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Downloaded from
YTS.MX

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The following programme contains
violent scenes, sexual references,

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and explores the theme of racism.

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Official YIFY movies site:
YTS.MX

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Christopher Lee,
tall, handsome, elegant.

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Very aristocratic.
A little stiff.

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Slightly pompous.
Imperious.

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Stilted, a little un-forthcoming.

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He was a powerful individual.

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Everyone will always
remember him as Dracula

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because he was a powerful Dracula.

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Consistent aura around him, which
was of a certain kind of dignity

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and a certain kind of scariness
and a certain kind of...

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"Ooh, he must be scary to meet,"
kind of thing.

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People when they- sometimes they
say, "You always play villains,

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you always play the bad guy,"

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He said, "No, I play people.

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Good and evil is a state of mind.
Depends on which side you are on."

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He was, I think, soft as putty.

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That's what's so interesting
about monsters,

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that you gotta remember,
people forget,

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but most monsters are victims.

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How do you do?
I'm Christopher Lee.

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How do you do? I'm Christopher Lee.

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How do you do? I'm Christopher Lee.

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How do you do? I'm Christopher Lee.

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How do you do? I'm Christopher Lee.

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On the 7th of June in the year 2015,

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I passed away at the age of 93.

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To some, this might seem
like a defining moment,

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but not me. Oh, no.

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By then I had become
quite accustomed to dying.

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You might even have called it
my stock-in-trade.

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'When I was born
on the 27th of May, 1922,

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'I was a new chapter in the story
of the Italian aristocratic

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'Carandini family.'

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'Records of the House of Carandini
stretch back to the 12th century.

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'Here, you see our coat of arms
awarded to us in the 15th century

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'by Frederick Barbarossa,
Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.

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'Our noble lineage could be traced
directly back to Charlemagne.

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'But let's not dally with detail.

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'For as impressive a list
of soldiers, governors,

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'senators, and clergymen
the Carandini tree may offer up,

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'our time is short,
and our subject is me.

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'Of this mighty family tree,
at the time of my birth,

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'a sapling had been growing quite
admirably in London, for some years.

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'My maternal grandfather was
the Count Carandini

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'and my mother, his only child,

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'the Contessa Estelle Marie
Carandini di Sarzano.

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'My mother was an Edwardian beauty

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'and in her youth, a muse to many.

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'She was painted, sketched,
sculpted, and etched,

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'desired by many, but landed by one.

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'Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Lee
of the King's Royal Rifle Corps,

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'a hero of the Boer War
and the Great War,

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'survivor of the Somme.'

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Quite late on in life,
I got a book called, "Il Carandini"

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and they looked like
a lot of rogues...

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...sort of the Mafia of their day.

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But you know, to get-
the cynical view is that

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to keep a title for 700 years
or something,

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you've got to have killed
a lot of people.

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'I grew up in the shadow
of achievement and nobility.

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'And as a child, wondered if
I would be able to live up

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'to the remarkable lives
of those who had preceded me.

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'I was, at heart, a wanderer.

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'As was my Papa who wandered away
from us

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'when I was just four-years-old,
never to return.'

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His mother was very strict, and
he had a very uptight upbringing.

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You know? So, he was a bit
naive in certain- in certain ways.

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There I am. I look like quite
a normal boy, don't I?

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And in many ways I was.

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Equally anxious and arrogant,
but my childhood was unique.

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We were sprung once more into high
society when my mother remarried.

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My stepfather was a small
but exceedingly strong man

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known as Ingle.
He was a banker and bon viveur.

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'To celebrate their union, I was
swiftly dispatched to boarding school

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'in the hope that they might whip me
into shape to be accepted into Eton.

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'One could hardly describe me
as a star student,

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'but the desire to please
consumed and overwhelmed me.

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'So, it is perhaps no surprise that
I was to end up on the school stage.

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'Mother, Ingle, and my sister Xandra
made the journey

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'for the first night of the
school production of Henry V.

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'And they all excitedly agreed
that a bright future in acting

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'awaited the proud young boy
playing the eponymous lead.

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'Sadly, that boy was not me.

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'But I loved the stage and I was
an obstinate little so-and-so.'

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Perhaps my time would've been better
spent on the study of mathematics,

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for it was that, along with
a downturn in Ingle's finances

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which would lead me away
from the path to Eton.

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Instead, at 14, I was enrolled
in Wellington College.

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Wellington was
a military establishment,

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and, I suppose much like the rest
of the public schools of the day,

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but with the addition
of endless polishing.

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The smell of Brasso
haunts my nostrils still.

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If you've got some sensitivity
and you've got a sort of,

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for want of a better word,
an artistic soul,

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and you're pushed through the
British public school system

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as a male...

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...it can absolutely kill that.

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There's such a strong ethic
in that schooling that,

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about what it is
or is not to be a man.

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And I think right down in his heart,
this is my intuition,

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there's absolutely nothing to bear
this up, it's just...

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it's just sense.
He was very feminine.

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And... very sensitive.

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And I feel that he didn't quite know
how to express that side of him.

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'What awaited me as I aged
out of Wellington,

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'was likely an Oxbridge education

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'followed by a career
in international diplomacy.

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'I was practically bred for it.

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'By this stage, my French, German
and Russian were already rather good.

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'But something happened.

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'Ingle went bust, bankrupt,
to the sum of £25,000.

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'He left my mother
and faded into the distance.'

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I never knew his father,
my grandfather,

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and I never knew his step-father.

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Both those father figures had
sort of disappeared out of his life,

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and that explains quite
a lot about him as well,

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because he didn't have
a father around.

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It was his mother's influence
that he took away

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into the world much more.

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'At 19-years-old,
unsure of my future,

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'I found myself in Paris.

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'Early one morning a friend
dragged me to Versailles.

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'There was something
he wanted me to see.

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'We arrived to an open square,
steadily filling with people.

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'Dawn broke over the scene

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'and I realised that the focus
of the amassed crowd

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'was Madame Guillotine.

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'In that instant,
a man was marched out,

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'Eugen Weidmann.

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'He had murdered six people
in cold blood.

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'Within 30 seconds

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'he had been whisked off his feet,
bound, punched in the gut,

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'placed on the monstrous contraption
and adjusted into position.

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'The blade fell
and I failed to look away.

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'I was sickened to my soul.

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'I watched the gleeful crowd clamour
to dip their handkerchiefs

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'into his warm blood
as a grizzly souvenir.'

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He had witnessed the last execution

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in France with a guillotine.

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So, he was obsessed with executions.

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And he kept execution memorabilia.

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"This is the rope that was
used to hang, I don't know who."

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"Who gave you that?"

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"That was Pierpoint, gave it to me.

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I'm gonna leave it
in my will to Roger Moore."

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I remember that he wrote,

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"I am leaving you the rope
that was used to hang...

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King I-Don't-Know-What that my
friend Pierpoint passed over to me.

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I would like you to have it."

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I don't think Roger Moore got it.

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I now suspected my friend
was trying to dispel my naivete

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and ready me for
the brutalities of war.

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Because within weeks
the party was over

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and all of a sudden,
the Germans were coming.

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I returned to London.

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'On the 3rd of September,
Chamberlain declared we were at war.

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'Keen to reveal myself a hero,

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'I immediately reported
to the war office,

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'who had no apparent need for me.'

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So, I took a job in the city

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and grew accustomed to the noises
of the war at home.

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And then, I heard something
even worse.

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I heard that my wayward Papa was in
hospital with a terminal diagnosis.

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He was barely 60.

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It was, I suppose, to honour him

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that I swiftly decided
again to enlist

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and join the war abroad.

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'I couldn't face the army,
so I took to the skies.'

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'Six weeks by sea
and one by train brought us

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'to flight training in Rhodesia,
far from enemy fire.

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'South Africa was paradise.

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'Behind the controls of an open
cockpit Tiger Moth, I felt alive!

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'In the shimmering heat haze
of a dusty afternoon,

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'we would stall, spin,
and loop our paths

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'to becoming fully-fledged pilots.

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'During my final accompanied flight,

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'my head filled with fire
and I went blind in my left eye.

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'I was diagnosed with
an unreliable optic nerve.

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'My dreams of flight
were put paid to.

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Following this, I rather expected
my war to be a dull clerical affair

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but then I found myself
in an operational squadron,

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and my role was that of... spy.

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'Five missions a day was our average

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'and with our robust
fighter bombers, the P-40s,

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'we outclassed
the German Luftwaffe every time.

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'Well, except once.

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'We were in Tunisia,

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'and I was standing on the airstrip
assessing the skies first-hand.

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'As I turned around, I was faced
with a sheer wall of flame.

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'Above it, four German ME-109s
heading directly for me.

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'I sprinted, completely exposed,

195
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'looking for somewhere
to dive for cover.

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'The bombs couldn't have been
more than 150 yards away.

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'I could feel the heat
singe my neck hair.

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'The final bomb landed within range,

199
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'and the blast rent asunder
the ground behind me.

200
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'The debris created
was as if fired by shotgun,

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'targeted almost entirely
to my buttocks.

202
00:12:30,840 --> 00:12:32,599
'Within 10 minutes,

203
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'I was being debriefed
in both senses of the word.

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'I could not sit down for two days.

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00:12:38,440 --> 00:12:42,480
'And had I been able, I suspect
I would not have been permitted to.

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'This raid was my failing.

207
00:12:45,640 --> 00:12:47,680
'I would not fail again.'

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As the war ended, there was still
important work to be done.

209
00:12:51,960 --> 00:12:55,119
My next posting was to serve
with the Central Registry

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00:12:55,120 --> 00:12:57,839
of War Crimes and Security Suspects.

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00:12:57,840 --> 00:13:00,519
A position which sounds
almost clerical

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00:13:00,520 --> 00:13:04,120
but became known somewhat
more grandly as Nazi Hunter.

