David Macmillan
Encyclopedia
David Graeme Salveson Macmillan (born Edinburgh
, Scotland
12 September 1935) was a Scottish
actor
and advertising agent.
He was privately educated and served as an army officer. He trained at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art
(1956-1958), where he won the Spotlight Award and the Margaret Rutherford Medal
.
Between 1958 and 1967, he played a very broad range of parts in repertory at Birmingham Alex (two years), Edinburgh Gateway and Edinburgh Lyceum, Glasgow Citizens, Harrogate
, St. Andrews, Wimbledon
, Richmond
, Colchester
, Salisbury
, Belfast
amongst others. As a young actor, he met his wife Morag, whilst they were both appearing in pantomime
. They now have three children and live in Crieff
and East Sheen
.
He has appeared extensively in radio, in Children's Hour
, The Archers
, plays and school broadcasts. He made over fifty television appearances between 1960 and 1967 including: eighteen episodes of Dr Finlay's Casebook
(as Constable Dickie), ten episodes of The Flying Swan, eight episodes of The George Kidd Show, The Dark Number, Compact, The Saint
, William, The Other Man, North Flight, Kipling, No Thoroughfare, Pack Up Your Troubles, The Big Pull
, and Gideon's Way
.
He led a highly successful senior management career in recruitment advertising and marketing in London
between 1967 and 1995. Upon his retirement in 1995, he returned to acting and has also dealt in antiques
.
He has had successful runs at the Chichester Festival Theatre
and in the West End
, as the valet 'Lane', in Oscar Wilde
's famous comedy The Importance of Being Earnest
in 1999 and at the Pitlochry Festival Theatre
as Lord Loam in J. M. Barrie
's The Admirable Crichton
and as Arthur Winslow, in Terence Rattigan
's The Winslow Boy
in 2001.
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
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...
12 September 1935) was a Scottish
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...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
and advertising agent.
He was privately educated and served as an army officer. He trained at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art
Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art
The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art, formerly the Webber Douglas School of Singing and Dramatic Art, was a drama school, and originally a singing school, in London. It was one of the leading drama schools in Britain, and offered comprehensive training for those intending to pursue a...
(1956-1958), where he won the Spotlight Award and the Margaret Rutherford Medal
Margaret Rutherford
Dame Margaret Taylor Rutherford DBE was an English character actress, who first came to prominence following World War II in the film adaptations of Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit, and Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest...
.
Between 1958 and 1967, he played a very broad range of parts in repertory at Birmingham Alex (two years), Edinburgh Gateway and Edinburgh Lyceum, Glasgow Citizens, Harrogate
Harrogate
Harrogate is a spa town in North Yorkshire, England. The town is a tourist destination and its visitor attractions include its spa waters, RHS Harlow Carr gardens, and Betty's Tea Rooms. From the town one can explore the nearby Yorkshire Dales national park. Harrogate originated in the 17th...
, St. Andrews, Wimbledon
Wimbledon, London
Wimbledon is a district in the south west area of London, England, located south of Wandsworth, and east of Kingston upon Thames. It is situated within Greater London. It is home to the Wimbledon Tennis Championships and New Wimbledon Theatre, and contains Wimbledon Common, one of the largest areas...
, Richmond
Richmond Theatre
The present Richmond Theatre, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is a British Victorian theatre located on Little Green, adjacent to Richmond Green. It opened on 18 September 1899 with a performance of As You Like It, and is one of the finest surviving examples of the work of theatre...
, Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
, Salisbury
Salisbury
Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...
, Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
amongst others. As a young actor, he met his wife Morag, whilst they were both appearing in pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
. They now have three children and live in Crieff
Crieff
Crieff is a market town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. It lies on the A85 road between Perth and Crianlarich and also lies on the A822 between Greenloaning and Aberfeldy. The A822 joins onto the A823 which leads to Dunfermline....
and East Sheen
East Sheen
East Sheen, also known as 'Sheen', is an affluent suburb of London, England in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It forms part of the London post town in the SW postcode area....
