David Leland

Writing

David Leland

Born — Died

1947-04-20 — 2023-12-24

Place of birth

Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK

Known for

Writing

Credits

51 titles

David Leland (20 April 1947 - 24 December 2023) was a director, screenwriter and actor who came to international fame with his directorial debut Wish You Were Here in 1987.

Known for

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles poster
6.5

At the dawn of the 20th century, Indiana Jones discovered the world. From globetrotting family expeditions as a 9-year-old to the battlefields of World War I as a teenager, Indy’s experiences shaped the heroic, whip-cracking archaeologist he would become. At every turn, Indy encounters history in the making, meeting true-life activists, soldiers, writers, artists, and thinkers who helped influence the world we live in today.

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles

1992

Van der Valk poster
6.2

Van der Valk is a British television series that was produced by Thames Television for the ITV network. It starred Barry Foster in the title role as Dutch detective Commissaris "Piet" van der Valk. Based on the characters and atmosphere of the novels of Nicolas Freeling, the first series was shown in 1972.

Van der Valk

1972

Virgin Territory poster
5.0

In Black Death era Tuscany, as in the Decameron, ten young Florentines take refuge from the plague. But instead of telling stories, they have lusty adventures, bawdy exchanges, romance, swordplay, randy nuns, Saracen pirates, and a sexy cow.

Virgin Territory

2007

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy poster
8.1

Don't Panic! The story of Arthur Dent, an average Englishman whose life was spared by his friend, who turned out to be an alien, while the planet Earth is destroyed. His friend tells him about the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, a guide with anything you ever needed, and wanted to know. They travel across the galaxy, meeting friendly, and not so friendly characters in order to find the great question (the answer being 42).

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

1981

Callan poster
7.0

Callan is the title of a British television series set in the murky world of espionage. Originally produced by ABC Weekend Television and later Thames Television, it was aired on the ITV network over four seasons spread out between 1967 and 1972. The series starred Edward Woodward as David Callan, a reluctant professional killer for a shadowy branch of the British Government's intelligence services known as 'the Section'.

Callan

1967

Target poster
7.0

A crime drama set in Southampton following a team of detectives and the cases they solve.

Target

1977

Film credits

2000s · 4 titles

1980s · 4 titles

1970s · 8 titles

Scars of Dracula poster
5.9

The Prince of Darkness casts his undead shadow once more over the cursed village of Kleinenberg when his ashes are splashed with bat's blood and Dracula is resurrected. And two innocent victims search for a missing loved one... loved to death by Dracula's mistress. But after they discover his blood-drained corpse in Dracula's castle necropolis, the Vampire Lord's lustful vengeance begins.

Scars of Dracula

1970

Julius Caesar poster
5.9

All-star cast glamorizes this lavish 1970 remake of the classic William Shakespeare play, which portrays the assassination of Julius Caesar on the Ides of March, and the resulting war between the faction led by the assassins and the faction led by Mark Anthony.

Julius Caesar

1970

The Pied Piper poster
5.9

Greed, corruption, ignorance, and disease. Midsummer, 1349: the Black Death reaches northern Germany. Minstrels go to Hamelin for the Mayor's daughter's wedding to the Baron's son. He wants her dowry to pay his army while his father taxes the people to build a cathedral he thinks will save his soul. A local apothecary who's a Jew seeks a treatment for the plague; the priests charge him with witchcraft. One of the minstrels, who has soothed the Mayor's daughter with his music, promises to rid the town of rats for the fee. The Mayor agrees, then renigs. In the morning, the plague, the Jew's trial, and the Piper's revenge come at once.

The Pied Piper

1972

Gawain and the Green Knight poster
5.0

The medieval legend of a supernatural knight who challenges the king's men to kill him.

Gawain and the Green Knight

1973

The Love-Girl and the Innocent poster
5.6

The prisoner Nemov is an honest man serving ten years for violations of Article 58. Nemov falls in love with Lyuba, who is having sex with the camp doctor Mereshchun, in exchange for better food and living conditions.

The Love-Girl and the Innocent

1973

Golden Gordon poster
8.0

Barnestoneworth United is the worst football team of 1935, who lose every match. Gordon Ottershaw is, however, their loyal fan, determined to prevent them from being disbanded after their final game. To this end he recruits the players from the renowned winning team of 1922 who turn up to defeat rivals Denley Moor.

Golden Gordon

1979

1917 poster
5.5

A British short film about World War I, directed by Stephen Weeks and starring Timothy Bateson, David Leland, and Geoffrey Davies.

1917

1970

One Brief Summer poster
7.5

The story deals with the situation of a mature man, his mistress, his daughter and a young girl who comes into their lives.