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00:13:05,160 --> 00:13:09,039
The adventures I had during this
period remain highly classified.

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00:13:09,040 --> 00:13:11,439
I could relate to you a story or two,

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00:13:11,440 --> 00:13:14,159
but sadly I would have to kill you.

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00:13:14,160 --> 00:13:16,639
And we don't want that, do we?

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00:13:16,640 --> 00:13:19,879
There is some mystery
attached to his work

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00:13:19,880 --> 00:13:22,119
during the war
and immediately after it.

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A lot of that I think, has to do
with the Official Secrets Act

220
00:13:25,080 --> 00:13:27,759
and the fact that Lee
himself was, you know,

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00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:30,999
not willing to open up about it
to any great degree.

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00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:33,799
And I think it has actually
created a great deal of confusion.

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00:13:33,800 --> 00:13:36,239
I know a bit.

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Because he spoke perfect German,
perfect French,

225
00:13:39,840 --> 00:13:43,719
and perfect Italian, he was
involved with a lot of sabotage

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00:13:43,720 --> 00:13:46,879
and working with partisans
behind the enemy lines

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00:13:46,880 --> 00:13:49,440
and also in targeted assassinations.

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00:13:50,480 --> 00:13:52,879
Which, of course,
the British government

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doesn't know anything about.

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He was very intense.

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00:13:58,000 --> 00:14:01,679
There were some things he just-
he didn't want to get into,

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00:14:01,680 --> 00:14:04,200
but it marked him, the experiences.

233
00:14:05,200 --> 00:14:07,839
But I gave him shit.
I mean, I always wanted to know.

234
00:14:07,840 --> 00:14:10,600
"Tell me about the war."
"John, I can't."

235
00:14:11,480 --> 00:14:14,519
"Come on!" You know? "Tell me
about the war. Come on, Chris!"

236
00:14:14,520 --> 00:14:17,039
You know?
And I always gave him a hard time.

237
00:14:17,040 --> 00:14:19,360
And one day we were at...

238
00:14:20,800 --> 00:14:23,079
...a restaurant in Sloane Square

239
00:14:23,080 --> 00:14:26,919
and he had had several
glasses of wine

240
00:14:26,920 --> 00:14:29,519
and he wasn't tipsy,

241
00:14:29,520 --> 00:14:31,399
but he was a little loose.

242
00:14:31,400 --> 00:14:33,599
And I said, "Chris...

243
00:14:33,600 --> 00:14:35,799
this is the perfect moment.

244
00:14:35,800 --> 00:14:38,840
Tell me about your war experiences."

245
00:14:39,800 --> 00:14:42,639
He said, "You know I can't."
And I said, "Come on.

246
00:14:42,640 --> 00:14:45,879
Who am I gonna tell, Chris?"
And I kept giving him shit.

247
00:14:45,880 --> 00:14:49,639
And then finally he said,
"John," and he leaned forward.

248
00:14:49,640 --> 00:14:52,999
To be suddenly imposing,
he leaned forward and he said,

249
00:14:53,000 --> 00:14:55,160
"Can you keep a secret?"

250
00:14:56,240 --> 00:14:59,119
So of course,
I lean forward and go, "Yes."

251
00:14:59,120 --> 00:15:01,079
And he said...

252
00:15:01,080 --> 00:15:03,360
"So can I."

253
00:15:10,320 --> 00:15:12,439
'I arrived back in London,

254
00:15:12,440 --> 00:15:15,079
'like so many of my generation,
to find that civilian life

255
00:15:15,080 --> 00:15:18,039
'had far less use for me
than the military had.

256
00:15:18,040 --> 00:15:19,959
'With a new blue suit

257
00:15:19,960 --> 00:15:23,199
and half a pound of shrapnel
forever embedded in my buttocks,

258
00:15:23,200 --> 00:15:24,999
'I slowly explored my options

259
00:15:25,000 --> 00:15:27,960
'and ravenously accepted
all invitations to lunch.

260
00:15:29,000 --> 00:15:32,599
'One such invitation came from
my mother's cousin, Nicolo,

261
00:15:32,600 --> 00:15:34,999
'the Italian Ambassador
to Great Britain.

262
00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:37,799
'Amidst my drunken tales
and impersonations,

263
00:15:37,800 --> 00:15:41,759
'Nicolo said simply, "Why don't you
become an actor, Christopher?"

264
00:15:41,760 --> 00:15:44,239
'So, that was that.

265
00:15:44,240 --> 00:15:47,279
'It was immediately apparent
to me that he was right.

266
00:15:47,280 --> 00:15:49,879
'Before I even had a chance to fail,

267
00:15:49,880 --> 00:15:52,559
'Nicolo arranged a meeting for me
with his friend

268
00:15:52,560 --> 00:15:54,959
'who worked with
The Rank Organisation.'

269
00:15:54,960 --> 00:15:57,199
I suppose if you
were being uncharitable,

270
00:15:57,200 --> 00:16:00,239
you could say that there was
a touch of almost nepotism

271
00:16:00,240 --> 00:16:03,439
involved in Lee's entry
into the film industry.

272
00:16:03,440 --> 00:16:05,639
So, it was all very easy.
But I think...

273
00:16:05,640 --> 00:16:09,319
in the immediate post-war years,
it didn't last very long,

274
00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:12,399
but the British film industry
was at its zenith.

275
00:16:12,400 --> 00:16:14,559
And I think there was
a great hunger,

276
00:16:14,560 --> 00:16:17,480
particularly after the war,
to create new stars.

277
00:16:18,320 --> 00:16:22,039
And so, as a result, Lee was
packed off to the...

278
00:16:22,040 --> 00:16:25,600
to The Rank Charm School,
as it became known.

279
00:16:26,640 --> 00:16:28,919
Which had an expressed...

280
00:16:28,920 --> 00:16:31,679
wish to create British,

281
00:16:31,680 --> 00:16:35,559
and hopefully later,
as they put it, international stars.

282
00:16:35,560 --> 00:16:39,599
'To Worthing we were sent to fill out
the lower half of the cast lists

283
00:16:39,600 --> 00:16:41,679
'of a provincial repertory theatre.

284
00:16:41,680 --> 00:16:44,439
'And admittedly,
many lessons were learned

285
00:16:44,440 --> 00:16:47,079
'which would shape me as an actor.

286
00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:50,119
'The first time I trod the boards
was as Roberto the Butler,

287
00:16:50,120 --> 00:16:52,199
'in The Constant Nymph.

288
00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:55,919
'I gave it my all.
I buttled relentlessly.

289
00:16:55,920 --> 00:16:58,479
'More than this, I acted.

290
00:16:58,480 --> 00:17:00,759
'I acted my young heart out.

291
00:17:00,760 --> 00:17:04,359
'When one of the principal characters
cried, I shed a tear with them.

292
00:17:04,360 --> 00:17:07,840
'When one laughed, I laughed too
as if my sides were splitting.

293
00:17:08,800 --> 00:17:12,239
'I responded to every word of that
script as I felt right.

294
00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:16,039
'From my place in the background,
I projected outrage,

295
00:17:16,040 --> 00:17:18,280
'good humour, surprise, and bonhomie.

296
00:17:19,400 --> 00:17:22,639
'The curtain fell for the interval
and the director took me aside.

297
00:17:22,640 --> 00:17:24,999
'I couldn't tell whether
he was laughing or crying,

298
00:17:25,000 --> 00:17:28,440
'but either way, he left me
in no doubt as to my transgression.

299
00:17:29,280 --> 00:17:32,559
'I had upstaged
the entire production.

300
00:17:32,560 --> 00:17:34,839
'My feelings were terribly hurt,

301
00:17:34,840 --> 00:17:36,879
'and I was greatly embarrassed.

302
00:17:36,880 --> 00:17:39,879
'I was, however, vindicated
when the reviews came in.

303
00:17:39,880 --> 00:17:43,760
'The critics singled me out as having
provided welcome light relief.

304
00:17:45,280 --> 00:17:47,199
'By day in Highbury,

305
00:17:47,200 --> 00:17:50,119
'we learned Stanislavsky's method
of physical action.

306
00:17:50,120 --> 00:17:52,759
'We fenced, we pranced, we raged,

307
00:17:52,760 --> 00:17:56,559
'and we paraded the old church hall
with books upon our heads.

308
00:17:56,560 --> 00:17:59,959
'Of course, no directors had
the slightest interest in using us

309
00:17:59,960 --> 00:18:02,959
'for more than background
and stand-ins for the talent.

310
00:18:02,960 --> 00:18:06,640
'But this in itself was film set
experience and therefore useful.

311
00:18:08,360 --> 00:18:11,399
'I was 24 when I gave
my first performance on film,

312
00:18:11,400 --> 00:18:14,759
'a kindness extended to me by
director Terence Young,

313
00:18:14,760 --> 00:18:17,479
'who overcame the standard reason
for my rejection,

314
00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:20,759
'the issue of my height,
by keeping me seated.

315
00:18:20,760 --> 00:18:23,079
'The film was Corridor of Mirrors.

316
00:18:23,080 --> 00:18:26,360
'I had one line and it was
a withering barb against the lead.'

317
00:18:27,240 --> 00:18:30,520
Take a look. Standing
in the entrance, Lord Byron.

318
00:18:33,000 --> 00:18:36,519
'To some degree, in that moment,
my die was cast.

319
00:18:36,520 --> 00:18:39,199
'The nucleus of my celluloid id,

320
00:18:39,200 --> 00:18:42,440
'upper class, educated,
loquacious, and disdainful.

321
00:18:43,560 --> 00:18:47,199
'Soon after, Rank decided
to give its company of youth

322
00:18:47,200 --> 00:18:49,159
'an accelerant boost.