.
He has appeared extensively in radio, in Children's Hour
Children's Hour
Children's Hour—at first: "The Children's Hour", from a verse by Longfellow—was the name of the BBC's principal recreational service for children during the period when radio dominated broadcasting....
, The Archers
The Archers
The Archers is a long-running British soap opera broadcast on the BBC's main spoken-word channel, Radio 4. It was originally billed as "an everyday story of country folk", but is now described on its Radio 4 web site as "contemporary drama in a rural setting"...
, plays and school broadcasts. He made over fifty television appearances between 1960 and 1967 including: eighteen episodes of Dr Finlay's Casebook
Dr. Finlay's Casebook (TV & radio)
Dr. Finlay's Casebook is a television series that was broadcast on the BBC from 1962 until 1971. Based on A. J. Cronin's novella entitled Country Doctor, the storylines centred on a general medical practice in the fictional Scottish town of Tannochbrae during the late 1920s...
(as Constable Dickie), ten episodes of The Flying Swan, eight episodes of The George Kidd Show, The Dark Number, Compact, The Saint
The Saint (TV series)
The Saint was an ITC mystery spy thriller television series that aired in the UK on ITV between 1962 and 1969. It centred on the Leslie Charteris literary character, Simon Templar, a Robin Hood-like adventurer with a penchant for disguise. The character may be nicknamed The Saint because the...
, William, The Other Man, North Flight, Kipling, No Thoroughfare, Pack Up Your Troubles, The Big Pull
The Big Pull
The Big Pull was a highly-innovative BBC science-fiction series concerning an alien invasion of earth.Unlike conventional science-fiction of the Doctor Who-type, there were no monsters or humanoid aliens. In this respect it was similar to A for Andromeda.The events occur during early space...
, and Gideon's Way
Gideon's Way
Gideon's Way is a British television crime series made by ITC Entertainment in 1964/65, based on the novels by John Creasey . The series was made at Elstree in twin production with The Saint TV series...
.
He led a highly successful senior management career in recruitment advertising and marketing 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...
between 1967 and 1995. Upon his retirement in 1995, he returned to acting and has also dealt in antiques
Antiques
An antique is an old collectible item. It is collected or desirable because of its age , beauty, rarity, condition, utility, personal emotional connection, and/or other unique features...
.
He has had successful runs at the Chichester Festival Theatre
Chichester Festival Theatre
Chichester Festival Theatre, located in Chichester, England, was designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, and opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Martin in 1962. Subsequently the smaller and more intimate Minerva Theatre was built nearby in 1989....
and in the West End
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...
, as the valet 'Lane', in Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
's famous comedy The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at St. James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae in order to escape burdensome social obligations...
in 1999 and at the Pitlochry Festival Theatre
Pitlochry
Pitlochry , is a burgh in the council area of Perth and Kinross, Scotland, lying on the River Tummel. Its population according to the 2001 census was 2,564....
as Lord Loam in J. M. Barrie
J. M. Barrie
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...
's The Admirable Crichton
The Admirable Crichton
The Admirable Crichton is a comic stage play written in 1902 by J. M. Barrie. It was produced by Charles Frohman and opened at the Duke of York's Theatre in London on 4 November 1902, running for an extremely successful 828 performances. It starred H. B. Irving and Irene Vanbrugh...
and as Arthur Winslow, in Terence Rattigan
Terence Rattigan
Sir Terence Mervyn Rattigan CBE was one of England's most popular 20th-century dramatists. His plays are generally set in an upper-middle-class background...
's The Winslow Boy
The Winslow Boy
thumb|1st edition cover The Winslow Boy is an English play from 1946 by Terence Rattigan based on an actual incident in the Edwardian era, which took place at the Royal Naval College, Osborne.-Performance History:...
in 2001.
