David Lloyd (actor)
Encyclopedia
David Lloyd is an English actor
and screenwriter
, perhaps best known from his role in Maid Marian and her Merry Men
, where he played Graeme, one of the two guards (alongside Mark Billingham
's Gary).
, England, and is, according to the IMDb, 6' 1" tall. Lloyd studied drama at Manchester University between 1978 and 1981, where he met and worked closely with Ben Elton
, later on of Britain's foremost comedians and a key figure in Alternative comedy
.
, as well as that series' less-well-received semi-sequel Filthy Rich & Catflap
. Bitparts (usually in uniform) followed in other sitcoms: Lloyd was a postman in Making Out
, a recurring German guard in 'Allo 'Allo and a policeman in The New Statesman
, with Young Ones star Rik Mayall
. Lloyd also featured in an episode of Mayall and Edmonson
's 1991 sitcom Bottom
.
Children's Television series Maid Marian and her Merry Men
. Alongside Mr Billingham
's Gary, the two guards were ostensibly part of 'ye baddies', but were really very sympathetic, (if slightly dim-witted) comedic sidekicks and foils to Tony Robinson
's Sheriff of Nottingham
. Initially, this semi-musical pseudo-Children's comedy programme was written solely by Mr Robinson, but by the third series, both Mr Lloyd and Mr Billingham were helping out with storylines and scripts, both ultimately gaining on-screen credits as co-writers. The three remain friends, and can be seen discussing writing Maid Marian on the DVD release of Series 3.
. The programme featured an intelligent talking parrot ("Madison"), inherited by his owner, Harry, upon the death of his uncle. The parrot's abilities were only known by a select few, but would be heard at inopportune moments, causing considerable trouble for Harry. The show ran for four series, and also featured Lloyd, Billingham and Maid Marian co-star Howard Lew Lewis
in various small roles.
Soon after (1996 to 1998), Lloyd was back in front of the cameras, playing Mr Hunter, the husband of Tessa Peake-Jones
's character, who adopt the main character of Dinah Glass in the BBC series The Demon Headmaster
(based on the books by Gillian Cross
). Although rarely seen during the first series, Lloyd's character played a larger role in the second and third. (A fourth series was reputedly planned, but ultimately scrapped, and never filmed.)
In March 2009 he made a guest appearance as Mr Marvelloso in the BBC children's series 'Grandpa in my Pocket'.
, The Bill
and Waking the Dead
, Mr Lloyd has turned his skill and experience from Maid Marian and Harry's Mad into a symbiotic career as an accomplished screenwriter of non-Children's programmes, having produced scripts for Casualty (2004) and Eastenders
(2003-6).
In 2001, he began writing for the daytime BBC medical soap/drama Doctors
, and has rapidly become one of the most prolific writers on that show having written over 40 episodes. His 2002-penned episode "It Shouldn't Happen to a Doctor" (in which Tony Robinson guest-starred) received a "Most Spectacular Scene" nomination at the British Soap Awards
for its final scene.
Cricket Club for whom he is second team captain and Youth Organiser. He also provides match reports on the web.
He is a regular newspaper reviewer on BBC Radio Bristol's breakfast show and owns a 50% share in a cider press.
You can follow him on twitter: @dave_backwell
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 screenwriter
Screenwriter
Screenwriters or scriptwriters or scenario writers are people who write/create the short or feature-length screenplays from which mass media such as films, television programs, Comics or video games are based.-Profession:...
, perhaps best known from his role in Maid Marian and her Merry Men
Maid Marian and her Merry Men
Maid Marian and her Merry Men is a British children's sitcom created and written by Tony Robinson and directed by David Bell. It began in 1989 on BBC One and ran for four series, with the last episode shown in 1994...
, where he played Graeme, one of the two guards (alongside Mark Billingham
Mark Billingham
Mark Philip David Billingham is an English novelist whose series of "Tom Thorne" crime novels are best-sellers in that particular genre. He is also a television screenwriter and has become a familiar face as an actor and comic....
