A week at Elstree Studios.

Rating: 10/10 (16 March 2009)

1977
STAR WARSDIRECTOR GEORGE LUCAS After finishing a couple of Doctor Who's Central Casting sent me to E.M.I. Studios to work on another space film for seven days. I did ask them if they had any other work because I was fed up with wearing space outfits and the like (Little did I know about STAR WARS). There must have been about fifty Supporting Artists gathered on the first day, some putting on white space type suits, some being fitted out in weird make up and costumes and the rest of us waited around to see what we were going to be.
We had plenty of time to sit around chatting and playing the odd game of cards. When myself and a chap called Ronnie Conrad got a call to go to the wardrobe dept, They dressed us in black space type suits but without a face mask(Were they telling us we were ugly enough to look like aliens). When we were dressed we sat at the back of the set and waited to do our bit. I got talking to a giant of a man (Dave Prowse) from the West Country and he told me he was playing a character called ''Daft Ada''. I found out later that day he was playing ''DARTH VADER'' (It must have been Dave's strong Cornish accent that made it sound wrong). Ronnie and I did some odd bits during the week and then the 2nd A.D. called for us to do a bit of business with our old mate ''DARTH''. We were going to arrest Princess LEIA (Carrie Fisher) Carrie's parents were Eddie Fisher (singer) and Debbie Reynolds (singer/actress). Debbie starred in the film ''Singing In The Rain'' in 1952 and I, as a twelve year old, was in love with her... (It soon passed). Anyway lets get back to ''DAFT''.
Darth, Ronnie and I walk along some corridors and then into the cell where The Princess was being held. Darth had all the lines to say while Ronnie and I stood there looking ugly. (Typecast) In between lighting the set Carrie was very chatty and asked what else we had done in films. (Has she got that much time to spare?) I also met Harrison Ford and was to work with him again over the next few years. Star Wars was the highest grossing money film that I ever worked on. Some say it took a Billion Dollars at the box office and video sales Twenty five years later I am held in deep respect for being one of "DAFT ADA'S" men, by my Grandchildren Thanks Mr Lucas