Radio credits
- Children's HourChildren's HourChildren's Hour—at first: "The Children's Hour", from a verse by Longfellow—was the name of the BBC's principal recreational service for children during the period when radio dominated broadcasting....
- The ArchersThe ArchersThe Archers is a long-running British soap opera broadcast on the BBC's main spoken-word channel, Radio 4. It was originally billed as "an everyday story of country folk", but is now described on its Radio 4 web site as "contemporary drama in a rural setting"...
- Radio plays
- School broadcasts
Television credits
- The Big Pull (1962)...playing "Dr. Harding" (two episodes) (BBC - Terence DudleyTerence DudleyTerence Dudley was a television director and producer who directed many programs for the BBC over a number of years....
) - Dr. Finlay's Casebook (1962) (TV Series) (ten episodes)...playing "PC Dickie" (eighteen episodes) (BBC - Campbell Logan, Gerald BlakeGerald BlakeGerald Blake was a television director during the 1960s to the 1980s.His numerous credits include The Gentle Touch, The Omega Factor , Blake's 7, Survivors, The Onedin Line, Out of the Unknown, Doctor Who , Dr...
, Cedric MessinaCedric MessinaCedric Messina was a South African born British television producer and director for the BBC of mainly classic drama...
and Julia SmithJulia SmithJulia Smith was an English television director and producer.- Early career :London-born Smith became involved in television production when she directed the series Suspense in 1962...
) - The Flying Swan (ten episodes)
- Studio Four (1962) in episode: "North Flight" (episode # 1.10) ... playing "Jeremy Sprig" (BBC Glasgow - James MacTaggart)
- William (TV series) (1962)... playing "George" in episode: "William and the Parrots" (episode # 1.5) (BBC - Leonard Chase)
- Compact ... playing Graeme Keith (one episode) (BBC - Hugh MunroHugh MunroSir Hugh Thomas Munro, 4th Baronet of Linderits was a Scottish mountaineer who is best known for his list of mountains in Scotland over 3,000 feet , known as the Munros....
) - The Other Man (1964)...playing "Ryder" (Granada - Gordon FlemyngGordon FlemyngGordon William Flemyng was a Scottish director of six theatrical features, several television films and numerous episodes of TV series, some of which he also wrote and produced. Flemyng directed both of the Dalek feature films of the 1960s, Dr...
) - No Thoroughfare ... playing "Carstairs" (BBC - James MacTaggartJames MacTaggartJames MacTaggart was a Scottish born television producer, director and writer.After an initial career as an actor, MacTaggart worked for BBC Radio in Scotland before moving into television, relocating to London around 1961...
) - Pack Up Your Troubles ... playing "The Police" (BBC Glasgow - James MacTaggart)
- Coming Home (1996)...playing "Dobson"...aka Heimkeh(Germany)...aka Rosamunde Picher - Heimkeh (Germany)
- TaggartTaggartTaggart is a Scottish detective television programme, created by Glenn Chandler, who has written many of the episodes, and made by STV Productions for the ITV network...
(1997)...playing "Martin Dawson" in episode: "Apocalypse"
Theatre credits
- Uncle Harry by Thomas Job ... as "Uncle Harry" (Webber-Douglas)
- Claudia by Rose FrankenRose FrankenRose Dorothy Lewin Franken , author and playwright, was born on December 28, 1895, in Gainesville, Texas, the youngest child of Michael and Hannah Lewin. In 1914 she married Sigmund W.A. Franken, an oral surgeon who died in 1932. They had three children. In 1937 she married writer William Brown...
...as "David" (Webber-Douglas) - The Duchess of MalfiThe Duchess of MalfiThe Duchess of Malfi is a macabre, tragic play written by the English dramatist John Webster in 1612–13. It was first performed privately at the Blackfriars Theatre, then before a more general audience at The Globe, in 1613-14...
by Webster ... as "Bosola" (Webber-Douglas) - Charley's AuntCharley's AuntCharley's Aunt is a farce in three acts written by Brandon Thomas. It broke all historic records for plays of any kind, with an original London run of 1,466 performances....
by Brandon ThomasBrandon ThomasWalter Brandon Thomas was an English actor, playwright and song writer, best known as the author of the farce Charley's Aunt....