's Gary).
Biography
David Lloyd was born on 17 May 1955 in Wallasey, CheshireCheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England, and is, according to the IMDb, 6' 1" tall. Lloyd studied drama at Manchester University between 1978 and 1981, where he met and worked closely with Ben Elton
Ben Elton
Benjamin Charles "Ben" Elton is an English comedian, author, playwright and director. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement of the 1980s, as a writer on such cult series as The Young Ones and Blackadder, as well as also a successful stand-up comedian on stage and TV....
, later on of Britain's foremost comedians and a key figure in Alternative comedy
Alternative comedy
Alternative comedy is a term that originated in the 1980s for a style of comedy that makes a conscious break with the mainstream comedic style of an era, and typically avoids relying on a standardised structure of a sequence of jokes with punch lines. Patton Oswalt defines it as "comedy where the...
.
Sitcoms
Lloyd's friendship with Elton led to him appearing in minor roles in the landmark 1980s (and Elton-written) sitcom The Young OnesThe Young Ones (TV series)
The Young Ones is a British sitcom, first broadcast in 1982, which ran for two series on BBC2. Its anarchic, offbeat humour helped bring alternative comedy to television in the 1980s and made household names of its writers and performers...
, as well as that series' less-well-received semi-sequel Filthy Rich & Catflap
Filthy Rich & Catflap
Filthy Rich & Catflap was a BBC sitcom produced in 1986 and broadcast early the next year.The series featured former The Young Ones stars Nigel Planer, Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson as its three title characters respectively...
. Bitparts (usually in uniform) followed in other sitcoms: Lloyd was a postman in Making Out
Making Out
Making Out is a British television series, shown by the BBC between 1989 and 1991.The series, written by Debbie Horsfield, mixed comedy and drama in its portrayal of the women who worked on the factory floor at New Lyne Electronics in Manchester, tackling the personal lives of the characters as...
, a recurring German guard in 'Allo 'Allo and a policeman in The New Statesman
The New Statesman
The New Statesman is an award-winning British sitcom of the late 1980s and early 1990s satirising the Conservative government of the time...
, with Young Ones star Rik Mayall
Rik Mayall
Richard Michael "Rik" Mayall is an English comedian, writer, and actor. He is known for his comedy partnership with Ade Edmondson, his over-the-top, energetic portrayal of characters, and as a pioneer of alternative comedy in the early 1980s...
. Lloyd also featured in an episode of Mayall and Edmonson
Adrian Edmondson
Adrian Charles "Ade" Edmondson is an English comedian. He is probably best known for his comedic roles in the television series The Young Ones and Bottom , for which he also wrote together with his long-time collaboration partner Rik Mayall.-Early life:Edmondson, the second of four children, was...
's 1991 sitcom Bottom
Bottom (TV series)
Bottom was a British sitcom television series that originally aired on BBC2 between 1991 and 1995. It was written by comic duo Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson who star as Richie and Eddie, two flatmates living on the dole in Hammersmith, London...
.
Maid Marian
Lloyd is best known, however, for his role as Graeme in the 1989 BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Children's Television series Maid Marian and her Merry Men
Maid Marian and her Merry Men
Maid Marian and her Merry Men is a British children's sitcom created and written by Tony Robinson and directed by David Bell. It began in 1989 on BBC One and ran for four series, with the last episode shown in 1994...
. Alongside Mr Billingham
Mark Billingham
Mark Philip David Billingham is an English novelist whose series of "Tom Thorne" crime novels are best-sellers in that particular genre. He is also a television screenwriter and has become a familiar face as an actor and comic....
