Matthew Jacobs (born 1 July 1956) is a British writer, director, producer and actor. He is known best for his extensive career writing for television shows like Doctor Who and The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. He also directed two prize-winning TV movies for BBC films, Hallelujah Anyhow (1992) and Mothertime (1998). As an actor, he starred alongside Danny Huston in Boxing Day, Bernard Rose's 2012 adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's novella "Master and Man".
Life and career
Jacobs worked as one of the many writers for George Lucas's The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. His episodes included "Passion for Life," "The Perils of Cupid," "Travels with Father," "Spring Break Adventure," "Attack of the Hawkmen" and "Hollywood Follies."
Jacobs is perhaps best remembered for writing and co-producing the 1996 Doctor Who television movie, which featured Paul McGann as the Doctor and Eric Roberts as the Master. Jacobs was responsible for writing the first televised Doctor Who story to be broadcast as a show in its own right, rather than as part of a charity telethon, since Survival (1989).
Jacobs has also written several screenplays. His film credits include Lassie, The Emperor's New Groove and the cult classic Paperhouse.
Aside from his work in television and film, Jacobs has worked on other projects in the entertainment industry. He wrote for the video games Outlaws and Star Wars: Starfighter.
Jacobs' father, the actor Anthony Jacobs, appeared in the Doctor Who serial The Gunfighters in 1966, and took his son to visit the set one day during production.
Jacobs's father was Jewish; Jacobs practices no religion.1
Filmography
Films
Filmmaking credits
| Year | Director | Director | Writer | Producer | Editor | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | The Ninja Mission | No | Yes | No | No | |
| Starship | No | Yes | No | No | ||
| 1986 | Vardo | Yes | No | No | No | Short film |
| Smart Money | No | Yes | No | No | ||
| 1988 | Paperhouse | No | Yes | No | No | |
| 1994 | Lassie | No | Yes | No | No | |
| 2000 | The Emperor's New Groove | No | Story | No | No | |
| 2013 | Justin and the Knights of Valour | No | Yes | No | No | |
| Your Good Friend | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Directorial debut | |
| 2014 | Bar America | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | |
| 2015 | Rebel Child | No | No | Associate | No | Short film |
| 2018 | The Hurdy Gurdy Man | No | No | Yes | No | Short film; also first assistant director |
| 2019 | Claude Debussy's Danse Profane | No | No | Yes | No | Short film |
| 2022 | Doctor Who Am I | Yes | No | Yes | No | Documentary film |
Acting credits
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Lo que Daria por volver | BBC Narrator (voice) | Short film |
| The Kreutzer Sonata | Driver | ||
| 2010 | Mr. Nice | Eddie Laxton | |
| The Two Handed Painter | Producer (voice) | Short film | |
| The Seven Year Hitch | Himself | Documentary film | |
| 2011 | You're Cordially Uninvited | Mr. Badeaux | Short film |
| 2012 | Boxing Day | Nick | |
| 2013 | Your Good Friend | Jules | |
| 2014 | Bar America | Harry | |
| 2015 | On Her Wedding Day | Policeman (voice) | Short film |
| Frankenstein | Dr. Marcus | ||
| Art School of Horrors | Zadok | ||
| 2017 | State of Modern Love | Josh | |
| 2018 | The Hurdy Gurdy Man | Narrator (voice) | Short film |
| Vice | Antonin Scalia | ||
| 2021 | On My Special Day | The Caller | Short film |
| Traveling Light | Arthur | ||
| 2022 | Doctor Who Am I | Himself | Documentary film |
| TBA | Lear Rex | Duke of Cornwall | Post-production |
Television
Screenwriting credits
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | The Jim Henson Hour | Episode: "Monster Maker" |
| Somewhere to Run | TV film | |
| 1990 | Lorna Doone | TV film |
| 1990–1992 | The Ruth Rendell Mysteries | Episodes:
|
| 1991–1997 | Screen Two | Episodes:
|
| 1992–1996 | The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles | Episodes:
TV films:
|
| 1996 | Doctor Who | TV film: "Doctor Who: The Movie" (also co-producer) |
| 2002 | Mr. St. Nick | TV film (story only) |
Acting credits
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1968 | Point Counter Point | Little Phil | 4 episodes |
| 1975 | Play for Today | Wulf | Episode: "By Common Consent" |
| 1997 | Screen Two | Recording Engineer | Episode: "Mothertime" |
| 2018 | All You Need Is Me | Barman | 2 episodes |
| 2020 | Tardis Sauce | Himself | Episode: "The Time Lord's New Groove" |
Writer for video games
- Outlaws (1997, dialogue)
- Star Wars: Starfighter (2001)
External links
References
Ghert-Z, Renee. "Rabbi looks for laughs with (fictional) 'kosher' porn". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2020-07-22. https://www.timesofisrael.com/rabbi-looks-for-laughs-with-fictional-kosher-porn/ ↩