David Paisley
Birthday:
2 February 1979, Falkirk, Scotland, UK
David Paisley grew up in Glen Village near Falkirk with his mother and his five brothers. Shy and with low self-esteem David was bullied at primary school because of his poor background. Even though he had 'a few girlfriends' he was always more aware that he was attracted to boys and at 15 headed to a gay youth group where he eventually m...
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David Paisley grew up in Glen Village near Falkirk with his mother and his five brothers. Shy and with low self-esteem David was bullied at primary school because of his poor background. Even though he had 'a few girlfriends' he was always more aware that he was attracted to boys and at 15 headed to a gay youth group where he eventually met his first boyfriend. At 17, he went to Glasgow University to study Physics (and later to Caledonian university to study Optometry) where he began to become more confident and at 18, finally came out to his family who were very supportive, even helping him start a grassroots website to combat the "Keep the Clause" campaign. It was during his gap year that David got his first taste of acting when he appeared in a community workshop, but he was unsure about pursuing acting as a career, and continued to stay at university until he heard about an open audition for a show called Tinsel Town. After a lot of coaxing from friends he auditioned and landed the part of 17-year-old Ryan Taylor who falls in love with a man twice his age. The role brought him into the public eye and after appearing in the second series of Tinsel Town (as well as landing a guest spot on As If and appearing in a few theatre productions) David landed the part of gay midwife Ben Saunders in BBC1's popular medical soap Holby City. During his time on the show, his character became involved in one of the show's first major 'cross-over' storylines with its sister show Casualty, where his kiss with his on-screen boyfriend attracted 114 complaints from viewers. But having relocated to London, David soon began to miss his friends, family and partner and decided to leave the show in 2003 to move back up to Glasgow. David and his boyfriend Alex, then went traveling for year in Brazil, giving him some time off. Now back in the UK, next up for David is trying to help get the film adaptation of David Leavitt's While England Sleeps up and running, in which he will take the lead role of Edward Phelan. Show less «
[about his stint in As If] "It was hilarious because I got the script through and I was reading it, and the character was meant to be this r...Show more »
[about his stint in As If] "It was hilarious because I got the script through and I was reading it, and the character was meant to be this really good looking guy, `with the body of an Italian male model'. And I looked down and thought, `Well that's not me then'. They wanted a sexy guy...and they cast me. I was, like, `Why?'" Show less «
I used to get a lot of letters from one lady in her 80s who used to write to me about Tinsel Town. She wrote that her arthritis kept her awa...Show more »
I used to get a lot of letters from one lady in her 80s who used to write to me about Tinsel Town. She wrote that her arthritis kept her awake; she watched late-night telly, and could I send her some photos. But she added, 'not nude ones'. I think she thought I was some kind of porn actor. Show less «
[about his first day on Holby] "On my very first day on set, I had to put on rubber gloves and hold this wriggly little baby covered in Vase...Show more »
[about his first day on Holby] "On my very first day on set, I had to put on rubber gloves and hold this wriggly little baby covered in Vaseline to make it look as if it had just been born. I was petrified that I'd drop him. The baby's parents were in the corner watching my every move, and I had to make it look as if I was an expert." Show less «
[on his Holby City character] "There was limited scope for Ben romantically. They (producers) want the characters to pair off in a ceaseless...Show more »
[on his Holby City character] "There was limited scope for Ben romantically. They (producers) want the characters to pair off in a ceaseless cycle of shagging. If there's a gay character, they can stick out a little." Show less «
[talking about being a role model to gay youngsters] "I don't like the idea of that, but I suppose it's a possibility. It's only a good thin...Show more »
[talking about being a role model to gay youngsters] "I don't like the idea of that, but I suppose it's a possibility. It's only a good thing if young people who are having problems, dealing with their sexuality can see someone who's quite cool and sorted with the whole thing, that might help them be sorted with it themselves. The idea that that person is me is quite scary." Show less «
Ben Saunders
