
Acting
Neville Smith
Born 1940-01-01 · Liverpool, England, UK
Born in Liverpool in 1940, Neville Smith, a one time collaborator of director Ken Loach, is one of a number of working-class actors and writers to have transformed the subject-matter and tone of television drama in the 1960s and 1970s. He was responsible for two of Loach's finest television films - 'The Golden Vision' (The Wednesday Play, BBC, tx. 17/4/1968) and After a Lifetime (ITV, tx. 18/7/1971) - but also developed a partnership with the director Stephen Frears, for whom he wrote the cult British detective film, Gumshoe (UK/US, 1971).
Acting credits
6.7When the young, attractive Joe Orton meets the older, more introverted Kenneth Halliwell at drama school, he befriends the kindred spirit and they start an affair. As Orton becomes more comfortable with his sexuality and starts to find success with his writing, Halliwell becomes increasingly alienated and jealous, ultimately tapping into a dangerous rage.
Prick Up Your Ears
1987
6.8A young Englishman dreams of escaping from his working class family and dead-end job as an undertaker's assistant. A number of indiscretions cause him to lie in order to avoid the penalties. His life turns into a mess and he has an opportunity to run away and leave it all behind.
Billy Liar
1963
NRThe Lump is an uncompromising exploration of exploitation and resistance within the building trade.
The Lump
1967
6.4In a staid English seaside town after the Second World War, young Lynda grows up with her widowed father and younger sister. Rebellious Lynda has been swearing constantly from an early age. At sixteen, she becomes more exhibitionist and seeks out sexual encounters challenging the prevailing lower-middle class attitudes to sex.
Wish You Were Here
1987
8.7A documentary crew films heavy metal band Bad News as they have trouble starting their van, pick up a schoolgirl groupie, and meet up with rock journalist Sally at a motorway service station where they argue about the cost of sausage and chips.
Bad News
1983
6.2A would be private eye gets mixed up in a smuggling case.
Gumshoe
1971
NRLee, a Chinese man, works as a waiter in a hotel in England, despite speaking very little English. Told that a girl called Iris might be interested in him, on his afternoon off work he buys a box of chocolates and sets off to find her.
Afternoon Off
1979
7.0Two guys meet, one American, a deserter from the US army, one Brit, and they are drawn together by their mutual love of Soul music. Neither being gainfully employed they decide to start a mobile disco service for fellow soul lovers, which leads them to buy an ice cream van, and the adventure begins. Before long they find themselves on the run from the bad guys and the police.
Coast to Coast
1987
9.0Against the backdrop of the 1977 Edinburgh Film Festival, two low-budget filmmakers attempt to talk up some finance as they hunt for cash, cast and ‘name director’ Sam Fuller to shoot their Aberdeen-set oil-boom adventure ‘Gulf and Western’. Along the way, they encounter a plethora of filmmaking luminaries including Wim Wenders, Stephen Frears, John Boorman, Bill Forsyth and Alan Bennett.
Long Shot
1978
6.3The TARDIS materialises not far from Paris in 1794 — one of the bloodiest years following the French Revolution of 1789. The travellers become involved with an escape chain rescuing prisoners from the guillotine and get caught up in the machinations of an English undercover spy, James Stirling — alias Lemaitre, governor of the Conciergerie prison.
Doctor Who: The Reign of Terror
1964
7.0The commanding officer of a regiment handling nuclear missiles is shocked to see his daughter Sally on television taking part in a student demonstration.
There Is Also Tomorrow
1969
6.8After a prolonged industrial dispute in the Liverpool Docks, the striking workers reject management demands of a return to work and decide instead to occupy the docks and run the operation themselves.
The Big Flame
1969
10.0Play For Today written by and starring Neville Smith. Christian Harvey , a local radio DJ and ageing rocker, is an obsessive fan of Elvis and the news of Elvis's death is for him a personal tragedy as well as the end of an era.
Long Distance Information
1979
8.0A group of coal miners from Nottingham go on their annual trip to Blackpool.
Sling Your Hook
1969
5.5In this off-beat musical – a satire that combines fantasy, social observation and songs – a working class man goes to put a deposit on a new house only to find he prefers spending to saving and is happy to spend his money on a few hours of happiness rather than a lifetime's conventionality.
The End of Arthur's Marriage
1965
6.8Wilkinsons glass-works dominates a Staffordshire town. After a small walkout over pay discrepancies, the workers of the factory vote to go on strike, but they are denied support by their trade union.
The Rank and File
1971
10.0A repressed night-school teacher, secretly homosexual, struggles to cope with his demanding, eccentric mother.
Me! I'm Afraid of Virginia Woolf
1978
7.0Kate, a young girl under psychiatric examination, suffers from a lack of confidence, self-esteem and self-control – telling of the “bad Kate” who commits immoral acts. Could the hypocrisy, selfishness and weakness of those around her have led to this state of mind or can Kate simply be diagnosed and dismissed as a schizophrenic?
In Two Minds
1967
NRA double offering of heavy metal madness from The Comic Strip and Bad News.
Completely Bad News
2019
NRChance has missed the match, but the girls at his sister's wedding might make up for it
Match of the Day
1974
6.4The obsessive supporters of Everton FC forsake wives, families and God to follow their beloved team. Meanwhile, the club and its players try to live up to their expectations.
The Golden Vision
1968
NRWhen teacher Tony Scannell decides he wants to be ordained as a Catholic Priest his decision has wide ranging effects on his family and loved ones.
Bag of Yeast
1976
3.0A Marxist-Leninist expelled from the British Communist Party joins the Revolutionary Party of the Third World, sleeps around, and attempts to rethink his place within the revolution after the events of the 1968 May uprising in Paris.
Praise Marx and Pass the Ammunition
1970
A young couple celebrate their wedding anniversary with a night on the town.
Wear a Very Big Hat
1965
Behind the camera
6.2A would be private eye gets mixed up in a smuggling case.
Gumshoe
1971
10.0Play For Today written by and starring Neville Smith. Christian Harvey , a local radio DJ and ageing rocker, is an obsessive fan of Elvis and the news of Elvis's death is for him a personal tragedy as well as the end of an era.
Long Distance Information
1979
7.5The true story of the First world football competition, won by a team comprised of miners from Durham.
The World Cup: A Captain's Tale
1982
NRChance has missed the match, but the girls at his sister's wedding might make up for it
Match of the Day
1974
NRJewish people - and a few Gentiles - muse on what it means to be Jewish in 1960s Britain. The challenges of maintaining faith and culture outside Israel, and in a society where ‘Jewish’ and ‘English’ are seen as mutually exclusive identities are perceptively explored in this astute documentary. Some secular Jews are keen to distance themselves from traditional Judaism and especially Zionism (one defines himself simply as a Marxist). Gentiles are on hand to cheerfully perpetuate some of the old stereotypes, and we’re treated to colourful snapshots of the Jewish community in London: the rag trade, a kosher butcher and restaurant.
Some of My Best Friends...
1969
6.4The obsessive supporters of Everton FC forsake wives, families and God to follow their beloved team. Meanwhile, the club and its players try to live up to their expectations.
The Golden Vision
1968
NRWhen teacher Tony Scannell decides he wants to be ordained as a Catholic Priest his decision has wide ranging effects on his family and loved ones.
Bag of Yeast
1976