History

About Me

David has worked with many highly accomplished directors and 2nd unit directors to achieve an assortment of creative action sequences involving Battles / fire/ falls/ explosions/ fights and wire work and he maintains he is still learning his craft and looks forward to creating more exciting and dynamic action.

David started his career in 1982 as a mime artist on Greystoke Tarzan Lord of the Apes and was cast as the lead Ape double by Rick Baker multi Oscar winning effects designer.

With the success of the film Greystoke David was spotted by the Jim Henson Organisation and went on to perform lead roles like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Leonardo) Never-ending story 111(The Junior rock chewer) The Flintstones the Movie (Dino reference) and was well known for his fighting Bear performance in the John West Salmon Bear commercial.

In 1985 David qualified as a British Stunt performer working on high profile movies like 007 Die another day, Tomorrow never dies, Daylight and The Last Samurai.

After twenty years as a stunt performer David started specializing in fight arranging for films like Centurion, Mummy 3, Morgan, and most notably Batman Begins a film by Christopher Nolan.

After twenty years as a stunt performer / Fight Arranger David started supervising stunts as an assistant stunt co-ordinator, working on 3 seasons of Game of Thrones, Johnny English Reborn, Clash of the Titans and Holmes and Watson.

With well over 35 working years working within the Film, TV and commercials Industry David is now an accomplished Stunt Coordinator and Fight Arranger

Awards

  • Finalist British Television Craft Awards for best Stunt
  • 2001 John West Salmon “The Bear”
  • 2004 World Taurus Stunt Awards (The Last Samurai)
  • Winner in the category of Best Fire Stunt 2011-2014
  • SAG Awards Game of Thrones season 2 3 & 4

Past Productions

  • The world is not enough 007
  • Laura Croft Tomb raider
  • The Flintstones the movie
  • The Mummy 2
  • Never-ending Story 3
  • The Great Panda Bear Adventure
  • Grey stoke Tarzan Lord of the Apes. 1982
  • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1989
  • Spy Games
  • Spies Like Us
  • Nuns on the Run
  • The Return of the Pink Panther
  • Star Wars 4
  • Muppet Treasure Island
  • Daylight

Timeline

2017 / 2018: The Kid who Would be King

Director Joe Cornish
Fight Arranger

2017: Paddington additional Photography

Director Paul King
Stunt Coordinator
Wire work Hits and impacts 2 week period

2017: Holmes & Watson

Director Etan Cohen
Assistant stunt coordinator / Fight arranger
Assisting Jo McLaren and setting up wire /car drags and fights for a 4-month period

2016: Bridget Jones Baby additional Photography

Director Sharon Maguire
Stunt Coordinator
Car near misses and Zorb ball action 2week period

2016: Morgan

Director Luke Scott
Assistant stunt coordinator / Fight arranger
6 weeks training 2 lead actors Kate Mara & Anna Taylor Joy for two hard hitting fights armed and unarmed combat followed by a 10-week shooting period arranging all fights for co-staring actors

2015: Pan

Director Joe Wright
Fight Arranger
8 weeks training 2 lead actors Rooney Mara & Hugh Jackman for the finale sword fight on the floating ship followed by 12 weeks of looking after co- staring fights

2014: Suffragettes

Director Sarah Gavron
Assistant stunt coordinator
Assisting Paul Herbert with riots sequences

2014: Vampire Academy

Director Mark Waters
Stunt Coordinator additional photography
Supervising and arranging a Martial Arts fight sequence with wire elements 2-week shoot period

2013: Atlantis BBC season 1 episodes 1,2,3

Stunt Coordinator
A new period TV show for the BBC
Job Description: Preparing Actors and stuntmen for battles, fights, wire stunts armed and unarmed combat and high falls

2013 14 /15 : Games of Thrones season 2,3 & 4

HBO
Assistant Stunt coordinator
Assisting Paul Herbert overseeing 2nd unit action
Preparing Actors and stuntmen for battles, fights, fire burns armed and unarmed combat and high falls

2012: Merlin BBC

Stunt Coordinator
Job Description: Preparing Actors and stuntmen for battles, fights, wire stunts armed and unarmed combat and high falls

2011-2014: SAG Awards - Game of Thrones season 2 3 & 4

HBO

2010: Johnny English Reborn

Director Oliver Parker
Assistant stunt coordinator
Job Description: Assisting Paul Herbert in the preparation of all stunt related action

2010: Clash of the Titians Warner Bros

Stunt Coordinator additional photography
Job Description: ~Preparing opening sequence as Sam Worthington is thrown to a wall on wires

2009: Centurion

Director Neil Marshall
Fight Arranger
Job Description: Assisting Paul Herbert in the preparation of battle and lead actor fights