One Brief Summer

1971

Series credits

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles poster
6.5

At the dawn of the 20th century, Indiana Jones discovered the world. From globetrotting family expeditions as a 9-year-old to the battlefields of World War I as a teenager, Indy’s experiences shaped the heroic, whip-cracking archaeologist he would become. At every turn, Indy encounters history in the making, meeting true-life activists, soldiers, writers, artists, and thinkers who helped influence the world we live in today.

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles

1992

Van der Valk poster
6.2

Van der Valk is a British television series that was produced by Thames Television for the ITV network. It starred Barry Foster in the title role as Dutch detective Commissaris "Piet" van der Valk. Based on the characters and atmosphere of the novels of Nicolas Freeling, the first series was shown in 1972.

Van der Valk

1972

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy poster
8.1

Don't Panic! The story of Arthur Dent, an average Englishman whose life was spared by his friend, who turned out to be an alien, while the planet Earth is destroyed. His friend tells him about the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, a guide with anything you ever needed, and wanted to know. They travel across the galaxy, meeting friendly, and not so friendly characters in order to find the great question (the answer being 42).

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

1981

Callan poster
7.0

Callan is the title of a British television series set in the murky world of espionage. Originally produced by ABC Weekend Television and later Thames Television, it was aired on the ITV network over four seasons spread out between 1967 and 1972. The series starred Edward Woodward as David Callan, a reluctant professional killer for a shadowy branch of the British Government's intelligence services known as 'the Section'.

Callan

1967

Target poster
7.0

A crime drama set in Southampton following a team of detectives and the cases they solve.

Target

1977

Sherlock Holmes poster
6.9

Sherlock Holmes (also known as 'Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes') is a series of Sherlock Holmes adaptations produced by British television company BBC between 1964 and 1968. This was the second screen adaption of Sherlock Holmes for BBC Television.

Sherlock Holmes

1964

The Last of the Mohicans poster
5.5

The adventures of Natty 'Hawkeye' Bumppo and his Indian companions, caught in a war between the French and English in upstate New York in 1757.

The Last of the Mohicans

1971

The Last of the Mohicans poster
5.5

The adventures of Natty 'Hawkeye' Bumppo and his Indian companions, caught in a war between the French and English in upstate New York in 1757.

The Last of the Mohicans

1971

Reel Britannia poster
8.5

Comedian Nick Helm narrates this bold new documentary series exploring the dramatic history of British cinema. Discover how cinema held a mirror up to society from 1960 through to the 00s.

Reel Britannia

2022

Big Breadwinner Hog poster
7.5

Big Breadwinner Hog is a British television thriller serial devised by Robin Chapman, produced by Granada TV and transmitted in eight parts, starting at 9.00pm on 11 April 1969 on the ITV network. It portrayed the ruthless rise through the criminal underworld of the trendy young London gangster Hogarth. He exploits the resources of a declining gangster, Ryan, to take over the dominant crime syndicate Scot-Yanks, controlled by the equally ruthless and manipulative Lennox. The key to Hogarth's success is knowledge of a murder arranged by Lennox, of which there is a crucial witness, Ackerman, a one-time private eye who has been blackmailed into working for Scot-Yanks, and bitterly resents Lennox as a consequence.

Big Breadwinner Hog

1969

Behind the camera

Virgin Territory poster
5.0

In Black Death era Tuscany, as in the Decameron, ten young Florentines take refuge from the plague. But instead of telling stories, they have lusty adventures, bawdy exchanges, romance, swordplay, randy nuns, Saracen pirates, and a sexy cow.

Virgin Territory

2007

Virgin Territory poster
5.0

In Black Death era Tuscany, as in the Decameron, ten young Florentines take refuge from the plague. But instead of telling stories, they have lusty adventures, bawdy exchanges, romance, swordplay, randy nuns, Saracen pirates, and a sexy cow.

Virgin Territory

2007

The Big Man poster
4.9

An unemployed Scottish miner is forced into bare-knuckle boxing to make ends meet.

The Big Man

1990

Mona Lisa poster
6.9

George is a small-time crook just out of prison who discovers his tough-guy image is out of date. Reduced to working as a minder/driver for high class call girl Simone, he has to agree when she asks him to find a young colleague from her King's Cross days. That's when George's troubles just start.

Mona Lisa

1986

Wish You Were Here poster
6.4

In 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

Wish You Were Here poster
6.4

In 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

The White River Kid poster
5.1

Two con men are traveling through the American South when they are held hostage by a serial killer who is running from the authorities.

