The
hottest day of the year so far saw me travel up to Borehamwood in sunny
Hertfordshire to meet Mr Morris Bright, Chairman of the legendary Elstree Film
Studios. I have known of Morris for some time due to his involvement with all
things Carry On for many years. Not only is Morris Chairman, he is also leader
of Hertsmere Council, a member of BAFTA, a writer and a broadcaster. Above all
else though, he is a fan of the greats of British comedy.
I
was therefore thrilled that not only had he read my blog but also that he was
happy to take part in an interview. It was an absolute joy to visit Elstree
Studios and learn more about Morris’ work there, his views on the Carry On
phenomenon and his memories of some of our favourite film comedy actors. I also
got the chance to come face to face with a genuine, fabulous piece of Sid James
memorabilia!
In
Part Two of my interview with Morris, I asked him about his memories of
organising the 40th Anniversary tribute to the Carry Ons at Pinewood
back in 1998 as well as his thoughts on the likes of Joan Sims, Peter Rogers,
Patsy Rowlands and Dilys Laye…
What are your memories of
the Carry On 40th anniversary celebrations at Pinewood?
It
was a wonderful experience. There was so much hype and publicity around that
time and the films had seen a huge resurgence. The media became really
interested in the films, the stars and what we were doing at Pinewood. We were
also really fortunate in that we persuaded all the surviving big names to
attend the celebration event at Pinewood and appear in the accompanying ITV
documentary. Everyone took part – Leslie Phillips, Barbara Windsor, Jim Dale,
Joan Sims, June Whitfield. It was just a shame that many of the big names had
already passed away. I got to know them all at around that time and when I got
married at Pinewood Studios the likes of Jack Douglas, Leslie Phillips and
Angela Douglas all came to my wedding – we could have arranged a signing
session at the reception!
At
around that time I accompanied Leslie and Angela to one of their first ever
signing sessions at a convention in Birmingham. It was all very new to them but
it was great fun. I remember all the ladies loved Leslie and one young woman in
particular had lots of photos taken with him, getting him to say “Hello!” and
“Ding Dong!” As she moved away all I can remember is Leslie, in his usual
fruity tones saying “ That young woman touched my c**k!”
I remember watching the
documentary in 1998 and being thrilled to see Joan take part. She shunned a lot
of publicity and didn’t really like talking about the films or her career.
Joan
did have to be persuaded to take part and I had the honour of interviewing her for the film. She was a joy and it meant a lot to everyone
that she played a part in the celebrations.
My blog is a tribute to
Joan Sims. What was she like to be around?
Joan
Sims was undoubtedly the best actress in the Carry On films. She had so much
talent but was always uncertain of herself and her ability as an actress. She
was definitely an actor who could play comedy rather than a comedienne. She had
her problems over the years but she always had the ability to light up a room
and everyone was always so pleased to see her. On the films, she always loved
Alan Hume, the cinematographer and lighting camera man because he took such
care to make all the ladies look their best.
I’ll
always remember driving Joan and Norman and Rita Hudis to Betty Box’s funeral
in 1999. We picked Joan up at Paddington Station and she desperately wanted to
smoke but managed to resist the temptation while in the car. As we came out of
the crematorium after the service, Joan suddenly asked “Is there somewhere I
can smoke?!” which made everyone burst out laughing – and that was Joan, she
was a naturally funny person.
You knew Peter Rogers
well. What was he like?
I
was fortunate to get to know Peter Rogers towards the end of his life, from the
mid-1990s pretty much up until his death. We both had offices at Pinewood. We
gave him the nickname “Mr Carry On” and although he was very much a businessman
and quite a formidable person – he didn’t suffer fools – he absolutely adored
meeting fans of his films. I worked with him on many special Carry On events at
Pinewood over the years and he loved it all. Some of the actors took issue with
him because of the way they were treated or the lack of repeat fees but without
Peter the Carry Ons may not have happened – he was the driving force and he has
left a wonderful legacy.