323
00:18:49,160 --> 00:18:52,799
'Rather than scattering us in small
roles across its bigger releases,

324
00:18:52,800 --> 00:18:56,639
'it would give us all big roles
in our own tiny release.

325
00:18:56,640 --> 00:18:59,079
'It was ,of course, a horrible idea.

326
00:18:59,080 --> 00:19:02,679
'None of us were nearly ready
enough to carry an entire feature

327
00:19:02,680 --> 00:19:05,679
'and, had it not been compulsory
to attend the premiere

328
00:19:05,680 --> 00:19:07,679
'on the Tottenham Court Road,

329
00:19:07,680 --> 00:19:10,279
'I'm sure all of us would have
preferred to be elsewhere.

330
00:19:10,280 --> 00:19:14,159
'It was, however, my first time
in the role of chief antagonist,

331
00:19:14,160 --> 00:19:16,359
'the bad guy.

332
00:19:16,360 --> 00:19:19,999
'Sadly, the only thing more
diabolical than my character's intent

333
00:19:20,000 --> 00:19:22,760
'was the performance
of the actor inhabiting it.

334
00:19:30,640 --> 00:19:33,279
'Such was the British film
industry in those days

335
00:19:33,280 --> 00:19:36,119
'that even this early on
I was at least working,

336
00:19:36,120 --> 00:19:38,520
'and my star was arguably rising.

337
00:19:39,480 --> 00:19:42,799
'Scott of the Antarctic
was a generously-budgeted

338
00:19:42,800 --> 00:19:44,359
'Ealing production.

339
00:19:44,360 --> 00:19:47,839
'It starred John Mills
as the legendary explorer,

340
00:19:47,840 --> 00:19:50,599
'and I was one of his ill-fated team.

341
00:19:50,600 --> 00:19:53,079
'Not unlike the explorer I portrayed,

342
00:19:53,080 --> 00:19:55,959
'I would also shortly be
out in the cold.'

343
00:19:55,960 --> 00:19:57,559
I'm afraid that's it, Sir.

344
00:19:57,560 --> 00:20:00,559
'I was told by my benefactors
at Rank that I was too tall

345
00:20:00,560 --> 00:20:03,079
'and too foreign-looking
to be a film star,

346
00:20:03,080 --> 00:20:05,559
'and I was out on my ear.

347
00:20:05,560 --> 00:20:09,199
'My 1950s would be a mixed
bag of quite small roles

348
00:20:09,200 --> 00:20:11,279
'in quite big films.

349
00:20:11,280 --> 00:20:14,560
'But then there were also
the small roles in small films.

350
00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:18,559
'And then there were
the uncredited roles.'

351
00:20:18,560 --> 00:20:21,119
These years were not
without their high points.

352
00:20:21,120 --> 00:20:23,079
'I parried with Errol Flynn.'

353
00:20:23,080 --> 00:20:24,719
He was quite a good fencer.

354
00:20:24,720 --> 00:20:27,959
Although how many people have told
you when Chris would go like this,

355
00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:31,119
he'd say, and he'd point
at his damaged finger

356
00:20:31,120 --> 00:20:33,560
and he'd say,
"Errol Flynn did that to me."

357
00:20:34,520 --> 00:20:37,439
Which he did in a duel
in some movie.

358
00:20:37,440 --> 00:20:41,359
Errol Flynn, you know...
was not an excellent fencer.

359
00:20:41,360 --> 00:20:43,959
But these were not roles that
I could...

360
00:20:43,960 --> 00:20:46,000
get my teeth into.

361
00:20:46,960 --> 00:20:49,199
It was a living, and it was work.

362
00:20:49,200 --> 00:20:52,799
The notion of film acting,
especially in Britain at that time,

363
00:20:52,800 --> 00:20:56,759
as being in any way glamorous or
indicative of a luxurious lifestyle,

364
00:20:56,760 --> 00:20:58,839
is entirely false.

365
00:20:58,840 --> 00:21:01,079
Back then, maybe still today,
I don't know,

366
00:21:01,080 --> 00:21:04,119
there's a slight whiff of
disreputability, if that's a word,

367
00:21:04,120 --> 00:21:05,999
clung to the acting thing.

368
00:21:06,000 --> 00:21:08,719
I think there was a bit of him
saying, "I suppose you think

369
00:21:08,720 --> 00:21:11,479
I'm not worthwhile because
I'm just an actor." You know?

370
00:21:11,480 --> 00:21:14,719
Which of course that's reversed
much now, where you know,

371
00:21:14,720 --> 00:21:16,759
you get a lot of people go,
"Oh gosh, actors."

372
00:21:16,760 --> 00:21:19,439
"They're really exciting people."

373
00:21:19,440 --> 00:21:23,719
But in my father's day, there was
a bit of snootiness about actors.

374
00:21:23,720 --> 00:21:27,679
Of course, he always told the story
that when he went to his mother

375
00:21:27,680 --> 00:21:30,759
and announced his intention to
become an actor, and she literally,

376
00:21:30,760 --> 00:21:34,399
in a very actressy way, she struck
a melodramatic pose

377
00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:37,239
and possibly, you know, the back of
the hand to the forehead,

378
00:21:37,240 --> 00:21:39,279
and said, "An actor.

379
00:21:39,280 --> 00:21:43,559
Oh, Christopher, just think of all
the appalling people you'll meet!"

380
00:21:43,560 --> 00:21:45,599
'It was work.

381
00:21:45,600 --> 00:21:47,799
'It was work,
which I generally enjoyed

382
00:21:47,800 --> 00:21:50,799
'and work in which I became
increasingly proficient.

383
00:21:50,800 --> 00:21:53,199
'But it was 9:00am to 6:20pm.

384
00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:56,319
'with a 15-minute tea break
and one hour for lunch.

385
00:21:56,320 --> 00:21:58,519
'It was a job.

386
00:21:58,520 --> 00:22:00,839
'And seven years on a job without
notable progression

387
00:22:00,840 --> 00:22:03,039
'would be frustrating to anybody.

388
00:22:03,040 --> 00:22:06,559
'But it was not just my lack
of progress which frustrated me.'

389
00:22:06,560 --> 00:22:08,600
I really wanted to sing.

390
00:22:31,760 --> 00:22:33,919
My love for opera had blossomed.

391
00:22:33,920 --> 00:22:36,079
And with my film career
barely advanced

392
00:22:36,080 --> 00:22:38,039
in the best part of a decade,

393
00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:41,439
I petitioned a professor at
the Royal College of Music for help.

394
00:22:41,440 --> 00:22:45,040
Too tall, too foreign-looking,
and now, too old.

395
00:22:46,000 --> 00:22:48,959
My dream was dead,

396
00:22:48,960 --> 00:22:51,000
dead, dead.

397
00:22:51,880 --> 00:22:53,999
But that was, I suppose, alright,

398
00:22:54,000 --> 00:22:56,719
death was calling me
to another destiny.

399
00:22:56,720 --> 00:23:00,920
It was almost time for me to be
death's emissary in modern cinema.

400
00:23:01,880 --> 00:23:04,719
Now, to understand
the story of my Dracula,

401
00:23:04,720 --> 00:23:08,360
you have to understand
the story of Hammer.

402
00:23:09,200 --> 00:23:12,479
'Hammer was a film production
company which, by the mid-50s',

403
00:23:12,480 --> 00:23:14,799
'had been around some two decades.

404
00:23:14,800 --> 00:23:17,719
'It had been established
by the comedian William Hines

405
00:23:17,720 --> 00:23:21,359
'in the early '30s, a name
for his stage persona Will Hammer.'

406
00:23:21,360 --> 00:23:24,119
Post-war, Hammer Film Productions

407
00:23:24,120 --> 00:23:26,399
were devoted to second features.

408
00:23:26,400 --> 00:23:29,279
Yes, what would previously have
been called Quota Quickies.

409
00:23:29,280 --> 00:23:32,359
They began, really,
with very forward thinking.

410
00:23:32,360 --> 00:23:36,520
They began by adapting already
popular BBC radio subjects.

411
00:23:37,880 --> 00:23:40,159
But in among all that,
they also got together

412
00:23:40,160 --> 00:23:42,479
with an American producer
called Robert Lippert,

413
00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:44,439
and they started making
second features

414
00:23:44,440 --> 00:23:47,279
that were aimed, quite specifically,
at the American market.

415
00:23:47,280 --> 00:23:50,119
Robert Lippert would send
over fading American actors,

416
00:23:50,120 --> 00:23:52,119
and they would be leads
in the pictures,

417
00:23:52,120 --> 00:23:54,199
which would allow a sale in America.

418
00:23:54,200 --> 00:23:57,159
And so, there was a whole series
of pictures that Hammer had done,

419
00:23:57,160 --> 00:24:00,399
which are, you know,
not bad pictures but not exemplary.

420
00:24:00,400 --> 00:24:02,599
But they didn't make
much of a splash.

421
00:24:02,600 --> 00:24:04,599
Curious little films,

422
00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:07,199
which nowadays are very often
identified as Neo-noirs.

423
00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:09,279
To some degree
they were certainly were that.

424
00:24:09,280 --> 00:24:10,999
But of course,
the question mark was,

425
00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:13,039
how long could you
continue in that vein?

426
00:24:13,040 --> 00:24:16,119
They needed a kind of new hook,
a new formula.

427
00:24:16,120 --> 00:24:18,960
And well, it came along
in the mid-'50s.

428
00:24:19,760 --> 00:24:23,279
'Hammer was always in search of
that golden goose,

429
00:24:23,280 --> 00:24:24,919
'which they eventually found

430
00:24:24,920 --> 00:24:26,959
'when they turned their hand
to the macabre.

431
00:24:26,960 --> 00:24:29,959
'Having adapted the BBC's
Quatermass Xperiment

432
00:24:29,960 --> 00:24:32,839
'to film in 1955,
it became very evident

433
00:24:32,840 --> 00:24:35,400
'that scary films might be
where their fortune lay.'

