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29 Facts About David Proud

1.

David Proud was born on 14 March 1983 and is an English actor, writer and producer.

2.

David Proud was born with spina bifida and uses a wheelchair.

3.

David Proud was named in the Shaw Trust Power 100 as one of the 100 most influential people with a disability for 2015,2018, and 2019.

4.

David Proud was born with spina bifida, which was diagnosed when he was five years old.

5.

David Proud was able to walk with the use of plastic leg splints and participate in most activities, and attended a mainstream primary school.

6.

David Proud took time off for two major operations on his spine.

7.

David Proud passed nine subjects at GCSE and two A levels at grade D David Proud studied theatre at A level and was involved with school productions.

8.

David Proud wanted to take drama at university but did not believe it would be a viable career so worked as a benefits administrator for four and a half years.

9.

David Proud then obtained his first professional acting role in the children's television series Desperados.

10.

David Proud has written for Inclusion Now, the magazine of the Alliance for Inclusive Education, describing his attitude to his disability: "Being told that I can't do something seems to make me more and more determined".

11.

Outside of acting, David Proud studied for a degree in psychology through distance learning with the Open University.

12.

David Proud is a patron for the Association of Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus and launched their Fit For Success scheme.

13.

In 2011, David Proud was granted the Freedom of the City of London due to his work with several charities.

14.

David Proud was picked by BBC producer Ewan Marshall to play one of the leads in the 2007 CBBC series Desperados, a children's drama starring the paralympic wheelchair basketball player Ade Adepitan.

15.

David Proud only began his acting career during his early twenties, having previously believed that it would be impossible for him to have a career in that field.

16.

David Proud had a spinal injury during a school football match.

17.

Since Desperados, David Proud went on to be involved in various other projects.

18.

David Proud co-presented an episode of the BBC Three documentary series Mischief, "Is it cos I is Black", in 2007.

19.

David Proud appeared as the character Blake in the second series of ITV's Secret Diary of a Call Girl in 2008.

20.

David Proud played Adam Best, the son of Josie Lawrence's character Manda Best, in the BBC One soap opera, EastEnders from 2009 to 2010.

21.

In 2012, David Proud appeared in the BBC drama Doctors, and alongside Eddie Marsan and Rob Brydon in the BBC drama Best of Men.

22.

In 2014, David Proud appeared in the BBC Three sitcom Siblings.

23.

David Proud has branched into screenwriting, writing episodes for Doctors, as well as winning the ITV Original Voices Scheme in 2019, joining the writing team of Coronation Street the following year.

24.

David Proud has worked with British independent film director and producer Justin Edgar on three films.

25.

David Proud played Scott, a geeky paraplegic who makes a behind-the-scenes documentary following a group of other disabled film students, in the 2007 feature film Special People.

26.

David Proud played Holocaust victim Ernst in the 2008 short Hunger House.

27.

In 2009, David Proud confirmed that he was collaborating with Jason Maza on writing the script for a film project, resulting in the 2011 short film Wheels of Fortune, in which he and Maza co-starred.

28.

In 2014, David Proud filmed "a game changing film" and "a British Film making first": as a disabled actor he took the role of a non-disabled character in a lead role on the UK feature film iWitness.

29.

David Proud was one of the producers of the film, which was the first time he had produced at a feature film level.