Alan Bromly
Born: 13th September 1915 (as Alan James Bromly)
Died: September 1995
Episodes Broadcast: 1973-1974, 1979
Alan Bromly was born in Godalming, Surrey. He became an actor during the
Thirties and, by the Forties, had begun appearing in television and on
radio. He was in The Queen's Husband in 1946, and serials such as
Little Women and The Railway Children during the Fifties.
In 1948, he married actress June Ellis. In the early Fifties, Bromly
began to establish himself as a producer-director, with credits
including Portrait Of Alison, A Time Of Day, The
Scarf and At Your Service, Ltd.
During the Sixties, he worked on programmes such as The World Of Tim
Frazer, The Desperate People, A Man Called Harry Brent
and The Big M. As producer-directors became less common, he
increasingly separated his two roles; for example, he directed episodes
of Z Cars and produced Compact. He spent the latter part
of the decade producing Paul Temple and Out Of The
Unknown. In the Seventies, Bromly resumed making occasional acting
appearances, including several episodes of Crown Court, for which
he also directed. Other directorial credits included Emmerdale
Farm and Crossroads, while he was both a director and
associate producer on The Swiss Family Robinson. Bromly's first
work on Doctor Who came in 1973, on The Time Warrior, which introduced
Elisabeth Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith.
By that time, Bromly was amongst the elder statesmen of the television
industry, with working methods that some viewed as inflexible and
antiquated. This would prove to be a toxic combination when he returned
to Doctor Who for 1979's Nightmare Of Eden. Bromly clashed
repeatedly with his cast -- and especially with Tom Baker, who played
the Fourth Doctor. The situation deteriorated to such an extent that
Bromly quit the production before recording was completed. He would go
on to direct episodes of Coronation Street before retiring.
Bromly passed away in September 1995.
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