David Leland, a writer, director and actor who worked with George Harrison, Paul McCartney and the Travelling Wilburys over his five-decade career, has died at the age of 82.
Per a press release from his representatives, Leland passed away on Christmas Eve surrounded by his family. No cause of death has been mentioned.
Leland initially trained as an actor at the Central School of Speech and Drama and later moved into stage management and direction at the Crucible Theatre. He collaborated with actors including Michael Palin and Terry Jones early in their careers, as well as an as-yet-undiscovered Victoria Wood, who wrote her first play, Talent, for him to direct.
He also gave Pierce Brosnan his first opportunity to act on stage in the British premiere of Tennessee Williams’ The Red Devil Battery Sign, which Leland directed.
Leland was a close friend of George Harrison’s and worked with him on several occasions, directing several Traveling Wilburys videos including ‘Handle With Care’ and the 1988 film Checking Out, on which Harrison served as a producer. His other music video work included Tom Petty’s ‘I Won’t Back Down’ (which also featured Harrison and Ringo Starr), and Paul McCartney’s ‘Brown Eyed Handsome Man’.
He also directed the documentary Concert For George (2003) following Harrison’s own death, which was a concert film of a memorial concert event which took place at the Royal Albert Hall, featuring the remaining Beatles, Petty and Eric Clapton. Leland won a Grammy Award for his work, while the DVD was certified platinum eight times over.
“David Leland was a family friend and George’s trusted choice to direct three music videos in the late 1980s for The Traveling Wilburys; trust being the key word in the company of George, Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison, and Bob Dylan. Aside from one instruction from George to ‘just be cool’, David chose locations that captured and resonated the simplicity, complexity, respect, and friendship that brought those iconic musicians together,” said George’s widow Olivia Harrison, in a statement provided to NME.
“Over 20 years later, I asked him to create a movie of the Concert for George that we filmed at the Royal Albert Hall in celebration of George’s life. David and I spent many hours in the cutting room, all the while trying to fathom the passing of George, as we will all have to come to terms with the loss of David.”
He also worked extensively as a screenwriter for both TV and film, with his film credits including Made In Britain (1982), Birth Of A Nation (1983), Mona Lisa (1986), Personal Services (1987) and Wish You Were Here (1987).
We are saddened to hear that director and writer David Leland has died at the age of 82. Leland won a BAFTA for the film Wish You Were Here in 1988. His credits also include the TV miniseries Band of Brothers and Mona Lisa which starred Bob Hoskins in a BAFTA-winning performance. pic.twitter.com/qlyBhIj3w2
— BAFTA (@BAFTA) December 27, 2023
His later films as a director include The Big Man (1990) starring Liam Neeson, and Land Girls (1998) starring Rachel Weisz, which Leland also co-wrote.
He directed the episode ‘Bastogne’ for HBO’s 2001 miniseries, ‘Band of Brothers’ (2001), and contributed as both a director and writer to Showtime’s The Borgias before becoming joint showrunner for the second series.
Tributes have been pouring in for Leland, with Brosnan writing: “David Leland holds a mighty place in my heart. He gave me my break as an actor in Tennessee Williams’ play ‘The Red Devil Battery Sign’. I was just out of Drama Center where David was also an alumni. It was the thrill of my young lifetime to be cast as McCabe, working with David and Tennessee. David will forever be an essential part of my story and of all who knew and loved him.”
Liam Neeson added: “David was a dream to work with. He was a real collaborator; he genuinely loved and admired actors. We formed a close bond. I loved his mischievous sense of humour. You are always in my heart old friend. See you down the road.”
Monty Python‘s Terry Gillam said: “The loss of David is very sad. As a friend, and as a
writer/director, he was always solidly grounded…invariably sensitive
and ruthlessly honest. His 1987 film, Wish You Were Here, is still one of
my all-time favourite British films.”