David Fleeshman

Fleeshman was born on 11 July 1952 in Glasgow, Scotland, the son of Rosina and William Fleeshman. His family was Jewish. He trained at The Birmingham Theatre School making his stage debut was in 1973 with the Birmingham Repertory Theatre. In 1974 he took a position as actor/assistant stage manager at the Octagon Theatre, Bolton, and has also been an associate director of the Oldham Coliseum Theatre.

In 1978 he married actress Sue Jenkins, who played Gloria Todd on Coronation Street, 1985–1988, and Jackie Corkhill in the Channel 4 soap Brookside, 1991–2001. They have three children all currently working in the acting profession: Emily Fleeshman, Richard Fleeshman and Rosie Fleeshman.

Fleeshman has appeared in and directed numerous plays around the UK and abroad, including Arthur Miller's The Price, for which he won best actor in a supporting role at the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards in 2005.

As a theatre director, he directed the European premiere of Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues, and the regional premiere of My Night With Reg, which won best production at the Manchester Evening News Theatre Awards.

Fleeshman's major television roles include Boys from the Blackstuff, Edge of Darkness, Silent Witness, and Trial & Retribution, comedy classics such as Only Fools and Horses and A Bit of a Do, as well as stints in Coronation Street, Brookside, Doctors, Emmerdale, and EastEnders. He has also recorded frequently for BBC Radio.

Filmography includes Pink Floyd – The Wall and Unstoppable.

From 2013 to 2015 he toured extensively with the Royal National Theatre's War Horse, which played to audiences at venues throughout the United Kingdom, Dublin and South Africa. During 2016 Fleeshman portrayed the judge in Channel 4's National Treasure and played the leading role Charlie Resnick in Darkness, Darkness at the Nottingham Playhouse. From 2016 to 2019, he directed the Christmas pantomimes Aladdin, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs and Peter Pan (starring Cannon and Ball and Chico Slimani), performed at Crewe Lyceum Theatre.

In 2018 he was nominated by the Manchester Theatre Awards as best supporting actor for his role as Uncle Vanya.