434
00:24:39,160 --> 00:24:41,239
'What better subject matter
to begin with

435
00:24:41,240 --> 00:24:44,080
'than that of Baron Frankenstein
and his creature?

436
00:24:45,960 --> 00:24:49,119
'Peter Cushing was cast
in the lead role as Frankenstein,

437
00:24:49,120 --> 00:24:51,239
'but who was to play his creature?

438
00:24:51,240 --> 00:24:54,399
'Where might they find a tall,
odd-looking soul

439
00:24:54,400 --> 00:24:57,160
'with the chops to pull off
such a role?

440
00:24:58,280 --> 00:25:00,399
'Oh, yes!'

441
00:25:00,400 --> 00:25:04,239
In the case of Lee, they had
a man for The Curse of Frankenstein,

442
00:25:04,240 --> 00:25:07,239
who fulfilled
the basic casting brief,

443
00:25:07,240 --> 00:25:10,119
which was a very tall man
with a knowledge of

444
00:25:10,120 --> 00:25:12,880
and skill in movement and mime.

445
00:25:14,200 --> 00:25:17,719
And, uh... And that was Lee to a T,
if you like.

446
00:25:17,720 --> 00:25:20,879
'Now, I did not go into this lightly.

447
00:25:20,880 --> 00:25:24,239
'I was aware of the greatest
risk of becoming a monster player.

448
00:25:24,240 --> 00:25:26,479
'That of typecasting.

449
00:25:26,480 --> 00:25:28,439
'My dear friend, Boris Karloff,

450
00:25:28,440 --> 00:25:32,039
'argued that to be a type
was to always be in employment.

451
00:25:32,040 --> 00:25:35,359
'And considering his quarter century
in the wilderness as an actor,

452
00:25:35,360 --> 00:25:38,119
'he really was qualified
to talk on the matter.

453
00:25:38,120 --> 00:25:42,079
'He had acted in over 80 films before
his performance as the monster

454
00:25:42,080 --> 00:25:45,639
'for Universal Pictures launched him
into the stratosphere.

455
00:25:45,640 --> 00:25:48,719
'Crucially, he was also tall
and foreign-looking.

456
00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:50,879
'So, I took the role.

457
00:25:50,880 --> 00:25:53,679
'I wouldn't say it did the same
for me as it did for Boris,

458
00:25:53,680 --> 00:25:55,919
'but it was a satisfying experience

459
00:25:55,920 --> 00:25:58,839
'and the film performed
remarkably well.'

460
00:25:58,840 --> 00:26:00,839
Hammer didn't really have
an identity

461
00:26:00,840 --> 00:26:02,639
until The Curse of Frankenstein,

462
00:26:02,640 --> 00:26:04,919
where it said,
"A Hammer Film Production."

463
00:26:04,920 --> 00:26:08,759
And we remembered that
and that became... a calling card.

464
00:26:08,760 --> 00:26:12,999
What's interesting is that
it's a very well made movie.

465
00:26:13,000 --> 00:26:16,639
He played it like somebody
with a... with a damaged brain.

466
00:26:16,640 --> 00:26:18,719
It was described
in the British press

467
00:26:18,720 --> 00:26:21,919
as looking like a road accident,
which is not entirely untrue.

468
00:26:21,920 --> 00:26:25,039
It's a strange effect
that he had as the creature

469
00:26:25,040 --> 00:26:28,039
because he looked so hideous
and yet there was a sort of-

470
00:26:28,040 --> 00:26:30,719
there was a kind of forlorn
quality about him.

471
00:26:30,720 --> 00:26:32,439
In part because of that,

472
00:26:32,440 --> 00:26:35,920
but also because he was just
such a remarkable physical actor.

473
00:26:37,400 --> 00:26:40,639
He was very sympathetic,
although he was really terrifying

474
00:26:40,640 --> 00:26:42,919
and I had nightmares
for a long time.

475
00:26:42,920 --> 00:26:46,439
'Yes, it courted controversy
with its violence and gore,

476
00:26:46,440 --> 00:26:49,439
'but this was tempered
by a favourable critical response.'

477
00:26:49,440 --> 00:26:53,079
And it really put Hammer Films
on the map internationally

478
00:26:53,080 --> 00:26:56,599
because it was a huge hit, even
though it didn't cost a great deal.

479
00:26:56,600 --> 00:26:59,959
But it looked good and the acting
was obviously top-notch

480
00:26:59,960 --> 00:27:03,199
because they had British players and
nobody made fun of it,

481
00:27:03,200 --> 00:27:04,959
nobody sent it up.

482
00:27:04,960 --> 00:27:07,239
It was all done completely straight

483
00:27:07,240 --> 00:27:09,879
and that made it
even more compelling.

484
00:27:09,880 --> 00:27:13,559
His unwilling
collaborator was Paul Krempe.

485
00:27:13,560 --> 00:27:15,600
I can't prove you murdered him.

486
00:27:16,400 --> 00:27:18,239
But I can stop you using his brain.

487
00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:20,119
Why? He has no further use for it.

488
00:27:20,120 --> 00:27:22,639
Don't be a fool!
Be careful!

489
00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:24,639
You'll damage it!

490
00:27:24,640 --> 00:27:27,319
Only two women ever entered
this house of evil.

491
00:27:27,320 --> 00:27:29,839
Elizabeth! Come back!

492
00:27:34,000 --> 00:27:36,319
'Did this lead to my most
iconic casting?

493
00:27:36,320 --> 00:27:39,040
'Actually, no.
At least, not directly.'

494
00:27:48,160 --> 00:27:51,279
'Following
Frankenstein, I scored a plum role

495
00:27:51,280 --> 00:27:53,840
'in a lavish remake
of A Tale of Two Cities.

496
00:27:55,600 --> 00:27:57,559
'This was a big movie.'

497
00:27:57,560 --> 00:27:59,959
Betty Box and Ralph Thomas,

498
00:27:59,960 --> 00:28:02,279
whose names have been associated
with the very best

499
00:28:02,280 --> 00:28:04,399
in film entertainment
for almost a decade,

500
00:28:04,400 --> 00:28:06,359
have turned
to the ever-popular works

501
00:28:06,360 --> 00:28:09,719
of Charles Dickens
for their latest, greatest film.

502
00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:13,759
'I was to share the screen
with the likes of Dirk Bogarde

503
00:28:13,760 --> 00:28:17,440
'and several legends whose fame
has sadly dimmed through the years.

504
00:28:20,680 --> 00:28:22,679
'My role was that of villain,

505
00:28:22,680 --> 00:28:24,799
'the Marquis St. Evremonde,

506
00:28:24,800 --> 00:28:27,959
'a nasty piece of work, a cruel,
sneering aristocrat.'

507
00:28:33,160 --> 00:28:35,439
'This film was also well-received

508
00:28:35,440 --> 00:28:38,399
'and finally broke the reticence
on the part of the studios

509
00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:41,439
'to trust me
with more significant roles.

510
00:28:41,440 --> 00:28:45,599
'With my monstrous and aristocratic
credentials so well-established,

511
00:28:45,600 --> 00:28:47,759
'I was finally an obvious candidate

512
00:28:47,760 --> 00:28:50,320
'for that delicious title role
to come my way.

513
00:28:52,400 --> 00:28:54,719
'Eight minutes.

514
00:28:54,720 --> 00:28:58,760
'Just eight minutes,
and my life was changed forever.

515
00:29:00,160 --> 00:29:03,239
'My total screen time in
the whole of that first Dracula movie

516
00:29:03,240 --> 00:29:06,280
'was just eight minutes.'

517
00:29:08,200 --> 00:29:10,279
This is
the story of Dracula.

518
00:29:10,280 --> 00:29:12,999
A creature who destroys
all whom he touches.

519
00:29:15,760 --> 00:29:17,799
Dracula, the terrifying, the feared,

520
00:29:17,800 --> 00:29:20,879
who sleeps in the tombs
of the dead by day

521
00:29:20,880 --> 00:29:24,359
and arises at night
to inflict his terror

522
00:29:24,360 --> 00:29:27,200
upon the innocent
and the unsuspecting.

523
00:29:34,520 --> 00:29:37,079
It was really the Dracula movie
that I think...

524
00:29:37,080 --> 00:29:38,799
made him a household word.

525
00:29:38,800 --> 00:29:41,199
Even though he's not
in it that much,

526
00:29:41,200 --> 00:29:43,879
he hung over it like a shroud and...

527
00:29:43,880 --> 00:29:45,679
made an incredible impression.

528
00:29:45,680 --> 00:29:47,839
I love his entrance

529
00:29:47,840 --> 00:29:51,399
'cause you just cut to the stairs
and he comes down the stairs.

530
00:29:51,400 --> 00:29:54,879
He says, "I am Dracula.
I welcome you to my house."

531
00:29:54,880 --> 00:29:56,959
And it's so great!

532
00:29:56,960 --> 00:29:59,839
Wonderful! I mean, he's just, wow.

533
00:29:59,840 --> 00:30:02,399
It's, you know-
Do you ever hear him talk about it?

534
00:30:02,400 --> 00:30:04,319
"You have to bring the fire."

535
00:30:04,320 --> 00:30:06,959
'I was recognised everywhere I went,

536
00:30:06,960 --> 00:30:08,959
'and it was a certain type of fame.

537
00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:11,559
'I don't say this
out of pride or vanity,

538
00:30:11,560 --> 00:30:14,639
'but I had become somewhat iconic.

539
00:30:14,640 --> 00:30:16,839
'Meaning that, to some degree,

540
00:30:16,840 --> 00:30:19,639
'it wouldn't matter what
I now went on to do with my life.

