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Mel Smith

Biography

Mel Smith

Edit

Overview

  • Born
    December 3, 1952 · Chiswick, London, England, UK
  • Died
    July 19, 2013 · St John's Wood, London, England, UK (heart attack)
  • Birth name
    Melvyn Kenneth Smith
  • Height
    1.82 m

Biography

    • His father Ken was born in Co Durham, and married Vera; together they took over her family's greengrocer's shop in Quick Road, Chiswick, London. He convinced her that the way forward was to convert the shop into a bookmaker's, and before long they'd moved to a semi-detached house. Mel was born in 1952 and educated at Latymer Upper School in Hammersmith. where at the age of 12 he played Falstaff. He was captain of the school rugby team from the second form to the sixth. In 1971 he won a place at New College, Oxford, where he studied experimental psychology and lodged at New College Lane which was where Edmund Halley (of Halley's comet fame) had his observatory. His attendance record was so bad that he was asked if he would get busy and do some work for his finals or spend all his time acting and directing; he chose the latter and in 1973 became assistant director at the Royal Court Theatre in London.

      Through the mid-1970s he had assistant-director jobs around the country until he met actor Bob Goody; together they wrote and directed several productions including 'Have You Heard the One About Joey Baker' and 'The Gambler,' which was revived in London's West End. In 1979 they attracted the attention of a television sketch show which they joined, doing send-ups of shows such as 'Blue Peter,' then moved on to 'Not the Nine O'Clock News'. In 1981, Mel and Griff Rhys Jones formed Talk Back Productions, starting off with their series 'Alas Smith and Jones' plus such as 'I'm Alan Partridge', 'Never Mind the Buzzcocks', and 'They Think It's All Over'. Mel moved on to producing and directing films such as 'Radioland Murders', 'Bean, the Ultimate Disaster Movie', and 'The Tall Guy'.
      - IMDb mini biography by: Tonyman 5

Family

  • Spouse
      Pamela Gay-Rees(1991 - July 19, 2013) (his death, 1 child)
  • Parents
      Kenneth
      Vera

Trivia

  • Confessed to never having watched his performance in Princess Bride (1987) due to the painful experience involved in filming the role. His character required him to wear colored contact lenses and, unknown to Smith and the costume department at the time, he was actually allergic to the lens solution used. This meant that Smith was in constant pain and discomfort throughout filming, hence why he was so reluctant to relive the memory.
  • Original choice to direct Wayne's World (1992).
  • Was a friend of the British group Queen.
  • Was out of work when asked if he wanted to be in a new offbeat comedy series "Not the Nine O'Clock News".
  • Attended Oxford University in England, UK

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