Gary James Russell is a freelance writer and former child actor. As a writer, he is best known for his work in connection with the television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs in other media. As an actor he is best known for playing Dick Kirrin in the British 1978 television series, The Famous Five.
Russell was born in Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, UK.
His on-screen acting career ranged from leading roles in the BBC's adaptation of E. Nesbit's novel The Phoenix and the Carpet and ITV's adaptations of Enid Blyton's Famous Five novels (as Dick) to a very minor walk-on part in the James Bond movie Octopussy.[citation needed] He has also appeared on stage.
He was editor of Doctor Who Magazine between 1992 and 1995. He was the producer for the Doctor Who licensed audio drama tie-ins at Big Finish Productions from its inception in 1998 until July 2006, when he stepped down to work for BBC Wales on Doctor Who and Torchwood. He has written a number of Doctor Who spin-off novels and in 2000 co-wrote with executive producer Philip Segal the book Doctor Who: Regeneration, the making-of book of the 1996 Doctor Who television movie, as well as the TV movie's novelisation in 1996.
He wrote The Art of The Lord of the Rings, which was also published as three separate books (one for each film), and contributed to Gollum: How We Made Movie Magic with Andy Serkis. His behind-the-scenes book Doctor Who: The Inside Story was published in October 2006, coinciding with his joining the Doctor Who production team. His most recent reference work was also for Doctor Who; published in 2007 by BBC Books, The Doctor Who Encyclopedia is a guide to the current Doctor Who series (2005�present). In 2007, he directed the animated mini series "The Infinite Quest", which tied in with the 2007 television series of Doctor Who.
As of 2011/2012, having left BBC Wales, he has returned to Big Finish to produce the Bernice Summerfield audios and the Gallifrey audios.
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