541
00:30:19,640 --> 00:30:23,159
'Indeed, had I retired
from acting in that very moment,

542
00:30:23,160 --> 00:30:25,239
'I would still,
for the rest of my life,

543
00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:27,599
'have been recognised
on a daily basis as...'

544
00:30:27,600 --> 00:30:31,159
Dracula! Bedevilled
master of all that is evil.

545
00:30:41,960 --> 00:30:44,559
When that film came out
in the summer of 1958, you know,

546
00:30:44,560 --> 00:30:46,239
the impact was enormous.

547
00:30:46,240 --> 00:30:48,599
He's suddenly appearing
in the fan magazines.

548
00:30:48,600 --> 00:30:51,159
You know, there are lots and lots
of questions about him.

549
00:30:51,160 --> 00:30:54,159
Picturegoer actually heads
a piece about him and calls it,

550
00:30:54,160 --> 00:30:57,079
"Scream Boy? No! Dream Boy."
Because of course,

551
00:30:57,080 --> 00:31:01,199
so many young women were fascinated
by his Dracula, you know?

552
00:31:01,200 --> 00:31:03,879
Because he was
an irredeemable monster,

553
00:31:03,880 --> 00:31:06,639
one of the most evil Dracula's
ever put on film.

554
00:31:06,640 --> 00:31:09,519
But at the same time, of course,
he was extremely sexy.

555
00:31:09,520 --> 00:31:11,559
How do you
destroy a fiend

556
00:31:11,560 --> 00:31:14,439
who has so far proven
himself indestructible?

557
00:31:14,440 --> 00:31:17,039
Those who come to end his reign
of terror

558
00:31:17,040 --> 00:31:19,359
stay to become his victims.

559
00:31:19,360 --> 00:31:22,439
Hammer suddenly became a...

560
00:31:22,440 --> 00:31:25,479
a place for people to go to see
a certain kind of movie.

561
00:31:25,480 --> 00:31:27,719
And that's not to belittle
the fact that

562
00:31:27,720 --> 00:31:30,639
they were actually making other
kinds of movies at the same time,

563
00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:33,999
but these particular Gothic movies
were especially popular.

564
00:31:34,000 --> 00:31:36,199
'The American premiere
took place in New York

565
00:31:36,200 --> 00:31:39,519
'where Universal threw their
full might behind its release.

566
00:31:39,520 --> 00:31:42,759
'It was my first trip to America,
and I was quite overwhelmed.

567
00:31:42,760 --> 00:31:45,520
'Not just by the city,
but by the clamour of the fans.

568
00:31:46,520 --> 00:31:49,159
'Dear Peter and I
damn near destroyed our wrists

569
00:31:49,160 --> 00:31:51,599
'with all of the autograph signing.

570
00:31:51,600 --> 00:31:54,719
'By that point, Mr Cushing
and I had become good friends.

571
00:31:54,720 --> 00:31:57,399
'I think the public often made
the mistake of assuming

572
00:31:57,400 --> 00:32:00,799
'that we were rather gloomy people,
'humourless and severe.

573
00:32:00,800 --> 00:32:03,519
'But nothing could have been
further from the truth.

574
00:32:03,520 --> 00:32:06,239
'From the day we met, Peter and I,

575
00:32:06,240 --> 00:32:08,919
'more than anything else, laughed.'

576
00:32:08,920 --> 00:32:12,359
But we also did a lot of this
kind of thing...

577
00:33:10,800 --> 00:33:14,239
He and Chris became a kind of...

578
00:33:14,240 --> 00:33:16,919
a kind of a couple
in the sense that they would

579
00:33:16,920 --> 00:33:19,279
often end up
in the same picture together.

580
00:33:19,280 --> 00:33:22,919
I think, I can't remember, 17,
how many pictures they did together.

581
00:33:22,920 --> 00:33:25,879
But they were like
Laurel and Hardy, you know?

582
00:33:25,880 --> 00:33:29,039
They were just- You would seldom
see one without the other.

583
00:33:29,040 --> 00:33:31,039
They were like chalk and cheese.

584
00:33:31,040 --> 00:33:34,519
Very different, different styles of
acting, different ways of acting,

585
00:33:34,520 --> 00:33:37,639
and obviously totally
different characters,

586
00:33:37,640 --> 00:33:39,839
but it just gelled, you know?

587
00:33:39,840 --> 00:33:41,679
The whole thing with them gelled

588
00:33:41,680 --> 00:33:43,679
and they had huge respect
for each other.

589
00:33:43,680 --> 00:33:46,879
They always brought total conviction

590
00:33:46,880 --> 00:33:49,799
to whatever crap they were in.

591
00:33:49,800 --> 00:33:53,160
So, if they're in a terrible movie,
they're still good.

592
00:33:54,080 --> 00:33:56,679
You know? They're still good.

593
00:33:56,680 --> 00:33:58,519
Do you know what they used to do?

594
00:33:58,520 --> 00:34:00,600
They loved Looney Tunes cartoons.

595
00:34:02,000 --> 00:34:04,799
Peter and Chris, and they'd get
together and watch, you know,

596
00:34:04,800 --> 00:34:07,759
Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and
all the classic Looney Tunes,

597
00:34:07,760 --> 00:34:10,399
and they really knew them.
You could-

598
00:34:10,400 --> 00:34:12,639
I was on a phone call
with the two of them

599
00:34:12,640 --> 00:34:15,519
and they did like the whole thing
of "What's Opera, Doc?"

600
00:34:15,520 --> 00:34:16,999
It was amazing.

601
00:34:17,000 --> 00:34:20,279
'In some ways,
Hammer became a family to me,

602
00:34:20,280 --> 00:34:23,239
'replete with all
the eccentricities, bickering,

603
00:34:23,240 --> 00:34:25,239
'resentments and frustration,

604
00:34:25,240 --> 00:34:28,120
'but also a warm, encouraging,
and friendly bunch.'

605
00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:32,199
They tended to have the same crews,
you know?

606
00:34:32,200 --> 00:34:35,079
They tended to have the same
DPs and the same...

607
00:34:35,080 --> 00:34:37,439
makeup and hairdressers,

608
00:34:37,440 --> 00:34:40,279
and so it was a nice
kind of continuity to it.

609
00:34:40,280 --> 00:34:43,759
And all the crews knew each other
so they worked so well together.

610
00:34:43,760 --> 00:34:46,359
And Hammer made a lot of- not a lot,

611
00:34:46,360 --> 00:34:49,319
but Hammer made a number
of good films.

612
00:34:49,320 --> 00:34:52,079
And they had tremendous success
with a lot of stuff.

613
00:34:52,080 --> 00:34:55,479
'I worked for other studios
during this period also.

614
00:34:55,480 --> 00:34:59,319
'I was in some demand,
but my path was laid out for me now.

615
00:34:59,320 --> 00:35:03,279
'I would be successful,
but I would be... sleazy.

616
00:35:03,280 --> 00:35:07,919
'Any notion of romantic leads or
matinee heroes was behind me now.

617
00:35:07,920 --> 00:35:10,839
'I had given the public
and the studios what they wanted,

618
00:35:10,840 --> 00:35:13,839
'and that would be all
they required from me.

619
00:35:13,840 --> 00:35:16,919
'Which is not to say there
was no room for manoeuvre,

620
00:35:16,920 --> 00:35:21,120
'for, as I discovered,
there are so many types of sleazebag.

621
00:35:22,760 --> 00:35:26,799
'Considering the limitation placed
on me that I always be wicked,

622
00:35:26,800 --> 00:35:29,680
'I was rather pleased
with my range and breadth.

623
00:35:30,720 --> 00:35:34,199
'Later on in the '60s,
I befriended Vincent Price.

624
00:35:34,200 --> 00:35:37,199
'Vincent had established himself
as a gentleman of horror

625
00:35:37,200 --> 00:35:39,159
'long before I came along.

626
00:35:39,160 --> 00:35:41,439
'And when I did come along,
along with me,

627
00:35:41,440 --> 00:35:45,080
'came for him the daily indignity
of being recognised as me.

628
00:35:46,120 --> 00:35:48,759
'People would stop him
in the street and say,

629
00:35:48,760 --> 00:35:50,799
"Mr Lee, might I have your
autograph?"

630
00:35:50,800 --> 00:35:53,759
'But Vincent was so much more
than a horror star.

631
00:35:53,760 --> 00:35:56,999
'He gave lectures on painting,
sculpture, and cookery.

632
00:35:57,000 --> 00:35:58,879
'At the height of his success,

633
00:35:58,880 --> 00:36:01,879
'he had a job on the side as
an art buyer for Sears Roebuck.

634
00:36:01,880 --> 00:36:05,560
'Vincent knew how to enjoy
his work and enjoy his life.

635
00:36:06,520 --> 00:36:09,719
'He enjoyed his public image
and played up to it deliciously,

636
00:36:09,720 --> 00:36:12,479
'but he also took relish
in switching it off.

637
00:36:12,480 --> 00:36:14,720
'I never heard him complain.

638
00:36:15,640 --> 00:36:18,599
'Perhaps the one thing that
I envied him and Peter

639
00:36:18,600 --> 00:36:20,719
'was their ability to be so
comfortable

640
00:36:20,720 --> 00:36:22,679
'with the public's
perception of them.'

641
00:36:22,680 --> 00:36:25,080
I never quite was.

642
00:36:26,200 --> 00:36:29,039
I think for a long time,
horror fans,

643
00:36:29,040 --> 00:36:32,359
particularly horror fans,
liked Christopher Lee the least.

644
00:36:32,360 --> 00:36:34,439
Not because of his performances,

645
00:36:34,440 --> 00:36:38,439
but because of his attitude to his
own performances and to the genre.

646
00:36:38,440 --> 00:36:40,920
He sort of kidded himself
as a result.

