David Schneider (actor)

David Schneider
Schneider atWeb Summit,November 2015
Born	(1963-05-22)22 May 1963 London,England
Education	City of London School
Alma mater	Exeter College, Oxford
Occupation(s)	Actor, comedian, director
Years active	1980s – present
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)

David Schneider(born 22 May 1963) is an English actor,comedian,anddirector.His acting roles include the role of Tony Hayers, in theAlan Partridgefranchise.

Early life

David Schneider was born inLondon,England on 22 May 1963 to a Jewish family.He was educated at theCity of London School,anindependent schoolfor boys in theCity of London,before going toExeter College, Oxford,where he studiedmodern languages,and studied for adoctorateinYiddish Drama.During his time at university, Schneider performed a predominantlyphysical comedyact that contrasted with the trend towardsstand-up comedyin live performance comedy in the 1980s. It was at this time that he metArmando Iannucci,who in 1991 recruited him for news-radio spoofOn the Hour.He is a fan ofArsenal F.C.

Career

He performed in the BBC Sketch showUp to Something(1990) withShane Richie,Suzy Aitchison,Frances Dodge, &Lewis MacLeod (actor).

Schneider performed inThe Day Today,the television spin-off fromOn the Hourand also appeared in the spin-offsKnowing Me, Knowing You... with Alan PartridgeandI'm Alan Partridgewhere he played the fictionalBBCcommissioning editor,Tony Hayers. In 1994, he made an appearance onMr. Bean,inBack to School Mr. Bean,as the judo teacher. In 1996, Schneider wroteThe Eleventh Commandment,a play for theHampstead Theatreabout aJewmarrying agentile.In the late 1990s he appeared in the topical satireThe Saturday Night Armistice(subsequently retitledThe Friday Night Armistice) alongsideArmando IannucciandPeter Baynham.In 1997 and 2000, Schneider played the part of Bradley Wilson in the BBC sitcomThe Peter Principle.

Schneider wrote the screenplay for the 2001 feature filmAll the Queen's Men,directed byStefan Ruzowitzkyand starringMatt LeBlancandEddie Izzard.Schneider has also performed in the BBC sitcomGimme Gimme Gimmeand appeared onBBC Radio 4panel showThe 99p Challenge.He had small roles in several movies, includingThe Saint,28 Days Later,A Knight's TaleandMission: Impossible,where he played the driver of theEurotunneltrain. In 2004, Schneider playedJoseph Goebbelsin thesatiricaltongue-in-cheek comedyChurchill: The Hollywood Years.Following this, in 2006 Schneider took his first lead role when he madeUncle Max,a series of 13 dialogue-free shorts forCITV.They focus onslapstickhumour, with Schneider saying he wanted to be "a human cartoon".

In April 2008, he featured in an episode ofHotel Babylonas a magician, a character not dissimilar to Tony le Mesmer whom he played in an episode ofKnowing Me, Knowing You... with Alan Partridge.Schneider provides the voice of Blink for the CBBC seriesOne Minute Wonders.In 2008, he took part in BBC Three'sMost Annoying People of 2008,relaying his views about celebrities includingPrince William,Mark RonsonandPeaches Geldof.In 2009, Schneider explored hisYiddishheritage with a 30-minute documentary forBBC Radio 4,My Yiddisher Mother Tongue,with contributors including family members, academics,Colin PowellandMichael Grade.

He has written a play, calledMaking Stalin Laugh,based on the slaughter of theMoscow State Jewish Theatreon the orders ofJoseph Stalin.He also directed a sitcom pilot in 2007 calledUp Close and Personal,set in the offices of a celebrity magazine and starringRaquel Cassidy.The pilot was subsequently rejected byITV2.In 2011, he played Soggy Sid inHorrid Henry: The Movie,and in 2012, appeared in ITV dramaWhitechapel,series 3, as murder suspect and taxi driver Marcus Salter. His radio sitcomBirths, Deaths and Marriages,set in a register office and starring himself, premiered onBBC Radio 4in May 2012.

In 2014 he co-founded That Lot, a social media agency alongside writer David Levin and David Beresford. In 2018 they sold the company to the PR firmWeber Shandwick.

Schneider appeared in the fifth episode of the second season in the TV showPlebsin 2014, portraying a slave auctioneer called Agorix. In 2017, Schneider wrote the screenplay ofThe Death of StalinwithArmando Iannucci.

