Lewis Smales (stage name Linford; born 1987) is a British actor. A native of

Swanland Swanland is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire in England. The village is about to the west of Kingston upon Hull city centre and north of the Humber Estuary in the foothills of the Yorkshire Wolds on the B1231 road. ...

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a ceremonial county and unitary authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, South Yorkshire t ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. Smales is probably best known for playing the character of gamekeeper Lee Naylor in the British television soap ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffa ...

''. In 2010 Smales appeared in the 3rd Series of "The Inbetweeners". He began his career playing the part of Wayne Broody in John Godber's BAFTA award-winning BBC drama "Oddsquad". Smales has appeared on stage at the

Hull Truck Theatre Hull Truck Theatre is a theatre in Kingston upon Hull, England, which presents drama productions, and also tours. In March 2022, the theatre's original premises on Coltman Street, Hull, was recognised by a blue plaque to coincide with the theatr ...

John Godber John Harry Godber (born 18 May 1956) is known mainly for observational comedies. The ''Plays and Players Yearbook'' of 1993 rated him the third most performed playwright in the UK after William Shakespeare and Alan Ayckbourn. He has been crea ...

's play ''

Up 'n' Under ''Up 'n' Under'' is a comedy by English playwright John Godber, first staged at the Hull Truck Theatre in 1984. It won The Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy that same year. The sequel, ''Up 'n' Under II'', followed in 1985. Plot It ...

''.

Sexual assault trial and acquittal

In August 2009, Smales was tried at Kingston upon Hull Crown Court for the alleged sexual assault of a 20-year-old female boxer in a nightclub in

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually abbreviated to Hull, is a port city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary, inland from ...

. The incident was alleged to have occurred in Hull's Pozition night club in 2007, two years before Smales appeared on ''Emmerdale''. Smales was acquitted of the charge and later appeared in the media arguing for the anonymity of accused males in rape trials.Emmerdale 'sex assault' star Lewis Linford says he's the real victim
Daily Mirror 22 August 2009

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Linford, Lewis English male soap opera actors 1987 births Male actors from Kingston upon Hull Living people