647
00:36:41,920 --> 00:36:45,719
In some interviews he actually said,
you know, in the late '60s,

648
00:36:45,720 --> 00:36:48,559
as late as that, he was suggesting
that The Curse of Frankenstein

649
00:36:48,560 --> 00:36:51,119
was the only REAL
horror film he'd been in.

650
00:36:51,120 --> 00:36:54,519
And I think as a result,
fans found him rather ungracious,

651
00:36:54,520 --> 00:36:57,199
which is a bit of an irony

652
00:36:57,200 --> 00:36:59,799
because ungracious is the one thing

653
00:36:59,800 --> 00:37:02,880
Christopher Lee would never
want to be thought to be.

654
00:37:03,760 --> 00:37:06,160
'And then... there was Gitte.'

655
00:37:16,800 --> 00:37:19,239
'She was a painter
and a photographer.

656
00:37:19,240 --> 00:37:21,839
'She modelled for Balenciaga
and Dior,

657
00:37:21,840 --> 00:37:25,359
'and her father was a director for
the Tuborg Brewery in Copenhagen.

658
00:37:25,360 --> 00:37:27,399
'After a couple of
missed opportunities,

659
00:37:27,400 --> 00:37:30,799
'our paths finally crossed,
and entwined they would happily stay

660
00:37:30,800 --> 00:37:33,000
'until the end of my life.

661
00:37:43,920 --> 00:37:46,799
'My fame at this point was
undoubtedly becoming global

662
00:37:46,800 --> 00:37:49,399
'and when international filmmakers
became aware

663
00:37:49,400 --> 00:37:51,959
'of my ability to speak
in several other languages,

664
00:37:51,960 --> 00:37:54,119
'I found myself in demand.'

665
00:37:54,120 --> 00:37:56,999
This was fortunate,
as I unexpectedly found myself

666
00:37:57,000 --> 00:37:59,039
under attack from a monster

667
00:37:59,040 --> 00:38:02,399
the likes of which Hammer
could never have envisioned.

668
00:38:02,400 --> 00:38:05,279
He left England for Switzerland

669
00:38:05,280 --> 00:38:07,719
as a tax refugee.

670
00:38:07,720 --> 00:38:10,319
He came out with quite
a lot of standard, you know?

671
00:38:10,320 --> 00:38:13,759
Conservative stuff that it was...

672
00:38:13,760 --> 00:38:15,799
the politics of envy

673
00:38:15,800 --> 00:38:18,519
and this level of taxation
couldn't...

674
00:38:18,520 --> 00:38:21,640
you know, couldn't be maintained
for any longer.

675
00:38:22,960 --> 00:38:26,319
'With appropriate irony, the first
role I was contracted to play

676
00:38:26,320 --> 00:38:30,519
'as a non-domicile was one
of the great fictional Englishman.

677
00:38:30,520 --> 00:38:33,319
'It was my turn to don
the deerstalker

678
00:38:33,320 --> 00:38:35,599
'and interpret Sherlock Holmes...

679
00:38:35,600 --> 00:38:37,680
'into German.'

680
00:38:41,520 --> 00:38:44,839
'Despite my perfectly
adequate German delivery,

681
00:38:44,840 --> 00:38:46,959
'they decided to dub my voice.'

682
00:39:02,960 --> 00:39:05,400
'From Germany to Italy.'

683
00:39:28,160 --> 00:39:31,159
'The Crypt of the Vampire
was shot in Avezzano

684
00:39:31,160 --> 00:39:33,200
'at the Castello de Balsorano.

685
00:39:34,040 --> 00:39:37,440
'The film was good,
but the location, divine.

686
00:39:39,720 --> 00:39:42,679
'I would come to know the castles
of Europe rather well

687
00:39:42,680 --> 00:39:46,239
'as it transpired that many of the
filmmakers who wanted to work with me

688
00:39:46,240 --> 00:39:48,719
'may not have wanted me
to play Dracula,

689
00:39:48,720 --> 00:39:51,320
'but certainly a derivative thereof.'

690
00:39:54,280 --> 00:39:57,999
Going to Europe in 1962 was a very
good idea because, you know,

691
00:39:58,000 --> 00:40:01,119
the early Hammer horror films
and the other British horror films

692
00:40:01,120 --> 00:40:04,799
that grew up around Hammer
were enormously venerated in France

693
00:40:04,800 --> 00:40:08,359
and also had made
a huge impact in Italy.

694
00:40:08,360 --> 00:40:12,559
He's in all these German and French
and Spanish movies, Italian movies,

695
00:40:12,560 --> 00:40:15,159
where they're not movies
we even know about

696
00:40:15,160 --> 00:40:17,839
because they were never
dubbed into English

697
00:40:17,840 --> 00:40:21,439
and he's speaking French or
Italian or German or Spanish.

698
00:40:21,440 --> 00:40:24,879
They are quite interesting because
they're all fractured versions

699
00:40:24,880 --> 00:40:29,319
of the persona that he first
showed in the Hammer films.

700
00:40:29,320 --> 00:40:32,319
Italy, of course, was an industry
that would always go for what was

701
00:40:32,320 --> 00:40:35,559
the now thing and how can we
produce our own version of it.

702
00:40:35,560 --> 00:40:38,519
Well, one very good way to produce
it was to get Christopher Lee in.

703
00:40:38,520 --> 00:40:41,599
So, you know, there he was
by the shores of Lake Geneva

704
00:40:41,600 --> 00:40:45,279
during his Swiss exile, and he was
constantly popping down to Italy.

705
00:40:45,280 --> 00:40:47,519
Italy was a perfect place.

706
00:40:47,520 --> 00:40:50,359
There were wonderful locations,
et cetera.

707
00:40:50,360 --> 00:40:53,559
And who was the number one star
in horror pictures?

708
00:40:53,560 --> 00:40:55,839
Christopher Lee.

709
00:40:55,840 --> 00:40:58,759
So, I reached out for Christopher

710
00:40:58,760 --> 00:41:01,999
and when I met him,
we just became fast friends.

711
00:41:02,000 --> 00:41:05,479
And I... raised some money

712
00:41:05,480 --> 00:41:08,719
and put together the first budget

713
00:41:08,720 --> 00:41:11,999
for Castle of the Living Dead.

714
00:41:12,000 --> 00:41:14,920
And that's how it happened.

715
00:41:16,120 --> 00:41:18,360
The Castle
of the Living Dead.

716
00:41:19,360 --> 00:41:21,399
In an atmosphere of horror,

717
00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:25,400
the story of a man who violates the
forbidden frontiers of science...

718
00:41:27,000 --> 00:41:30,119
...to arrive at a frightful
but lucid madness

719
00:41:30,120 --> 00:41:32,959
and atrocious inhuman crime.

720
00:41:32,960 --> 00:41:35,840
Starring the unforgettable
creator of Dracula.

721
00:41:37,080 --> 00:41:40,359
'The great joys of my experience
in Europe, were my partnerships

722
00:41:40,360 --> 00:41:44,200
with the Italian director Mario Bava
and the Spanish Jess Franco.

723
00:41:46,200 --> 00:41:48,839
He made quite a few pictures
with Jess Franco,

724
00:41:48,840 --> 00:41:51,840
who obviously he must have respected
and liked on some level.

725
00:41:52,840 --> 00:41:56,839
Very few of them are at the top
of the heap of the movies

726
00:41:56,840 --> 00:41:59,399
that he would wanna be
remembered for.

727
00:41:59,400 --> 00:42:01,599
But interestingly,

728
00:42:01,600 --> 00:42:03,999
he changed his mind about
doing a Dracula picture

729
00:42:04,000 --> 00:42:06,000
because he did one for Jess.

730
00:42:07,880 --> 00:42:10,200
And, action!

731
00:42:21,800 --> 00:42:25,079
The idea was that this was
going to be 'the' Dracula picture,

732
00:42:25,080 --> 00:42:27,999
based on the book, which was
always a bugaboo of his,

733
00:42:28,000 --> 00:42:30,959
is how few things from the book
ended up in these movies.

734
00:42:30,960 --> 00:42:33,839
And it was another thread-bearer
kind of a movie.

735
00:42:33,840 --> 00:42:37,519
Although Pere Portobella made a
really interesting documentary

736
00:42:37,520 --> 00:42:39,999
about the making of that movie,

737
00:42:40,000 --> 00:42:43,080
which is actually much more
interesting than the movie itself.

738
00:43:11,880 --> 00:43:13,839
'To the continental filmmakers,

739
00:43:13,840 --> 00:43:16,359
'sex and death went hand-in-hand

740
00:43:16,360 --> 00:43:18,559
'along with pain and pleasure.

741
00:43:18,560 --> 00:43:22,279
'Accusations of downright perversity
were levelled at some of these films,

742
00:43:22,280 --> 00:43:24,319
'but it was merely the European way.

743
00:43:24,320 --> 00:43:27,399
'Their art and literature
have been infused with sex

744
00:43:27,400 --> 00:43:29,839
'as far back as can be remembered.

745
00:43:29,840 --> 00:43:33,160
'My films from this time
have a distinctly different feel.

746
00:43:37,120 --> 00:43:40,679
'Sometimes dreamy, delirious,
or demented,

747
00:43:40,680 --> 00:43:43,160
'it was a heady
and creative time for me.'

748
00:43:44,840 --> 00:43:47,479
A film of mystery!
A film of thrill!

749
00:43:47,480 --> 00:43:49,720
A film of terror!

750
00:43:54,160 --> 00:43:56,279
He made some amazing films,

751
00:43:56,280 --> 00:43:59,799
and he was delighted to be working
in particular with Mario Bava.

752
00:43:59,800 --> 00:44:03,280
But I think he was very aware
that this was really just...

753
00:44:04,360 --> 00:44:07,879
...a continuation, if you like, of
what he called his graveyard period,

754
00:44:07,880 --> 00:44:11,400
because he was very much
looked upon as a Gothic personage.