Filmography

Film

Film
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1993	The Trial	Kullich
1996	Mission: Impossible	Train Driver
1997	The Saint	Bar Waiter
1998	Comic Act
1999	You're Dead	Ian
2000	If Looks Could Kill: The Power of Behaviour	Mr. Tanner	Video short
2001	A Knight's Tale	Relic Seller
2002	28 Days Later...	Scientist
2003	Blackball	Young Buck Reporter
	Cheeky	Todd
2004	Fat Slags	Tanner
	Churchill: The Hollywood Years	Goebels
2006	The Battersea Ripper
	Scoop	Joe's Co-Passengers
2009	Crazy Hands	Spencer	Short film
2010	The Infidel	Monty
2011	Horrid Henry: The Movie	Soggy Sid
	Arthur Christmas	General	Voice
2012	The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists!	Scarlett Morgan	Voice Also known asThe Pirates! Band of Misfits
2013	This Is Intercourse	Henry's Dad	Short film
	Underdogs	Chester	Original title:Metegol Voice, English version
2017	The Death of Stalin	—	Writer
2022	Fork	Demon
TBA	The Brilliant World of Tom Gates	Gluestick Ant	Voice Filming

Television

Television
1990	Up to Something!	Various	Writer
1991	Screen Two	Stamford Hill Cowboy	Series 7, episode 1: "Heading Home"
1992	Fireworks Safety	Ed Banger	TV short
1994	Mr. Bean	Judo Instructor	Episode 11: "Back to School Mr. Bean" Act 3:The Judo Class and the Toilet
	Paris	Butler	Episode 5: "La solitude"
	The Day Today	Sylvester Stewart / Alex - The Bureau / Brant / Adam Neils / Anthony Parr - Managing Director / Anton Sampson / Various	7 episodes Credited as Dave Schneider - 1 episode Writer - 7 episodes
1994–1995	Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge	Tony Hayers / Adrian Finch / Clown Leader / Clive Sealey / Tony Le Mesmer	7 episodes Writer - 2 episodes
1995	The Glam Metal Detectives	Constable / The Beefeater / Lucifer / Old Peg Legs	4 episodes
	Lloyds Bank Channel 4 Film Challenge	Martin	Series 2, episode 6: "Life's a Bitch"
	The Friday Night Armistice	—	Writer
1995–2000	The Peter Principle	Bradley Wilson	Also known asThe Boss Main role; 13 episodes
1996	Kavanagh QC	Martin Haslam	Series 2, episode 5: "A Stranger in the Family"
1997	I'm Alan Partridge	Tony Hayers	4 episodes
1998	The Tribe	Man in Waiting Room	TV film
2000	Gimme Gimme Gimme	Neville	Series 2, episode 5: "Glad to be Gay?"
	The Canterbury Tales		Voice Series 2, episode 1: "The Journey Back"
2001	The Armando Iannucci Shows	Tooth Fairy	Episode 7: "Morality" - Uncredited Writer and program consultant - Episode 1: "Twats" Director - Episode 3: "Communication" Producer
2002	Look Around You	Man Outside Toilet	Ucredited Series 1, episode 4: "Germs"
2004	Shane	Bazza
	Animate Tales of the World		Voice Series 3, episode 1: "The Shoemaker's Son"
2005	Nathan Barley	Man in porn film	Episode #1.3
2006	The Ten Commandments	Tobia	Miniseries
2006–2008	Uncle Max	Uncle Max	26 episodes
2008	Clive Hole	Clive Hole	TV movie
2009	One Minute Wonders	Blink	Voice Main role; 13 episodes
2010	Little Howard's Big Question	Alan Monster	Series 2, episode 2: "How Can I Make a Monster?"
	How Not to Live Your Life	Derek	Series 3, episode 2: "Don's Angry Girlfriend"
2011	My Family	Solicitor	Series 11, episode 6: "A Decent Proposal"
	Doctor Who: The Monthly Adventures	Ernst Bratfisch	Voice Episode: "The Silver Turk"
2012	Whitechapel	Marcus Salter	2 episodes
2013	Fit	—	Writer - Episode #1.2
2016–2017	Josh	—	Writer - 12 episodes Director - 18 episodes
2014	BBC Comedy Feeds	—	Director - Series 3, episode 1: "Josh"
	Plebs	Agorix	Series 2, episode 5: "The New Slave"
2020	Avenue 5	—	Director - Series 1, episode 8: "This Is Physically Hurting Me"

External links

• David SchneideratIMDb
• David SchneideratBritish Comedy Guide
• official website captured by archive.today in 2013