Colin Welland

Acting

Colin Welland

Born 1934-07-04 · Liverpool, England

Actor and writer Colin Welland will perhaps be forever remembered for his triumph at the 1982 Academy Awards, when he won the Best Screenplay Oscar for his screenplay for the hit film Chariots of Fire, proclaiming "The British are Coming!" As an actor, his first film appearance is perhaps still his best-loved, the sympathetic Mr Farthing in Kes (1969), for which he won a BAFTA. Born in Liverpool, but raised in Leigh, Welland initially started out as an art teacher before moving into acting and becoming a household name playing the role of PC Graham in the long running BBC police serial Z Cars. Aside from Chariots of Fire, he wrote many other plays and films including the BAFTA winning Kisses at Fifty (later remade for Hollywood with Gene Hackman as Twice in a Lifetime), Leeds United! based on the rag trade strike that his own mother-in-law was active in, Yanks, A Dry White Season and War of the Buttons. As a film and TV actor his credits include Kes, Straw Dogs, Blue Remembered Hills, Cowboys and Sweeney! He died at the age of 81 on November 2, 2015, having suffered from Alzheimer's disease for several years.

Acting credits

Straw Dogs poster
7.1

David Sumner, a mild-mannered academic from the United States, marries Amy, an Englishwoman. In order to escape a hectic stateside lifestyle, David and his wife relocate to the small town in rural Cornwall where Amy was raised. There, David is ostracized by the brutish men of the village, including Amy's old flame, Charlie. Eventually the taunts escalate.

Straw Dogs

1971

Kes poster
7.4

Bullied at school and ignored and abused at home by his indifferent mother and older brother, Billy Casper, a 15-year-old working-class Yorkshire boy, tames and trains his pet kestrel falcon whom he names Kes. Helped and encouraged by his English teacher and his fellow students, Billy finally finds a positive purpose to his unhappy existence.

Kes

1970

Machinegunner poster
6.0

A 'machinegunner' (West Country slang for a debt-collector) turns amateur sleuth, but finds himself in hot water with local criminals.

Machinegunner

1976

The Secret Life of Ian Fleming poster
4.5

The Secret Life of Ian Fleming follows the exciting life of a dashing young Ian Fleming, the mastermind behind the highly successful James Bond books and movies.

The Secret Life of Ian Fleming

1990

Villain poster
6.1

In 1970s London, Scotland Yard orchestrates the downfall of mob boss Vic Dakin after he crosses the line by blackmailing Members of Parliament.

Villain

1971

Femme Fatale poster
8.0

Sicilian-born Maddalena has moved to a Devonshire village in England to escape volatile sexual tempers. She marries, but the lust she inspires in the villagers makes them drop dead.

Femme Fatale

1993

After Dark poster
NR

Colin Welland presents this public information film about the hazards of nighttime driving.

After Dark

1979

United Kingdom poster
7.0

Incendiary 1981 Play for Today, written by Jim Allen and directed by Roland Joffé that tells the story of a group of housing estate residents who attempt to organise against persistent rent rises.

United Kingdom

1981

Sweeney! poster
6.7

When one of Regan's snouts complains that his girlfriend's recent suicide was murder, the flying squad detective feels compelled to investigate. He uncovers a conspiracy that reaches the heart of the government, and finds himself fitted up, suspended and under the scrutiny of Special Branch.

Sweeney!

1977

Blue Remembered Hills poster
7.3

On an idyllic summer afternoon in the summer of 1943, a group of children play in the West Country hills, fields and forests. With no adults around, they indulge in spontaneous games and horseplay - sometimes echoing the distant war, at other times revealing their own insecurities and petty vindictiveness.

Blue Remembered Hills

1979

Dancin' Thru the Dark poster
7.1

Linda is out on her hen night while her fiance Dave is out on his stag night. Linda is having major doubts about getting married. Both groups end up at the same club, only to discover that its band is fronted by her ex-boyfriend - and the love of her life - Peter. Linda has to decide: does she stay and settle down with Dave, like her friends want her to, or does she chuck it all in and run away with Peter?

Dancin' Thru the Dark

1990

The Fix poster
3.8

The story of the British betting scandal of 1964, uncovered by journalist Mike Gabbert which saw a number of British professional footballers were jailed and banned from football for life for conspiring to fix the results of matches. Prominent among those jailed and banned were the Sheffield Wednesday F.C. stars Peter Swan, Tony Kay and David Layne.

The Fix

1997

Watch That Space poster
NR

Colin Welland presents this confined spaces training video from the Health and Safety Executive, detailing the hazards of entering any confined space without the neccessary awareness, training & equipment.

Watch That Space

1978

Leeds United! poster
10.0

The true story of a strike in 1970 by female textile-factory workers in Leeds who wanted to be paid the same as their male colleagues, but whose efforts were undermined by the trade union that they belonged to.

Leeds United!