's Gary, the two guards were ostensibly part of 'ye baddies', but were really very sympathetic, (if slightly dim-witted) comedic sidekicks and foils to Tony Robinson
Tony Robinson
Tony Robinson is an English actor, comedian, author, broadcaster and political campaigner. He is best known for playing Baldrick in the BBC television series Blackadder, and for hosting Channel 4 programmes such as Time Team and The Worst Jobs in History. Robinson is a member of the Labour Party...
's Sheriff of Nottingham
Sheriff of Nottingham
The Sheriff of Nottingham was historically the office responsible for enforcing law and order in Nottingham and bringing criminals to justice. For years the post has been directly appointed by the Lord Mayor of Nottingham and in modern times, with the existence of the police force, the position is...
. Initially, this semi-musical pseudo-Children's comedy programme was written solely by Mr Robinson, but by the third series, both Mr Lloyd and Mr Billingham were helping out with storylines and scripts, both ultimately gaining on-screen credits as co-writers. The three remain friends, and can be seen discussing writing Maid Marian on the DVD release of Series 3.
Other children's TV
Lloyd (and Billingham)'s work on Maid Marian with Tony Robinson gave them a grounding in comedy scriptwriting, and spurred them to write more. Between 1993 and 1996, the two collaborated on the writing of another children's comedy programme: Harry's Mad, based on the novel by British children's author Dick King-SmithDick King-Smith
Ronald Gordon King-Smith OBE, Hon.M.Ed. , better known by his pen name Dick King-Smith, was a prolific English children's author, best known for writing The Sheep-Pig, retitled in the United States as Babe the Gallant Pig, on which the movie Babe was based...
. The programme featured an intelligent talking parrot ("Madison"), inherited by his owner, Harry, upon the death of his uncle. The parrot's abilities were only known by a select few, but would be heard at inopportune moments, causing considerable trouble for Harry. The show ran for four series, and also featured Lloyd, Billingham and Maid Marian co-star Howard Lew Lewis
Howard Lew Lewis
Howard Lew Lewis is an English comedian and actor, best known for his roles in comedy series including Maid Marian and her Merry Men and Brush Strokes.-Biography:Lewis' grandmother Dame Ethel Gomer-Lewis was an opera singer...
in various small roles.
Soon after (1996 to 1998), Lloyd was back in front of the cameras, playing Mr Hunter, the husband of Tessa Peake-Jones
Tessa Peake-Jones
Tessa Peake-Jones is an English actress. She is best known for her role as Raquel in the television comedy series Only Fools and Horses. She had a co-starring role in the 1999 TV series Births, Marriages, and Deaths...
's character, who adopt the main character of Dinah Glass in the BBC series The Demon Headmaster
The Demon Headmaster (TV series)
The Demon Headmaster is a British television series based on the children's books by Gillian Cross of the same name. Made for CBBC, the drama was first broadcast between 1996 and 1998...
(based on the books by Gillian Cross
Gillian Cross
Gillian Cross is a children's author. She won the 1990 Carnegie Medal for her book Wolf and the 1992 Whitbread Children's Book Award for her novel The Great Elephant Chase....
). Although rarely seen during the first series, Lloyd's character played a larger role in the second and third. (A fourth series was reputedly planned, but ultimately scrapped, and never filmed.)
In March 2009 he made a guest appearance as Mr Marvelloso in the BBC children's series 'Grandpa in my Pocket'.
Screenwriting
While taking minor roles in such programmes as CasualtyCasualty (TV series)
Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The...
, The Bill
The Bill
The Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
and Waking the Dead
Waking the Dead (TV series)
Waking the Dead is a British television police procedural crime drama series produced by the BBC featuring a fictional Cold Case Unit comprising CID police officers, a psychological profiler and a forensic scientist. A pilot episode aired in September 2000 and there have been a total of nine series...
, Mr Lloyd has turned his skill and experience from Maid Marian and Harry's Mad into a symbiotic career as an accomplished screenwriter of non-Children's programmes, having produced scripts for Casualty (2004) and Eastenders
EastEnders
EastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
(2003-6).