... as "Charley" (Salisbury) - Doctor in the HouseDoctor in the HouseDoctor in the House is a 1954 British comedy film, directed by Ralph Thomas and produced by Betty Box. The screenplay, by Nicholas Phipps, Richard Gordon and Ronald Wilkinson, is based on the novel by Gordon, and follows a group of students through medical school.It was the most popular box office...
by Ted WillisTed WillisEdward Henry Willis, Baron Willis , commonly known as Ted Willis, was a British television dramatist who was also politically active in support of the Labour Party.-Political life:...
... as "Simon Sparrow" (Belfast) - Cat on a Hot Tin RoofCat on a Hot Tin RoofCat on a Hot Tin Roof is a play by Tennessee Williams. One of Williams's best-known works and his personal favorite, the play won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1955...
by Tennessee WilliamsTennessee WilliamsThomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams III was an American writer who worked principally as a playwright in the American theater. He also wrote short stories, novels, poetry, essays, screenplays and a volume of memoirs...
... as "Brick" (Belfast) - See How they Run by Philip King ...as "Lionel" (Harrogate)
- Ring for Catty (by Patrick CargillPatrick CargillPatrick Cargill was a British actor known for his role on the British television sitcom Father, Dear Father.-Career:...
... as "John Rhodes" (Harrogate) - The Gioconda Smile by Aldous HuxleyAldous HuxleyAldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel...
... as "Dr Libbard" (Harrogate) - As Long as they're Happy by Vernon Silvaine ... as "John Bentley" (Harrogate)
- Dial M for MurderDial M for MurderDial M for Murder is a 1954 American thriller film adapted from a successful stage play by Frederick Knott, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Ray Milland, Grace Kelly, and Robert Cummings. The movie was released by the Warner Bros...
by Frederick Knott ... as "Max Halliday" (Harrogate) - Epitaph for George DillonEpitaph for George DillonEpitaph for George Dillon is an early John Osborne play, one of two he wrote in collaboration with Anthony Creighton . It was written before Look Back in Anger, the play which made Osborne’s career, but opened a year after in Oxford in 1957 and moved to London’s Royal Court theatre, where Look...
by John OsborneJohn OsborneJohn James Osborne was an English playwright, screenwriter, actor and critic of the Establishment. The success of his 1956 play Look Back in Anger transformed English theatre....
... as "Geoffrey Colwyn-Stuart" (Harrogate) - The Baikie Charivari by James BridieJames BridieJames Bridie was the pseudonym of a Scottish playwright, screenwriter and surgeon whose real name was Osborne Henry Mavor....
... as "Robert Copper" (Edinburgh Festival - Glasgow) - The Master of BallantraeThe Master of BallantraeThe Master of Ballantrae: A Winter's Tale is a book by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, focusing upon the conflict between two brothers, Scottish noblemen whose family is torn apart by the Jacobite rising of 1745...
by R.L.StevensonRobert Louis StevensonRobert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist and travel writer. His best-known books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde....
... as "The Master of Ballantrae" (Edinburgh) - Miracle at Midnight by Tom Fleming ... as "The Man" (Edinburgh)
- The Skin of Our Teeth by Thornton WilderThornton WilderThornton Niven Wilder was an American playwright and novelist. He received three Pulitzer Prizes, one for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and two for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, and a National Book Award for his novel The Eighth Day.-Early years:Wilder was born in Madison,...