2009: Clash of the Titans

Director Louis Leterrier
Assistant Stunt Coordinator
Job Description: Assisting Paul Jennings with all stunt related action

2007: The Mummy 111

Director Vic Armstrong
Assistant Stunt
Job Description: Fight arranger for action unit arranging battle sequences for 8 weeks in China for Vic Armstrong 2nd Unit Director

2007: Golden Compass Dark Materials

Director Chris Weitz
Job Description: HOD Fight Arranger / Stunt Coordinator for additional photography To arrange battle sequences

2008: Volkswagen Golf commercial 60& 90 sec Title Fight

Stunt Coordinator
Fight Arranger

2006: Dr Who BBC Drama

Stunt Coordinator for 5 episodes

2005: Little Britain

Stunt Coordinator

2004: Batman Begins

Director Christopher Nolan
HOD Fight Arranger
Job Description: To prepare all fights for lead actors Christian Bale and Liam Neeson
10-month duration

2004: World Taurus Stunt Awards - The Last Samurai

Winner in the category of Best Fire Stunt

2003: P.O.W. Company productions

Location: Lithuania Vilnius varies dates June - Sept
Job Description: Stunt Coordinator l

2003: Agent Codee Banks

Paramount Pictures
Elstree Studios 4 weeks
To assist the Stunt Coordinator in preparing lead actors fighting skills and assist on main unit.

2002: To Die Another Day

Eon Productions
Assist the assistant stunt-Coordinators and Utility stuntmen.

2002-2003: Walking with cavemen BBC

Stunt Coordinator
The Purifiers Prime Films
Sweet medicine Carlton TV
Wimbledon Love all films

2002-2003: The Last Samurai

Director Edward Zwick
Lead stunt Double Hiroyuki Sanada
Locations: Los Angeles, New Zealand 5 months
Job Description: To assist Stunt Coordinator Nick Powell
Working with lead actors for all battle sequences, to assist in the preparation of fight sequence to double lead Japanese actor and to perform all utility stunts required

2000: John West Salmon Commercial

Award winning Commercial: Role fighting Bear

1995 Daylight Sylvester Stallion

Stunt Performer

1994 The Flintstones The Movie

Role Dino Reference performer

1993 Never-ending Story 3

Role Junior Rock Chewer

1990: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Director Steve Baron
Leading Role Leonardo

1989 Nuns on The Run

Role Henry Ho

1988 TV Golden Eye Ian Fleming story

Role Ernie Chang

1987 The Bear a film by Jean Jacque Annaud

Role Brown Bear

1985 Play

Invisible kids Unicorn Theatre lead role Nick

1983 Cat's The Musical

10 months in Vienne Theatre an Der Wien playing Bill Bailey Acrobatic cat

1982 Greystoke Tarzan Lord of the apes

Lead. stunt Dbl Kala 10 months at Elstree studios

Creature Work

David started his career in 1982 as a mime artist on Greystoke Tarzan Lord of the Apes and was cast as the lead Ape double by Rick Baker multi Oscar winning effects designer.

With the success of the film Greystoke David was spotted by the Jim Henson Organisation and went on to perform lead roles like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Leonardo) Never-ending story 111(The Junior rock chewer) The Flintstones the Movie (Dino reference) and was well known for his fighting Bear performance in the John West Salmon Bear commercial.

Bear performance became David’s speciality and he went on to performance for Jean -Jacques Annaud’s epic film The Bear, and this is where he learnt and honed is bear skills.

In 1994 Rick Baker cast David as the lead Panda bear in the Amazing Panda adventure and was also the personal movement trainer for “Verne Troyer aka mini- me Austin Powers” who played the role of the baby Panda.

David has many a Bear stories and whilst filming a chase scene on a production called the Polar Bear King in Norway he was nearly shot at by a cross country skier who thought the film crew was in danger from a charging polar bear.

Acting

David’s acting career started on stage performing in a play called “The Invisible Kids”  directed by Dennis Foan for the Unicorn Theatre London West End

David was cast in the lead role portraying a young boy from homeland who has emigrated to England with his parents. They have to adjust to a different and somewhat hostile way of life. All inclusive of a new language and a totally different culture.

The play was warmly received by the critics and received the Young Peoples Theatre Award in 1985.

Previously in 1983 he had performed in Cats the musical as the Acrobatic Cat Bill Bailey at the Theatre an der Wien in Vienne in 1983.

In 1989 David was cast as Leonardo in the Movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by far his biggest role to date.

David decided to put his acting career on hold whilst pursuing a stunt career but was still cast for small roles in films like Wetherby by David Hare, Nuns on the Run, Golden eye Ian Fleming story and recently played a small part as a pilot in Rogue one and a suicidal businessman in Ready player one.