The White River Kid

1999

The Land Girls poster
6.0

During World War II, the organisation "The Women's Land Army" recruited women to work on British farms while the men were off to war. Three such "land girls" of different social backgrounds - quiet Stella, young hairdresser Prue, and Cambridge graduate Ag - become best friends in spite of their different backgrounds.

The Land Girls

1998

The Land Girls poster
6.0

During World War II, the organisation "The Women's Land Army" recruited women to work on British farms while the men were off to war. Three such "land girls" of different social backgrounds - quiet Stella, young hairdresser Prue, and Cambridge graduate Ag - become best friends in spite of their different backgrounds.

The Land Girls

1998

Personal Services poster
6.0

Fed up with working hard just to scrape by, Christine Painter comes up with a bold plan to become the madam of a brothel and earn her financial freedom: she opens a house of spanking to fabulous reviews.

Personal Services

1987

Made in Britain poster
7.0

16-year-old skinhead Trevor has no regard for authority, and would rather spend his time stealing cars than sitting in the detention centre to which he is sent. Social worker Harry Parker tries his best, but Trevor is only interested when there's something in it for him. The centre authorities try to conform Trevor to the norms of society, but he takes no notice, and would rather speak in a torrent of four-letter words and racial abuse.

Made in Britain

1983

Checking Out poster
4.4

When his best friend dies of a heart attack, Ray Macklin becomes a man obsessed with his own mortality. Convinced that all his aches and pains are an indication of his imminent death, Ray's life turns into a slapstick farce of health-crazed anxiety and hypochondria.

Checking Out

1988

Concert for George poster
8.1

As a memorial to George Harrison on the first anniversary of his passing, The Concert for George was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 29 November 2002 . Organized by Harrison's widow, Olivia, and son, Dhani, and arranged under the musical direction of Eric Clapton and Jeff Lynne. A benefit for Harrison's Material World Charitable Foundation, the all-star concert took place on the day of the first anniversary of his death. Proceeds from the film also went to the Material World Charitable Foundation. The film was shot using discreet cameras from over twelve locations.

Concert for George

2003

Concert for George poster
8.1

As a memorial to George Harrison on the first anniversary of his passing, The Concert for George was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on 29 November 2002 . Organized by Harrison's widow, Olivia, and son, Dhani, and arranged under the musical direction of Eric Clapton and Jeff Lynne. A benefit for Harrison's Material World Charitable Foundation, the all-star concert took place on the day of the first anniversary of his death. Proceeds from the film also went to the Material World Charitable Foundation. The film was shot using discreet cameras from over twelve locations.

Concert for George

2003

Birth of a Nation poster
7.8

A new teacher at a highly problematic comprehensive school feels that corporal punishment may just be inflaming the problems, and so begins to campaign against it.

Birth of a Nation

1983

Flying Into the Wind poster
8.0

The Wyatts wish to educate their children at home, but the education authorities have other ideas. Moving between 1969 and 1980, we see how this affects the various individuals and attitudes.

Flying Into the Wind

1983

R.H.I.N.O.; Really Here in Name Only poster
6.7

An isolated, overweight girl with a penchant for shoplifting, gets pushed from pillar to post as the authorities struggle to know what to do with her.

R.H.I.N.O.; Really Here in Name Only

1983

No artwork available
NR

A forensic psychologist is enlisted to delve into the circumstances surrounding the brutal murder of thirty-two adults in an exclusive gated community in the desert outside Los Angeles and the disappearance of their children. Based on the controversial novella of the same name by J.G. Ballard

Running Wild

—

Ligmalion: Or How to Help Yourself in Self-Help Britain poster
9.0

Drama documentary which takes the form of an up-dated version of Pygmalion. With a special music score by jazz group Working Week, with real "society" characters and locations from 1984.

Ligmalion: Or How to Help Yourself in Self-Help Britain

1985

Beloved Enemy poster
8.0

A cool hard study of 'the art of the deal' on a global scale. Sir Peter, the chillingly affable chief exec of big British multi-national UKM, learns that the Soviet Union's chief scientists are in London with government credit to spend. He's keen to flog them a tyre-production plant. based in the Ukraine, which will unshackle UKM from bothersome unions at home. But at the negotiating table, it fast becomes apparent that the Soviets are more interested in the laser technology UKM employs to vulcanise their tyres; and Peter starts to foresee a new future in military aerospace for his ever fiexible firm.

Beloved Enemy

1981

Psy-Warriors poster
3.0

Three British soldiers are caught and interrogated by terrorists, unaware that they're in fact being put through mind-unhinging training as part of a new phase of military research modelling itself on the US example.

Psy-Warriors

1981