BY TIM GREAVES
Writer Derek Pykett (whose excellent book " MGM
British Studios: Hollywood in Borehamwood" was
reviewed here earlier this year) has turned his hand to directing; setting up
and playing host to a dozen intimate interviews with some of Britain's
most respected and beloved thesps, the results are now available on DVD with
"From Stage to Screen", a privately produced, limited edition 6-disc
box set.
With each performer given their own ‘episode’ and a total running
time of 15 hours, there's so much material here that it'll take the average
viewer a number of sittings to get through it all. Beyond starting with disc
one and working through methodically, where one begins is probably going to be
proportionate to the level of esteem in which the viewer holds each particular
actor or actress represented within the set; I confess that at the time of
writing I still have a fair bit to get through. However, I've adopted the
latter approach and, being a 007 fan, I zeroed in first on the hour devoted to
Julian Glover (who played villain Ari Kristatos in For Your Eyes Only), following up with Where Eagles Dare's charmingly poisonous Major Von Hapen, Derren
Nesbitt, and The Elephant Man's
outright wicked showmaster Bytes, Freddie Jones.
Also included in this collection – which could potentially be the
first of a series – are Michael Medwin, Shirley Ann Field, Michael Craig,
Michael Jayston, Joss Ackland, Roy Dotrice, Vera Day, Lee Montague and Sarah
Miles.
The episodes are supplemented with a selection of trailers
representing each interviewee's most renowned films. All the participants
regale the viewer with some marvellous and often amusing anecdotes, and it's
pleasant to be reminded of just how much they have actually achieved over the
decades, as well as some of the iconic figures they've worked with. Even though
the interviews average out at a little over an hour apiece, so extensive are
the careers under discussion that there's plenty of gold still to be mined and
one is definitely left with a thirst for more (for example, the aforementioned
Glover interview – disappointingly, given my passion for Bond – touches only
very briefly on For Your Eyes Only).
Although, being as it’s a documentary, the set is exempt from
classification, potential purchasers should be warned that there's a smattering
of fruity language throughout.
Proceeds from the sales of "From Stage to Screen" will
be divided between two charities, Alzheimer's Society and All Dogs Matter.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER FROM AMAZON UK