Despite
issues around the salaries the actors received, Peter did leave money in his
will to the Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund when he died. I actually
remember him calling me into his office to act as a signatory when he decided
to make these changes to his will and he joked that he wasn’t leaving me
anything! Peter was first and foremost a businessman – he didn’t really like
actors or socialise with them. There were no photos of his actors or posters of
his films in his office at Pinewood, just photos of his dogs!
Are there any elusive
Carry On actors that you’d still like to meet?
I
think I’ve been lucky to have met practically everyone connected with the Carry
On films at one time or another. A great many of them have become friends over
the years although sadly far too many are now no longer with us. As a genuine
fan of the films, it’s been a joy to get to know so many of the actors and crew
who made them.
Two of my favourite Carry
On actors were Patsy Rowlands and Dilys Laye. Do you have fond memories of both
actresses?
Patsy
Rowlands was a lovely lady and a very good actress. I was always surprised that
she didn’t get bigger roles in the series. The larger parts she played (such as
Miss Dempsey in Loving and Mildred
Bumble in Girls) were played
beautifully, but Peter Rogers had his set team and that was that. She was also
a very talented stage actress and I remember seeing her in the West End revival
of Oliver! in the 1990s with Jim
Dale. I remember interviewing her down in Brighton as part of the 1998 What’s A Carry On? documentary for ITV.
Dilys
Laye was another actress who deserved more recognition. She was a superb actor
who had a gift for comedy. She was excellent as the femme fatale in Carry On Spying and worked in film,
television and theatre for many years. I remember one of her later roles as
Frankie Howerd’s mother in the BBC4 biopic. She had great depth as an actress
and was universally loved. She also went to school for a while with my mother
down in Bournemouth! Dilys was also a lifelong friend of Joan Sims and not just
a showbiz friend, but a genuine friend. She kept her promise to come and speak
at a Joan Sims tribute I organised at Pinewood in 2004 and there is a video of
this online.
You also know Valerie Leon
well I think? She was kind enough to answer questions for a blog interview
earlier this year.
I’ve
known Valerie for over twenty years and she is such a lovely, kind lady. She
came up to Elstree not long ago to do an interview with me for the Take Two series and she’s always a joy.
She was really kind and helpful to me when I was starting out and I’ll always
remember that.
Who’s your favourite Carry
On actor?
Without
a doubt, Kenneth Williams! I met Kenneth back in 1985 after a recording of the
BBC radio panel game Just A Minute. I
had taken along a copy of his autobiography which had only been released the
previous day. At the end of the show Kenneth announced that he wouldn’t be
standing at the stage door afterwards to sign autographs, but anyone who wanted
one could come up on the stage. Not only did he sign my book he also produced a
copy of an earlier book, Acid Drops,
from a pile under the table and signed one of those for me too. He was very
pleasant and friendly to everyone that evening and it’s a wonderful memory.
What’s your favourite
Carry On film of all time?
This
is a hard question to answer – it has changed over the years. I think probably
due to the cleverness of the film, the quality of the pastiche and the
bristling script it has to be Carry On
Cleo. The cast are all on excellent form, particularly Kenneth Williams,
Joan Sims and Charles Hawtrey. Interestingly Barbara Windsor didn’t get the
part of Cleo because she was on Broadway at the time. It would have been a very
different film if she had played the title role. The film also looks wonderful thanks to the
sets and costumes left over at Pinewood from the Richard Burton and Elizabeth
Taylor epic Cleopatra.
Before
I left the Studios Morris insisted I took a seat at Sid’s piano to have my
photo taken. It was quite a moment and one I will treasure. I cannot thank
Morris enough for the opportunity to visit Elstree and share a fascinating
conversation about so many of our comedy heroes. We are both massive fans of
the Carry Ons and their stars and it was a joy to meet someone who knew so many
of my own heroes. Thanks Morris!
I
hope you have enjoyed both parts of the interview. Carry On!