755
00:44:18,360 --> 00:44:20,959
'On the 22nd of November 1963,

756
00:44:20,960 --> 00:44:24,120
'Gitte gave birth to our wonderful
daughter, Christina.

757
00:44:25,240 --> 00:44:27,319
'We were now a family.

758
00:44:27,320 --> 00:44:30,839
'The idea of leaving them,
for even a small amount of time,

759
00:44:30,840 --> 00:44:32,879
'filled me with anxiety.

760
00:44:32,880 --> 00:44:35,959
'Death started to mean
something different to me.

761
00:44:35,960 --> 00:44:38,360
'For the first time,
I truly feared it.

762
00:44:39,360 --> 00:44:42,879
'For the idea of not living
to see Christina bloom and conquer

763
00:44:42,880 --> 00:44:44,920
'was unimaginably painful.'

764
00:44:46,080 --> 00:44:48,719
The charms of Switzerland
had worn off by now

765
00:44:48,720 --> 00:44:51,639
and taxman be damned,
we just wanted to be home.

766
00:44:51,640 --> 00:44:54,279
So, we returned to London
and took a flat

767
00:44:54,280 --> 00:44:56,239
a stone's throw from Mr Karloff.

768
00:44:56,240 --> 00:44:58,519
My career had gone international,

769
00:44:58,520 --> 00:45:01,479
yet I didn't seem
to have moved a step.

770
00:45:01,480 --> 00:45:04,239
The allowance of days
that I was given as a tax exile

771
00:45:04,240 --> 00:45:07,399
by the government to work in the UK
had all gone to Hammer

772
00:45:07,400 --> 00:45:11,799
and my return made me feel as
if perhaps, I had never even left.

773
00:45:11,800 --> 00:45:14,279
But then a new character beckoned me.

774
00:45:14,280 --> 00:45:17,319
And although he certainly
was of the shadows,

775
00:45:17,320 --> 00:45:21,200
it was as far from typecasting
as I could reasonably hope.

776
00:45:22,080 --> 00:45:25,240
'I was not the first to bring
the evil Dr Fu Manchu to screen.

777
00:45:26,720 --> 00:45:29,279
'Seven screen Fus had preceded me,

778
00:45:29,280 --> 00:45:32,040
'including a memorable turn by Boris.

779
00:45:33,640 --> 00:45:37,439
'It is perhaps unimaginable
that such a film be made today,

780
00:45:37,440 --> 00:45:39,639
'not just the racial
characterisations,

781
00:45:39,640 --> 00:45:42,639
'but the very fact that
the main role, a Chinese man,

782
00:45:42,640 --> 00:45:45,320
'be played by a Caucasian Englishman.

783
00:45:46,200 --> 00:45:49,159
'I can only say that
I have never played Fu Manchu

784
00:45:49,160 --> 00:45:51,439
'in any way that the Chinese
could find offensive.

785
00:45:51,440 --> 00:45:54,559
'However, I can understand
their objection to the character

786
00:45:54,560 --> 00:45:57,520
'being referred to as
'the Yellow Peril'.

787
00:45:58,800 --> 00:46:01,759
'I played Fu over the course
of five films

788
00:46:01,760 --> 00:46:04,439
'and very much following
the pattern of my involvement

789
00:46:04,440 --> 00:46:06,039
'with the Hammer Dracula series,

790
00:46:06,040 --> 00:46:08,720
'it was a case of steadily
diminishing returns.

791
00:46:09,640 --> 00:46:13,319
'In fact, these two franchises,
in the modern parlance,

792
00:46:13,320 --> 00:46:16,799
'overlapped throughout
my 1960s and '70s.'

793
00:46:56,640 --> 00:47:00,319
Hammer, which was not exactly
in the business of making art,

794
00:47:00,320 --> 00:47:02,999
decided that this was a vein
that they wanted to mine.

795
00:47:03,000 --> 00:47:05,079
And so, they ended up...

796
00:47:05,080 --> 00:47:08,919
essentially remaking those
pictures like seven, eight times,

797
00:47:08,920 --> 00:47:12,239
and they ended up doing kind of
the same thing that Universal did,

798
00:47:12,240 --> 00:47:14,879
which is sort of running it
into the ground after a while.

799
00:47:14,880 --> 00:47:17,439
There was always less of Dracula
in every one of the movies

800
00:47:17,440 --> 00:47:20,719
until you get to Taste the Blood of
Dracula, which is not a bad movie,

801
00:47:20,720 --> 00:47:23,039
it looks like it was conceived
without Dracula.

802
00:47:23,040 --> 00:47:25,919
And indeed, it had been.
"No, we're not gonna have to."

803
00:47:25,920 --> 00:47:28,599
But Warner Brothers, the distributor
said, "We can't distribute

804
00:47:28,600 --> 00:47:31,479
this picture without Christopher
Lee. It's a Dracula movie!"

805
00:47:31,480 --> 00:47:34,319
There's a couple of real shit
Hammers that he's in

806
00:47:34,320 --> 00:47:37,199
that he gives you
this long story about.

807
00:47:37,200 --> 00:47:39,679
Someone calls him and says...

808
00:47:39,680 --> 00:47:42,279
"Chris, you have to come,
you have to be Dracula

809
00:47:42,280 --> 00:47:45,399
because the movie's cast,
we've committed the money.

810
00:47:45,400 --> 00:47:48,159
Everyone, the carpenters, you know,

811
00:47:48,160 --> 00:47:50,399
all the group, the family, you know,

812
00:47:50,400 --> 00:47:52,559
it'll fall apart
if you don't do it."

813
00:47:52,560 --> 00:47:54,639
You know they used to guilt him
into these things.

814
00:47:54,640 --> 00:47:56,479
He never gave less than his all.

815
00:47:56,480 --> 00:47:58,799
I mean, he was always good
in the movies.

816
00:47:58,800 --> 00:48:00,679
He did the best job he could.

817
00:48:00,680 --> 00:48:03,279
But I think that he felt after a
while he was just wasting his time

818
00:48:03,280 --> 00:48:06,959
and that he was sort of
sullying whatever...

819
00:48:06,960 --> 00:48:09,119
name value he may have.

820
00:48:09,120 --> 00:48:11,599
He had that ambivalence
towards the role of Dracula.

821
00:48:11,600 --> 00:48:14,599
It had got him where he was,
it had got him recognition,

822
00:48:14,600 --> 00:48:17,959
but it also was the sort of thing
that he could never leave behind

823
00:48:17,960 --> 00:48:20,719
and that so many people
thought was all he could do.

824
00:48:20,720 --> 00:48:23,959
You know, I got him
to sign a poster for me once.

825
00:48:23,960 --> 00:48:25,999
I only got him to sign one poster

826
00:48:26,000 --> 00:48:28,399
and it was a poster for
Taste the Blood of Dracula.

827
00:48:28,400 --> 00:48:30,679
He grumbled a bit
when I asked him to sign it

828
00:48:30,680 --> 00:48:33,439
and the message he wrote on it was,

829
00:48:33,440 --> 00:48:37,439
"Dear Peter,
this is from another life."

830
00:48:37,440 --> 00:48:41,719
You know? He regarded that
as being something that was...

831
00:48:41,720 --> 00:48:44,759
He did but he wanted to
move on from that.

832
00:48:44,760 --> 00:48:46,959
And, you know, personally speaking,

833
00:48:46,960 --> 00:48:49,639
I think the balance, he could've
got the balance a bit better

834
00:48:49,640 --> 00:48:53,199
where he moved on, but not...

835
00:48:53,200 --> 00:48:55,879
not to the point that he somehow

836
00:48:55,880 --> 00:48:58,359
came across as being ashamed
of those films.

837
00:48:58,360 --> 00:49:00,999
'Cause he had nothing whatsoever
to be ashamed about.

838
00:49:01,000 --> 00:49:03,439
He was absolutely the king of his...

839
00:49:03,440 --> 00:49:07,120
of all he surveyed really,
in that niche.

840
00:49:08,400 --> 00:49:10,479
But he wasn't satisfied with that.

841
00:49:10,480 --> 00:49:12,559
It's an interesting conundrum

842
00:49:12,560 --> 00:49:15,279
but I think it's a lot
to do with, you know,

843
00:49:15,280 --> 00:49:18,479
his ancestry where great things
were expected of him

844
00:49:18,480 --> 00:49:20,119
and here he was playing monsters.

845
00:49:20,120 --> 00:49:24,319
Both of us had the same degree of
a certain lack of confidence,

846
00:49:24,320 --> 00:49:27,279
which did come from our family,
I think,

847
00:49:27,280 --> 00:49:29,719
because my grandmother
could be very withering.

848
00:49:29,720 --> 00:49:32,039
I don't know.
Not withering about acting.

849
00:49:32,040 --> 00:49:34,719
In fact, acting was the one thing
that we made our family

850
00:49:34,720 --> 00:49:37,519
proud about, funnily enough.
It was everything else you were

851
00:49:37,520 --> 00:49:39,879
that felt a bit sort of,
"I'm not quite up to scratch."

852
00:49:39,880 --> 00:49:41,679
And I can't define it

853
00:49:41,680 --> 00:49:43,959
and I'd love to have sat down
and talked to him about it.

854
00:49:43,960 --> 00:49:47,840
But it's just a sort of...
aura in the family of sort of...

855
00:49:50,360 --> 00:49:53,719
There's a threat of ridicule
somewhere in the atmosphere.

856
00:49:53,720 --> 00:49:56,959
Here's the funny thing,
he loved playing Dracula.

857
00:49:56,960 --> 00:49:59,159
When you're that good
at playing a part,

858
00:49:59,160 --> 00:50:01,919
and when you have such
command of the screen,

859
00:50:01,920 --> 00:50:04,839
and you can make such
an impact in such a short time,

860
00:50:04,840 --> 00:50:08,039
of course you're going to love
playing that part.