In 2001, he began writing for the daytime BBC medical soap/drama Doctors
Doctors (BBC Soap Opera)
Doctors is a British daytime television soap opera, set in the fictional Midland town of Letherbridge, defined as being close to the City of Birmingham. It was created by Chris Murray; Mal Young drove its development, and Carson Black was the original producer. The first episode was broadcast on...
, and has rapidly become one of the most prolific writers on that show having written over 40 episodes. His 2002-penned episode "It Shouldn't Happen to a Doctor" (in which Tony Robinson guest-starred) received a "Most Spectacular Scene" nomination at the British Soap Awards
British Soap Awards
The British Soap Awards is an annual awards ceremony to honour the best of British soap operas.The first event took place in 1999 and takes place in May each year. Although it is an ITV production, the events were held at the BBC Television Centre, in London until 2010. The 2011 awards relocated to...
for its final scene.
Non TV
David Lloyd is the match-day announcer for Bristol City football club, and is also a keen cricketer with Backwell Flax BourtonFlax Bourton
Flax Bourton is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. The parish, with a population of 659, is situated within the Unitary Authority of North Somerset, on the edge of Nailsea Moor on the A370 road south west of Bristol city centre....
Cricket Club for whom he is second team captain and Youth Organiser. He also provides match reports on the web.
He is a regular newspaper reviewer on BBC Radio Bristol's breakfast show and owns a 50% share in a cider press.
You can follow him on twitter: @dave_backwell
Actor
- The Young OnesThe Young Ones (TV series)The Young Ones is a British sitcom, first broadcast in 1982, which ran for two series on BBC2. Its anarchic, offbeat humour helped bring alternative comedy to television in the 1980s and made household names of its writers and performers...
(1982) - Filthy Rich & CatflapFilthy Rich & CatflapFilthy Rich & Catflap was a BBC sitcom produced in 1986 and broadcast early the next year.The series featured former The Young Ones stars Nigel Planer, Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson as its three title characters respectively...
(1987) - Rocky (1987) - 'Allo 'Allo (1982) - German Guard (1988-1989)
- Making OutMaking OutMaking Out is a British television series, shown by the BBC between 1989 and 1991.The series, written by Debbie Horsfield, mixed comedy and drama in its portrayal of the women who worked on the factory floor at New Lyne Electronics in Manchester, tackling the personal lives of the characters as...
(1989) - Postman - Maid Marian and Her Merry MenMaid Marian and her Merry MenMaid Marian and her Merry Men is a British children's sitcom created and written by Tony Robinson and directed by David Bell. It began in 1989 on BBC One and ran for four series, with the last episode shown in 1994...
(1989-94) - Graeme (1989-94) - The New StatesmanThe New StatesmanThe New Statesman is an award-winning British sitcom of the late 1980s and early 1990s satirising the Conservative government of the time...
(1987) - Police Sergeant (1991) - Agatha Christie's PoirotAgatha Christie's PoirotAgatha Christie's Poirot is a British television drama that has aired on ITV since 1989. It stars David Suchet as Agatha Christie's fictional detective Hercule Poirot. It was originally made by LWT and is now made by ITV Studios...
(1989) - Museum Attendant (1991) - BottomBottom (TV series)Bottom was a British sitcom television series that originally aired on BBC2 between 1991 and 1995. It was written by comic duo Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson who star as Richie and Eddie, two flatmates living on the dole in Hammersmith, London...
(1991) - Willy (1991) - CasualtyCasualty (TV series)Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The...
(1986) - Will Driver (1992) - Harry's Mad (1993-96)
- The Demon HeadmasterThe Demon Headmaster (TV series)The Demon Headmaster is a British television series based on the children's books by Gillian Cross of the same name. Made for CBBC, the drama was first broadcast between 1996 and 1998...
- Mr. Hunter (1996-98) - The BillThe BillThe Bill is a police procedural television series that ran from October 1984 to August 2010. It focused on the lives and work of one shift of police officers, rather than on any particular aspect of police work...
