Neil became a Casting Director rather by default, having given up acting and joined Hedda Beeby in Production and Development at the Ambassador Theatre Group.  Within a very short time, the casting responsibility came his way and before long Neil was a senior casting force on the UK theatre scene, casting major projects in the UK and Internationally, and working with actors including Keira Knightley, Damian Lewis, Patrick Swayze, Zach Braff, Val Kilmer, Polly Walker,  Eve Myles, Patricia Hodge, Charlie Cox, Samantha Womack, Claire Sweeney, Tara Fitzgerald, Felicity Kendal, Nicholas Le Prevost, Kris Marshall, Robert Webb, Patti Lupone, John Hannah, Richard Coyle, Gina McKee, Jason Donovan, Geoffrey Rush, Bonnie Langford, Les Dennis, Rik Mayall, Luke Evans, Ralph Little, Robert Bathurst, Douglas Hodge, James Fleet, Simon Callow, John Gordon Sinclair, Christopher Biggins, and Nigel Planer, to name a few. 

 

Neil also enjoyed working along side directors including Sir Richard Eyre, Barlett Sher, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Neil La Bute, Michael Grandage, Jamie Lloyd, Jeremy Sams, Michael Blakemore, Lucy Bailey, Lawrence Boswell, William Tuckett, Joey McNeely, Craig Revel Horwood, Will Tuckett, Doug Hughes, Thea Sharrock, Ian Rickson, Jerry Mitchell, and Christopher Luscombe. 

 

Not always easy with the pressures and demands from producers, co-producers and directors who do not always see eye to eye, Neil enjoys the casting challenge. And part of a Casting Director’s job is to mediate and solve the creative team's problems. Having been an actor is also of tremendous benefit, and Neil prides himself in the way in which he works with actors, understanding fully what they are going through and trying to make them feel at ease throughout the audition process.

​