The Harry Palmer Files — 034 — RIP IPCRESS screenwriter James Doran
Through July, or at least until I run out of things about which to talk, we’ll be looking at the Harry Palmer series of novels (in which the character doesn’t actually have a name), their author — Len Deighton, the films based on them, the star of those films — Michael Caine, and the television movies that followed. I will be re-reading the whole series of novels, re-watching the films, and giving my thoughts on all I encounter. I’ll inevitably be drawing heavily on the collection of Kees Stam, author of The Harry Palmer Movie Site, and Rob Mallows, creator of the Deighton Dossier, and other odds and ends that I’ve turned up over the years.
Paul Beaumont at The Harry Palmer Movie Site message board informs us of the recent passing of IPCRESS File screenwriter James Doran. Doran, along with the late W.H. Canaway, was nominated for a BAFTA for his work in adapting Deighton’s novel for the screen. In addition to The IPCRESS File, Doran was a playwright and worked on numerous TV shows, but it was the 1965 film for which he is best known.
The Times obituary for Doran can be read at the Times Online.
