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Julia Smith (producer)

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Julia Smith
Smith (L) and Tony Holland
Born
Julia Cuthbert Smith

(1927-05-26)26 May 1927
Paddington, Greater London, England
Died19 June 1997(1997-06-19) (aged 70)
Chelsea, London, England
Other namesJulia Cuthbert Geary
Alma materRoyal Academy of Dramatic Art
Occupation(s)Television producer and director
Years active1962–1993
Television
Spouse
David Geary
​
​
(m. 1962; div. 1966)​
Relatives

Julia Cuthbert Geary (née Smith; 26 May 1927 – 19 June 1997) was an English television director and producer. She was best known as the co-creator (along with Tony Holland) of the BBC soap opera EastEnders, also working as a director and the first producer of the series.

Early life

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Julia Cuthbert Smith[1] was born in Paddington, Greater London, England on 26 May 1927,[2] as the only child to Edward Cuthbert Smith (1897–1968),[3][4] a musician who taught at the Royal Academy of Music (RAM),[5] and Elfriede Frances Gritton (née Menges; 1897–1988).[6][7]

Smith was a maternal niece of Isolde Menges (1893–1976),[8][9] a violinist, and Herbert Menges (1902–1972),[10][11] a composer and conductor. She was a cousin of Chris Menges (born 1940),[12] a cinematographer and film producer. Her cousin credits her with being an inspiration of his own career.[5]

Smith trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). She graduated with her diploma in acting in 1946.[13]

Career

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Smith became involved in television production when she directed the series Suspense in 1962. She went on to direct popular BBC shows such as Z-Cars (in 1962) and Doctor Who (in 1966 and 1967), for which she directed the stories The Smugglers and The Underwater Menace.[14] In 1967 she directed an adaptation of The Railway Children with Jenny Agutter that was successful enough for it to lead to the fondly remembered 1970 film in which Agutter reprised her role of Roberta.

While working on Z Cars she had met Tony Holland, who was a writer for the show. The two of them became an established producer/script-editor team and went on to work for the BBC's long-running hospital drama Angels (1975) from 1979 to 1983.

EastEnders

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Main article: History of EastEnders

In 1983, the BBC contacted Smith and Holland to create a new popular bi-weekly serial drama. Two ideas were given to them, one about a caravan site, the other about a shopping arcade. Neither of them liked either of the ideas and demanded to be able to create something about what they knew—in the words of Smith—"London - today!"

Together they came up with the idea of a serial set in the East End of London in a Victorian Square. When casting for the show, Smith had the guideline 'Only genuine Eastenders need apply'; it was this that gave her the idea for the name of the show, which would be called EastEnders after other names were rejected. Originally the show was to be called Eastenders, but Jonathan Powell, then Head of Drama at the BBC who had commissioned the show, made the tentative suggestion that the second "e" didn't look good on paper, and said that perhaps it should be capitalized. It was, for which Smith later said "...we were eternally grateful to him!"

Traditionally, the end music to EastEnders begins with dramatic drums, but occasionally, especially when a character departs, a piano introduction is used. This is called "Julia's Theme", after Smith.

Her final contribution to EastEnders, along with that of fellow creator Tony Holland, came in early 1989, amid a dispute with BBC bosses as to whether the character of Den Watts (played by Leslie Grantham) could ever return to the show after being shot and supposedly killed. The character would ultimately return to the series, having apparently survived the shooting, but Smith would not live to see this happen.[15]

Eldorado

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After the success of EastEnders, Smith and Holland collaborated again on the ill-fated BBC soap opera Eldorado. Holland created the series — based on an original idea by Verity Lambert—and Smith was producer. Eldorado was produced by Lambert through her own company Cinema Verity Productions. The BBC obviously hoped that, after EastEnders, Smith and Holland could make drama gold again; however, the series was cancelled by the new controller of BBC1, Alan Yentob. Smith was blamed for the programme's shortcomings and was fired, which left her bitter towards the BBC, who she believed had not given Eldorado a chance to establish itself.[citation needed] Corinne Hollingworth took over as series producer after Smith left the show, but the series was ended after only one year.

