McPhail lasted for the remainder of his life and produced two daughters. By 1971 he had mostly given up acting and began to devote all of his energies to turning out teleplays. One of his first successes in the historical genre
Docudrama
In film, television programming and staged theatre, docudrama is a documentary-style genre that features dramatized re-enactments of actual historical events. As a neologism, the term is often confused with docufiction....
was 1972's The Strauss Family
The Strauss Family
The Strauss Family is a 1972 Associated Television series, made in England, of eight episodes, about the family of composers of that name, including Johann Strauss I and his sons Johann Strauss II, Eduard Strauss and Josef Strauss....
followed by many other productions, including The Duchess of Duke Street
The Duchess of Duke Street
The Duchess Of Duke Street is a BBC television drama series set in London between 1900 and 1935. It was created by John Hawkesworth, the former producer of the highly successful ITV period drama Upstairs, Downstairs...
in 1976–77, 1978's Disraeli, starring Ian McShane
Ian McShane
Ian David McShane is an English actor, director, producer, voice artist, and comedian.Despite appearing in numerous films, McShane is best known for his television roles, particularly the BBC's Lovejoy and HBO's Western drama Deadwood...
and his 1986 Emmy-winning Mountbatten: The Last Viceroy with Nicol Williamson
Nicol Williamson
Nicol Williamson is a Scottish-born English actor who was described by English playwright John Osborne as "the greatest actor since Marlon Brando".-Early life:...
in the title role.
Circumstances also permitted an occasional return to acting, as in his own teleplays of the 1974–78 TV prison series Within These Walls, in some episodes of which he played the penal institution chaplain, Rev. Henry Prentice. During this time, he also received the honor of being nominated for American cinema's Academy Award for his historical screenplay of 1976's Voyage of the Damned
Voyage of the Damned
Voyage of the Damned is the title of a 1974 book written by Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan-Witts, which was the basis of a 1976 drama film with the same title.The story was inspired by true events concerning the fate of the MS St...
, depicting the 1939 attempt by 937 Jews to escape the looming Holocaust via a ship traveling from Hitler's Germany to Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
, but denied permission to disembark in Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
or in the United States.
David Butler died in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
at the age of 78.
Awards and nominations
- Academy Award nomination for Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium for: Voyage of the Damned (1976)
- Golden Globe nomination for Best Screenplay - Motion Picture for: Voyage of the Damned (1976)
- Emmy Award winner for Outstanding Writing in a Miniseries or a Special for: Lord Mountbatten: The Last Viceroy (1986)
Sources
- Hayward, Anthony. "David Butler—Writer of TV historical dramas" (The Independent, 8 June 2006)
- Newley, Patrick. "David Butler" (The Stage, 26 June 2006)