David Tomblin

Widely regarded as the finest 1st assistant director in the world, and co-creator, producer, director, and writer of _The Prisoner (1967)_ (qv).Born across the road from Borehamwood studios in 1931, Tomblin entered the film business at the age of 14 before national service saw him take a break for a stint in the marines. He returned to the industry in 1952, later taking up a post as 1st assistant director to 'Stanley Kubrick' (qv).In the late 1950s, he moved into television, working on series such as _The Invisible Man (1958)_ (qv), and _One Step Beyond (1959)_ (qv). In 1959, he joined the crew of the ITC series _Secret Agent (1964)_ (qv), and it was here that he met 'Patrick McGoohan' (qv) for the first time.Shortly after, McGoohan and Tomblin created Everyman Films Limited, under whose banner _The Prisoner (1967)_ (qv) was later m made. Tomblin co-created _The Prisoner (1967)_ (qv), working on ideas formulated by McGoohan and story-editor George Markstein (with whom he co-wrote the opening episode, "Arrival"). Tomblin was credited as Producer on all 17 _The Prisoner (1967)_ (qv) episodes, and also directed and co-wrote two more ("Living in Harmony" and "Girl Who Was Death"). It is not doubted that without him, _The Prisoner (1967)_ (qv) would have looked very different, and possibly would not have been made at all.He continued in TV after _The Prisoner (1967)_ (qv), directing several episodes of the 'Gerry Anderson' (qv) series _UFO (1970)_ (qv), _Space: 1999 (1975)_ (qv), and _The Protectors (1972)_ (qv).However, it was his role as 1st assistant director in blockbuster films that made his name. His credit list is endless, and when interviewed about this list for the Channel 4 documentary _Six Into One: The Prisoner File (1984)_ (qv) in 1984, he recalled: "I have just worked on a 'George Lucas' (qv) film called "Return Of The Jedi" [_Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)_ (qv)] and, to get permission to work in the States, I had to write down every film that I had been on. I got to 478 and then decided that was probably enough to convince them that I had a reasonable amount of experience."Some of the best-known films on which he worked were _Gandhi (1982)_ (qv), _Out of Africa (1985)_ (qv), _Superman (1978)_ (qv), _A Bridge Too Far (1977)_ (qv), all 3 "Indiana Jones" films _Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)_ (qv), _Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)_ (qv), and _Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)_ (qv)], _Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983)_ (qv), "Never Say Never Again", _Cry Freedom (1987)_ (qv), _Chaplin (1992)_ (qv), _Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)_ (qv), and _Braveheart_ (a post which re-united him with ''Patrick McGoohan' (qv)').In 2003, David was awarded a BAFTA for outstanding contribution to film, and he was working right up until his death, after a short illness, on the film _Beyond the Horizon (2009)_ (qv).::Rick Davy (grammar corrected by U.N. Owen)