The writer
Anthony Read has died, aged 80.
Born in 1935, Read attended the Central School of Speech and Drama and, following National Service, worked in Fleet Street in advertising, journalism and publishing before deciding to become a full time writer. He joined the BBC on 2nd November 1963 - just some three weeks before the show we remember him for launched on television! Early work included being a writer for
The Indian Tales of Rudyard Kipling and script editor for the
Peter Cushing incarnation of
Sherlock Holmes, but it was in the latter half of the decade when he became known for
The Troubleshooters, a series he script edited, wrote and later produced for.
During the 1970s he returned to being freelance, working on shows such as
Marked Personnel,
The Black Arrow,
Crown Court and
Z-Cars (a return to one of the first shows he had written for in 1962). However it was in 1977 when he came to be associated with
Doctor Who, invited by producer
Graham Williams to take over from
Robert Holmes, working alongside the outgoing script editor on
Image of the Fendahl and
The Sun Makers before formally taking charge of scripts with
Underworld. Having co-written
The Invasion of Time with Williams, the pair went on to devise the umbrella-themed
Key to Time Season Sixteen, with Read also taking on producer duties when his colleague became ill. Having 'discovered' a talented writer during that run, he then recommended the reins of script editing be passed to 'newcomer'
Douglas Adams, and returned to write a story for the following season,
The Horns of Nimon. After leaving
Doctor Who he contributed scripts to
The Omega Factor (which starred his first 'companion'
Louise Jameson).
Other programmes during this prolific time included
The Professionals and the science fantasy cults
Into the Labyrinth and
Sapphire and Steel; he also dramatised/wrote all three series of
Chocky, devised from the book by John Wyndham. A return to the world of Sherlock Holmes with
The Baker Street Boys earned him an award from the Writers' Guild of Great Britain. During the 1980s he moved away from writing for television, though he did contribute to the medium occasionally, notable writing several episodes for
The Adventures of Swiss Family Robinson in 1998.
A long-time friend with
David Fisher (hailing back to the 1960s), the pair collaborated on a number of non-fiction works, including
The Fall of Berlin,
The Proudest Day: India's Long Road to Independence and
Colonel Z: The Secret Life of a Master of Spies. He also wrote a number of solo works focussed around the Second World War, including winning the Wingate Literary Prize for
Kristallnacht; however he also kept up his fictional ties, especially with regard to his soft spot,
The Baker Street Boys.
(Anthony Read, 21st April 1935 - 21st November 2015)
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