Bryan Forbes, CBE (; 22 July 1926 – 8 May 2013) was an English film director, screenwriter, film producer, actor and novelist, described as a "Renaissance man" and "one of the most important figures in the British film industry". Best known as the director of the film The Stepford Wives (1975), he wrote and directed several other critically acclaimed films, including Whistle Down the Wind (1961), Séance on a Wet Afternoon (1964), and King Rat (1965). He also scripted several films directed by others The League of Gentlemen (1960), The Angry Silence (1960) and Only Two Can Play (1962).