Leland also directed 1998’s Land Girls, starring Rachel Weisz, and an episode of HBO’s acclaimed miniseries Band of Brothers, which was created by Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks.
It won Leland a Bafta for best original screenplay. Wish You Were Here, which he also wrote, saw Emily Lloyd star as a young Cynthia Payne, the eccentric suburban brothel-keeper. His other screenplay credits include Birth of a Nation, released the following year, and 1986’s Mona Lisa, which starred Bob Hoskins in a Bafta-winning performance and was nominated at the Oscars and Golden Globes.īut it was his directorial debut which provided his breakthrough. Leland enjoyed a distinguished career in screenwriting, including the 1982 cult classic Made in Britain, which starred Tim Roth. “David will forever be an essential part of my story and of all who knew and loved him.” It was the thrill of my young lifetime to be cast as McCabe, working with David and Tennessee. “I was just out of Drama Centre where David was also an alumni.
“He gave me my break as an actor in Tennessee Williams’ play The Red Devil Battery Sign,” Brosnan recalled. James Bond star Pierce Brosnan led the tributes to Leland, saying the director “holds a mighty place in my heart”.