... as "Mr Fitzpatrick" (Edinburgh) - The Country Boy by John Murphy ... as "Curly" (Edinburgh)
- Not in the Book by Arthur Watkyn ... as "Timothy Gregg" (Birmingham Alex)
- Caught Napping by Geoffrey Lumsden ...as Gordon Wilding (Birmingham Alex)
- The French Mistress by Robert Munro ... as "Peter" (Birmingham Alex)
- Present LaughterPresent LaughterPresent Laughter is a comic play written by Noël Coward in 1939 and first staged in 1942 on tour, alternating with his lower middle-class domestic drama This Happy Breed...
by Noel CowardNoël CowardSir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
... as "Roland Maule" (Birmingham Alex) - Guilty Party by George Ross and Campbell Singer ... as "Stanley Littlefield" (Birmingham Alex)
- Rookery Nook by Ben TraversBen TraversBen Travers AFC CBE in London) was a British playwright best remembered for his farces.Born in the London borough of Hendon, Travers was educated at Charterhouse, where today there is a theatre named for him...
... as "Harold Twine" (Birmingham Alex) - An Ideal HusbandAn Ideal HusbandAn Ideal Husband is an 1895 comedic stage play by Oscar Wilde which revolves around blackmail and political corruption, and touches on the themes of public and private honour...
by Oscar WildeOscar WildeOscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
... as "Lord Goring" (Birmingham Alex) - Black Coffee by Agatha ChristieAgatha ChristieDame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
... as "Richard" (Birmingham Alex) - On Approval by Frederick LonsdaleFrederick LonsdaleFrederick Lonsdale was an English dramatist.-Personal life:Lonsdale was born Lionel Frederick Leonard in St Helier, Jersey, the son of Susan and John Henry Leonard, a tobacconist. He began as a private soldier and worked for the London and South Western Railway...
... as "George, Duke of Bristol" (Richmond) - Towards Zero by Agatha ChristieAgatha ChristieDame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
... as "Neville" (Richmond) - The Rehearsal by Jean AnouilhJean AnouilhJean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1943 play Antigone, an adaptation of Sophocles' Classical drama, that was seen as an attack on Marshal Pétain's...
... as "Hero" (Richmond) - Guilty Party ... as "Roy Morgan" (Richmond)
- Private LivesPrivate LivesPrivate Lives is a 1930 comedy of manners in three acts by Noël Coward. It focuses on a divorced couple who discover that they are honeymooning with their new spouses in neighbouring rooms at the same hotel. Despite a perpetually stormy relationship, they realise that they still have feelings for...
by Noel CowardNoël CowardSir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
... as Victor (Richmond) - The Importance of Being EarnestThe Importance of Being EarnestThe Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at St. James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae in order to escape burdensome social obligations...
by Oscar WildeOscar WildeOscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
... as "Lane" (ChichesterChichester Festival TheatreChichester Festival Theatre, located in Chichester, England, was designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, and opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Martin in 1962. Subsequently the smaller and more intimate Minerva Theatre was built nearby in 1989....
) - The Importance of Being EarnestThe Importance of Being EarnestThe Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at St. James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae in order to escape burdensome social obligations...
by Oscar WildeOscar WildeOscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
... as "Lane" (Theatre Royal Haymarket) - The Admirable CrichtonThe Admirable CrichtonThe Admirable Crichton is a comic stage play written in 1902 by J. M. Barrie. It was produced by Charles Frohman and opened at the Duke of York's Theatre in London on 4 November 1902, running for an extremely successful 828 performances. It starred H. B. Irving and Irene Vanbrugh...
by J. M. BarrieJ. M. BarrieSir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...
...as "Lord Loam" (Pitlochry Festival Theatre) - The Winslow BoyThe Winslow Boythumb|1st edition cover The Winslow Boy is an English play from 1946 by Terence Rattigan based on an actual incident in the Edwardian era, which took place at the Royal Naval College, Osborne.-Performance History:...
by Terence RattiganTerence RattiganSir Terence Mervyn Rattigan CBE was one of England's most popular 20th-century dramatists. His plays are generally set in an upper-middle-class background...
... as "Arthur Winslow" (Pitlochry Festival Theatre)