(1984) - Warden (1998) - The ViceThe Vice (TV series)The Vice is an ITV police drama about the Metropolitan Police Vice Squad. It ran for five short series between 1999 and 2003. It tells the story of the London Metropolitan police forces vice squad, where prostitution, underage sex, and other such organized crime are regular occurrences...
(1999) - Punter (2000) - Waking the DeadWaking the Dead (TV series)Waking the Dead is a British television police procedural crime drama series produced by the BBC featuring a fictional Cold Case Unit comprising CID police officers, a psychological profiler and a forensic scientist. A pilot episode aired in September 2000 and there have been a total of nine series...
(2000) - Derek Raynor (2004)
Writer
- Maid Marian and Her Merry MenMaid Marian and her Merry MenMaid Marian and her Merry Men is a British children's sitcom created and written by Tony Robinson and directed by David Bell. It began in 1989 on BBC One and ran for four series, with the last episode shown in 1994...
(1989-94)- "Tunnel Vision" (1993)
- Harry's Mad (1993-96)
- various episodes
- EastEndersEastEndersEastEnders is a British television soap opera, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC One on 19 February 1985 and continuing to today. EastEnders storylines examine the domestic and professional lives of the people who live and work in the fictional London Borough of Walford in the East End...
(1985)- Episode #? (14 April 2003)
- Episode #? (7 July 2003)
- Episode #? (23 February 2004)
- Episode #? (5 August 2004)
- Episode #? (30 September 2004)
- Episode #? (19 December 2005)
- Episode #3254 (2 November 2006)
- CasualtyCasualty (TV series)Casualty, stylised as Casual+y, is a British weekly television show broadcast on BBC One, and the longest-running emergency medical drama television series in the world. Created by Jeremy Brock and Paul Unwin, it was first broadcast on 6 September 1986, and transmitted in the UK on BBC One. The...
(1986)- "Who Cares?" (14 August 2004)
- DoctorsDoctors (BBC Soap Opera)Doctors is a British daytime television soap opera, set in the fictional Midland town of Letherbridge, defined as being close to the City of Birmingham. It was created by Chris Murray; Mal Young drove its development, and Carson Black was the original producer. The first episode was broadcast on...
(2000)- "A Suitable Alternative" (15 May 2001)
- "A Twist of Fate" (4 September 2001)
- "Neighbours" (28 September 2001)
- "Good Companions" (22 November 2001)
- "Cats" (11 March 2002)
- "It Shouldn't Happen to a Doctor" (18 April 2002)
- "Tears of a Clown" (21 May 2002)
- "Happy Days Are Here Again" (5 September 2002)
- "Stuck in the Middle" (11 October 2002)
- "A Tangled Web" (4 February 2003)
- "As Time Goes By" (4 April 2003)
- "Physician Heal Thyself" (8 May 2003)
- "Food Glorious Food" (10 June 2003)
- "Deep Prejudice" (21 October 2003)
- "Twins" (2 December 2003)
- "Baby Doc" (9 February 2004)
- "Holding the Baby" (17 March 2004)
- "Room 101" (18 March 2004)
- "Last Chance" (16 April 2004)
- "In the House of the Dead" (5 October 2004)
- "Dim Tresbasu" (6 January 2005)
- "In the Library, with the Candlestick: Part 1" (3 March 2005)
- "In the Library, with the Candlestick: Part 2" (4 March 2005)
- "In Custody" (22 April 2005)
- "Who's Been Sleeping in My Bed?" (23 November 2005)
- "Abuse of Power" (17 March 2006)
- "All in the Mind" (12 September 2006)
- "Words Unspoken" (12 February 2007)
- "Is You Is" (2 May 2007)
- "Just Deserts" (25 July 2007)
- "In a Hole" (5 October 2007)
- "Hammer Blow" (17 December 2007)