Retirement

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Smith effectively retired from television work following the demise of Eldorado, but remained active on the lecture circuit, giving talks on TV drama production.[5]

Personal life

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Smith married David Maxwell Valentine Geary (1928–2006)[16][17] in Ealing, Middlesex on 2 April 1962, when they were both 34.[18] The couple divorced in 1966.[5] She retained Geary's surname legally after their divorce and sometimes used it when conducting personal business, while continuing to use her maiden name professionally.[19]

Smith resided in Chiswick, London,[19] with her dog, Roly, an apricot coloured standard poodle.[20] Roly portrayed Roly in EastEnders (1985–1993). He died on 2 August 1995, at the age of 10, following an operation for breathing problems which were aggravated by the heatwave.[21]

Death

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Smith died from cancer at the Royal Marsden Hospital in Chelsea, London on 19 June 1997, after a short battle with the illness. She was 70.[22][23][5][24][25] Her funeral took place at Mortlake Crematorium in Kew, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames on 30 June 1997, and was attended by several stalwart cast members from EastEnders, including; June Brown (Dot Cotton),[26] Pam St Clement (Pat Evans),[27][28] Wendy Richard (Pauline Fowler),[29] and Leslie Grantham (Den Watts).[30]

References

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  1. ^ "Smith, Julia Cuthbert (1927–1997)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/66431. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  2. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916-2007: APR 1927 1a 37 PADDINGTON — Julia C Smith
  3. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915: APR 1897 10b 229 TYNEMOUTH — Edward Cuthbert Smith
  4. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: APR 1968 (aged 70) 5e 506 WANDSWORTH — Edward Smith
  5. ^ a b c d e Hayward, Anthony (21 June 1997). "Obituary: Julia Smith". The Independent. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  6. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915: JUL 1897 2b 287 STEYNING — Frances Elfriede G Menges
  7. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: JAN 1988 (aged 90) 12 1640 HAMMERSMITH — Elfrieda Frances G C Smith
  8. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915: APR 1893 2b 296 STEYNING — Isolde Marie Menges
  9. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: JAN 1976 (aged 82) 14 2460 RICHMOND UPON THAMES — Isolde Marie Boyd
  10. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1837-1915: OCT 1902 2b 248 STEYNING — Siegfried F H Menges
  11. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: JAN 1972 (aged 69) 5b 2201 HAMPSTEAD — Siegfried Frederick N Menges
  12. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916-2007: OCT 1940 6a 1563 KINGTON — Christopher J Menges
  13. ^ "Julia Smith". RADA. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  14. ^ "BBC One - Doctor Who, Season 4, the Smugglers - the Fourth Dimension".
  15. ^ Sabbagh, Dan (8 February 2010). "Is EastEnders the lifeblood of the BBC?". The Guardian.
  16. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916-2007: JAN 1928 3a 1261 HATFIELD — David M V Geary
  17. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: AUG 2006 (aged 78) KDT13 063 KENT — David Maxwell V Geary
  18. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Marriage Index, 1916-2005: APR 1962 5e 21 EALING — Julia C Smith = David M Geary
  19. ^ a b "Julia GEARY (otherwise SMITH)". The Gazette. 20 March 1998. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  20. ^ Patterson, Stephen (28 June 2020). "EastEnders star Letitia Dean reveals huge secret about Roly the dog". Metro. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  21. ^ Highfield, Anna (6 May 2021). "The EastEnders star who tragically died 2 weeks after his character was killed off". My London. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  22. ^ England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007: JUN 1997 B55B 88 KENSINGTON AND CHELSEA — Julia Geary
  23. ^ "Godmother of 'EastEnders' dies". The Independent. 19 June 1997. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  24. ^ Hardingham-Gill, Tamara (21 February 2015). "EastEnders live episode: Who are Julia and Tony? Soap pays tribute to co-creators". Metro. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  25. ^ Westbrook, Caroline (29 February 2020). "Which EastEnders actors have died since the show began?". Metro. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  26. ^ Curtis, Ben (30 June 1997). "Actress June Brown who plays soap favourite, Dot Cotton in the BBC's Eastenders at the funeral service of the programme's creator Julia Smith held at the Mortlake Cremetoriam in London today (Monday)". Alamy. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  27. ^ Curtis, Ben (30 June 1997). "Actress Pam St Clement, alias Pat Butcher in BBC's Eastenders at the funeral of the soap's creator, Julia Smith at the Mortlake Cremetoriam in London today (Monday)". Alamy. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  28. ^ Curtis, Ben (30 June 1997). "Actress Pam St Clement at Mortlake Crematorium in London for the funeral of EastEnders creator Julia Smith who died last week". Alamy. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  29. ^ Curtis, Ben (30 June 1997). "Soap star Wendy Richard arrives at Mortlake Cremetoriam in London today (Monday) for the funeral of Eastenders creator, Julia Smith who died last week". Alamy. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
  30. ^ Curtis, Ben (30 June 1997). "Actor Leslie Grantham arrives at Mortlake Cremetoriam for the funeral of Eastenders creator Julia Smith today (Monday)". Alamy. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
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Media offices
Preceded by
None
 Executive Producer of EastEnders
1985–88 		Succeeded by
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