Christopher Bryan Spencer Dobson (7 June 1936 – 27 October 2008), who wrote for the screen as Chris Bryant, was an English

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

and occasional

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

(usually performing in productions he wrote himself).

Early life

Christopher Brian Spencer Dobson was born in

Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, a great-grandson of Sir Benjamin Dobson (1847–1898), who made a large fortune as a manufacturer of textile machinery and became mayor of Bolton. Dobson was educated at

Radley College Radley College, formally St Peter's College, Radley or the College of St. Peter at Radley, is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (independent boarding school) for boys near the village of Radley, in Oxfordshire, in the United Kingd ...

Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th c ...

, where he read law, and finally

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, where he received a Master of Civil Law degree in 1959. Dobson remained in Canada, and in 1960 he was working as a private secretary to Davie Fulton, the Canadian

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

, while in his spare time appearing as a

stand-up comedian Stand-up comedy is a performance directed to a live audience, where the performer stands on a stage and delivers humorous and satirical monologues sometimes incorporating physical acts. These performances are typically composed of rehear ...

. This caused a minor scandal when it was revealed in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

. He later returned to England, where he settled at Burford, Oxfordshire, and died on 27 October 2008 aged 72.

Writing credits

*''

Special Branch (TV series) ''Special Branch'' is a British television series made by Thames Television for ITV and shown between 1969-1970 and 1973-1974. A police drama series, the action was centred on members of the Special Branch counterintelligence and counterter ...

'' (1969) TV Series *'' The Man Who Had Power Over Women'' (1970) *'' Don't Look Now'' (1973) (screenplay) *'' The Girl from Petrovka'' (1974) *'' The Spiral Staircase'' (1975) *'' Golden Rendezvous'' (1977) ... ''Nuclear Terror'' (USA: TV title) *''

Joseph Andrews ''The History of the Adventures of Joseph Andrews and of his Friend Mr. Abraham Adams'', was the first full-length novel by the English author Henry Fielding to be published and among the early novels in the English language. Appearing in 1742 ...

'' (1977) (screenplay) *'' The Awakening'' (1980) ... a.k.a. ''The Wakening'' (UK) *'' Martin's Day'' (1984) *''

Sword of Gideon ''Sword of Gideon'' is a 1986 Canadian television film about Mossad agents hunting down terrorists associated with the 1972 Munich massacre. It was first shown on the CTV Television Network in Canada as a four-hour miniseries and later on HBO in ...

'' (1986) (TV) *'' Lady Jane'' (1986) (story) *'' Stealing Heaven'' (1988) *'' Young Catherine'' (1991) (written by) *'' One Against the Wind'' (1991) (TV) (written by) *''

Foreign Affairs ''Foreign Affairs'' is an American magazine of international relations and foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy published by the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonprofit organization, nonprofit, nonpartisan, membership or ...

'' (1993) (TV) (teleplay) *'' The House That Mary Bought'' (1995) (TV) (screenplay) *'' Miracle at Midnight'' (1998) (TV) (written by) *'' Don't Look Now'' (2007) (announced) (1973 screenplay)

Acting credits

*''

'' (1977) .... Wicked Squire's Steward *'' Young Catherine'' (1991) (TV) .... Doctor Lande *'' Only in Hollywood'' (2002) .... The Preacher

References

External links

* 1936 births 2008 deaths Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge English male screenwriters English television writers McGill University Faculty of Law alumni People educated at Radley College British male television writers 20th-century English screenwriters 20th-century English male writers {{UK-screenwriter-stub