1974

The Trial of Klaus Barbie poster
NR

Decades after the end of World War II, escaped war criminal Klaus Barbie is brought to justice.

The Trial of Klaus Barbie

1987

The Return of the Green Man poster
NR

Since ancient times, the Green Man has been one of the most mysterious and menacing of mythical characters. He also has a familiar face as Robin Hood, Jack in the Green and on numerous pub signs. Across the arts from comic strips to classical opera, the Green Man is now making a comeback. Where is he taking us? Writer Sir Kingsley Amis, film director John Boorman, composer Sir Harrison Birtwistle and other leading artists offer their interpretations of the mystery in this Omnibus documentary film from 16th November, 1990.

The Return of the Green Man

1990

A Passage to England poster
NR

Anand, his pretty cousin and their sick uncle are stranded in Amsterdam where they receive an offer to take them to England.

A Passage to England

1975

Say Goodnight to Your Grandma poster
NR

Colin Welland's play about a wife, her mother, her mother-in-law and conflict.

Say Goodnight to Your Grandma

1970

Roll On Four O'Clock poster
6.0

Compelling drama from screenwriter Colin Welland set in a city comprehensive school of low expectations and ambitions. Pupil Latimer does not conform to the macho culture and is labeled a homosexual, leading to bullying by both the pupils and some of the teachers.

Roll On Four O'Clock

1970

Behind the camera

Chariots of Fire poster
6.8

In the class-obsessed and religiously divided UK of the early 1920s, two determined young runners train for the 1924 Paris Olympics. Eric Liddell, a devout Christian born to Scottish missionaries in China, sees running as part of his worship of God's glory and refuses to train or compete on the Sabbath. Harold Abrahams overcomes anti-Semitism and class bias, but neglects his beloved sweetheart in his single-minded quest.

Chariots of Fire

1981

Yanks poster
5.9

During WWII, the United States set up army bases in Great Britain as part of the war effort. Against their proper sensibilities, many of the Brits don't much like the brash Yanks, especially when it comes to the G.I.s making advances on the lonely British girls. One relationship that develops is between married John, an Army Captain, and the aristocratic Helen, whose naval husband is away at war. Helen loves her husband, but Helen and John are looking for some comfort during the difficult times.

Yanks

1979

A Dry White Season poster
6.7

During the 1976 Soweto uprising, a white school teacher's life and values are threatened when he asks questions about the death of a young black boy who died in police custody.

A Dry White Season

1989

Twice in a Lifetime poster
5.8

A middle-aged steelworker is content with his job and his family, but feels that something is missing in his life. On his 50th birthday, he stops in at a local bar for a drink to celebrate. He finds himself attracted to the young, very sexy barmaid--and, to his surprise, he finds that she is also very attracted to him.

Twice in a Lifetime

1985

War of the Buttons poster
7.0

War between two Irish youth gangs consists of removing and retrieving buttons from each other's clothing.

War of the Buttons

1994

Bank Holiday poster
NR

18-year-old friends Todd and Towzer set off by motorbike to spend a Bank Holiday weekend in Scarborough. Their long hair, cut-off denim jackets, medals, badges and swastikas lead to hostility from everyone they meet, including the police

Bank Holiday

1972

Kisses at Fifty poster
5.0

A father leaves his grown-up family to move in with his lover in the south, alienating himself from his four children.

Kisses at Fifty

1973

Leeds United! poster
10.0

The true story of a strike in 1970 by female textile-factory workers in Leeds who wanted to be paid the same as their male colleagues, but whose efforts were undermined by the trade union that they belonged to.

Leeds United!

1974

Jack Point poster
8.0

Rivalry at a local Gilbert and Sullivan Society over who will play Jack Point in the Silver Jubilee production. Rowland Matthews has always been the main star, but he is getting on, and the young Clive Bates is a strong rival.

Jack Point

1973

The Hallelujah Handshake poster
7.9

Henry sets out to join a church and passionately help the parish. Slowly but surely his habits of exaggeration and lying begin to catch up with him.

The Hallelujah Handshake

1970

Bambino Mio poster
NR

A woman fights to adopt a war baby from the Third World after becoming unable to conceive.

Bambino Mio

1994

Your Man from Six Counties poster
10.0

When his father becomes a bomb victim, Jimmy leaves Belfast for his uncle’s farm in remote west Ireland. But even here there are links to the past.

Your Man from Six Counties

1976

Say Goodnight to Your Grandma poster
NR

Colin Welland's play about a wife, her mother, her mother-in-law and conflict.

Say Goodnight to Your Grandma

1970

Roll On Four O'Clock poster
6.0

Compelling drama from screenwriter Colin Welland set in a city comprehensive school of low expectations and ambitions. Pupil Latimer does not conform to the macho culture and is labeled a homosexual, leading to bullying by both the pupils and some of the teachers.

Roll On Four O'Clock

1970