861
00:50:08,040 --> 00:50:10,039
'Hollywood finally came calling,

862
00:50:10,040 --> 00:50:12,959
'and although this time
it would be upon British soil,

863
00:50:12,960 --> 00:50:15,639
'I would actually be working
very closely

864
00:50:15,640 --> 00:50:18,960
'with a certified legendary
Hollywood director.

865
00:50:20,280 --> 00:50:23,919
'Billy Wilder had decided to make
a Sherlock Holmes film.

866
00:50:23,920 --> 00:50:26,799
'He, quite correctly,
saw me as Mycroft,

867
00:50:26,800 --> 00:50:30,119
'Holmes' arguably
more clever, older brother.'

868
00:50:30,120 --> 00:50:33,119
Am I going too fast
with the best brain in England?

869
00:50:33,120 --> 00:50:35,199
Go on.

870
00:50:35,200 --> 00:50:37,519
They planted that on you
quite neatly, I must admit,

871
00:50:37,520 --> 00:50:40,199
so that you could lead them
to their objective, the air pump.

872
00:50:40,200 --> 00:50:43,719
Very much like using
a hog to find truffles.

873
00:50:43,720 --> 00:50:47,079
'It had taken me 23 years
and over 100 films

874
00:50:47,080 --> 00:50:50,959
'before I was to have such a
thoroughly satisfying experience.'

875
00:50:50,960 --> 00:50:52,639
Oh, charming!

876
00:50:52,640 --> 00:50:55,479
Chris was very proud
of Mycroft Holmes,

877
00:50:55,480 --> 00:50:57,479
but what he was proud of

878
00:50:57,480 --> 00:50:59,679
was, although he's wonderful
in the movie,

879
00:50:59,680 --> 00:51:03,479
but he was proud of being
employed by Billy Wilder.

880
00:51:03,480 --> 00:51:05,519
That's what was, you know?

881
00:51:05,520 --> 00:51:09,599
That's what was... "I'm being-
I'm with one of the greats."

882
00:51:09,600 --> 00:51:12,359
The early to mid-70s' were
to offer me two roles

883
00:51:12,360 --> 00:51:16,239
which could hold their own in the
iconic stakes against old Dracula.

884
00:51:16,240 --> 00:51:21,199
Finally, I was to go up against
Britain's finest secret agent.

885
00:51:21,200 --> 00:51:23,839
But before we go into that.

886
00:51:23,840 --> 00:51:27,240
It is time to keep your appointment
with the Wicker Man.

887
00:51:36,520 --> 00:51:39,239
'Now, I've never been shy
about proclaiming

888
00:51:39,240 --> 00:51:42,239
'this as my favourite of all
the films I've appeared in.

889
00:51:42,240 --> 00:51:44,439
'There are many reasons for this.

890
00:51:44,440 --> 00:51:47,679
'Firstly, it's a brilliant story,
expertly told.'

891
00:51:47,680 --> 00:51:51,480
You can't land here
without written permission!

892
00:51:52,320 --> 00:51:55,199
I, as you can see,
am a police officer.

893
00:51:55,200 --> 00:51:57,919
A complaint has been registered

894
00:51:57,920 --> 00:52:00,599
by a resident of this
island of a missing child!

895
00:52:00,600 --> 00:52:02,719
Now that makes it a police matter,

896
00:52:02,720 --> 00:52:04,479
private property or not!

897
00:52:04,480 --> 00:52:06,999
Now, will you send a dingy, please?

898
00:52:07,000 --> 00:52:09,000
Need to tell his lordship.

899
00:52:10,360 --> 00:52:13,439
'The great playwright
Anthony Shaffer found a novel

900
00:52:13,440 --> 00:52:16,719
'in which he saw a kernel
of a story which intrigued him.

901
00:52:16,720 --> 00:52:19,240
'We bought the rights,
and he made it his own.'

902
00:52:37,400 --> 00:52:39,400
Good afternoon, Sergeant Howie.

903
00:52:40,600 --> 00:52:43,399
I trust the sight of
the young people refreshes you.

904
00:52:43,400 --> 00:52:45,119
No, Sir.

905
00:52:45,120 --> 00:52:47,199
It does not refresh me.

906
00:52:47,200 --> 00:52:49,159
Oh, I'm sorry.

907
00:52:49,160 --> 00:52:52,440
One should always be open
to the regenerative influences.

908
00:52:53,960 --> 00:52:56,679
'He conceived of the role
of Lord Summerisle for me.

909
00:52:56,680 --> 00:53:00,319
'I assure you that this is
an extreme rarity in the business.

910
00:53:00,320 --> 00:53:02,479
'To have a part not just
handed to you,

911
00:53:02,480 --> 00:53:05,319
'but inspired by you
is a rare moment,

912
00:53:05,320 --> 00:53:07,999
'especially one this good!'

913
00:53:08,000 --> 00:53:09,839
In that case, you must go ahead.

914
00:53:09,840 --> 00:53:13,959
The Wicker Man really drew
from a lot of his past

915
00:53:13,960 --> 00:53:15,840
as a horror icon...

916
00:53:16,960 --> 00:53:20,079
...because The Wicker Man is
unquestionably a horror film.

917
00:53:20,080 --> 00:53:22,079
And at the heart of it,
of course,

918
00:53:22,080 --> 00:53:24,999
you've got Lee playing,
you know, the laird

919
00:53:25,000 --> 00:53:27,479
who lives in the castle
at the top of the hill,

920
00:53:27,480 --> 00:53:31,039
to whom the unsuspecting innocent
person has to travel by coach.

921
00:53:31,040 --> 00:53:33,839
Is this reminding
you of anybody? You know.

922
00:53:33,840 --> 00:53:37,480
It's a very clever manipulation
of his image.

923
00:53:38,440 --> 00:53:40,879
And I think to a degree,
Lee was aware of that,

924
00:53:40,880 --> 00:53:43,839
but he was aware that in
manipulating his image like that

925
00:53:43,840 --> 00:53:47,279
Shaffer had given him
some beautiful dialogue

926
00:53:47,280 --> 00:53:51,759
and a marvellously ambiguous
character to play.

927
00:53:51,760 --> 00:53:54,479
What my grandfather had
started out of expediency,

928
00:53:54,480 --> 00:53:57,400
my father continued out of... love.

929
00:53:58,760 --> 00:54:00,719
He brought me up the same way.

930
00:54:00,720 --> 00:54:03,239
To reverence the music and the drama

931
00:54:03,240 --> 00:54:05,240
and the rituals of the old gods.

932
00:54:06,280 --> 00:54:09,280
To love nature and to fear it.

933
00:54:10,720 --> 00:54:13,399
And to rely on it and to appease it
when necessary.

934
00:54:13,400 --> 00:54:15,960
He brought me up-
He brought you up to be a pagan!

935
00:54:18,280 --> 00:54:20,239
A heathen, conceivably,

936
00:54:20,240 --> 00:54:22,640
but not, I hope,
an unenlightened one.

937
00:54:29,280 --> 00:54:32,079
'How different
could two film shoots be?

938
00:54:32,080 --> 00:54:34,759
'From the grey wind-swept
hills of coastal Scotland

939
00:54:34,760 --> 00:54:37,599
'to the sun-drenched beaches
of Thailand?

940
00:54:37,600 --> 00:54:42,079
'Famously, the 007 films
were lavish Pan Global productions,

941
00:54:42,080 --> 00:54:45,519
'which shot for months
with a travelling team of hundreds.

942
00:54:45,520 --> 00:54:48,599
'The producers were Cubby Broccoli
and Harry Saltzman,

943
00:54:48,600 --> 00:54:50,919
'by now millionaires many times over

944
00:54:50,920 --> 00:54:54,839
'thanks to their shrewd licencing
of my cousin Ian Fleming's books.

945
00:54:54,840 --> 00:54:58,319
'Oh, yes, Ian and I
were quite the pair.

946
00:54:58,320 --> 00:55:01,399
'I've heard talk that certain
elements of the James Bond character

947
00:55:01,400 --> 00:55:05,679
'were in fact based upon me
and my own wartime experiences.

948
00:55:05,680 --> 00:55:09,399
'But of course, I couldn't possibly
comment on such matters.

949
00:55:09,400 --> 00:55:11,879
'Sadly, by now, Ian was dead

950
00:55:11,880 --> 00:55:14,759
'and never did get to see me
play one of his characters.

951
00:55:14,760 --> 00:55:18,559
'But here I was now
squaring off against Roger Moore,

952
00:55:18,560 --> 00:55:21,320
'and what a match we made.'

953
00:55:22,360 --> 00:55:24,479
You live well, Scaramanga.

954
00:55:24,480 --> 00:55:27,959
At a million dollars a contract,
I can afford to Mr Bond.

955
00:55:27,960 --> 00:55:29,999
You work for peanuts.

956
00:55:30,000 --> 00:55:32,519
A hearty, "Well done"
from Her Majesty the Queen

957
00:55:32,520 --> 00:55:34,199
and a pittance of a pension.

958
00:55:34,200 --> 00:55:36,240
Apart from that, we are the same.

959
00:55:37,400 --> 00:55:39,159
To us, Mr Bond.

960
00:55:39,160 --> 00:55:41,120
We are the best.

961
00:55:42,640 --> 00:55:46,960
He was kind of thrilled to be
The Man with the Golden Gun...

962
00:55:48,000 --> 00:55:51,079
...because it was a big Hollywood
international production

963
00:55:51,080 --> 00:55:53,599
and Cubby Broccoli and, you know,

964
00:55:53,600 --> 00:55:56,759
it was the biggest thing going
and he was delighted to be in that.

965
00:55:56,760 --> 00:55:58,839
And I would say,

966
00:55:58,840 --> 00:56:02,319
"Chris, it was the third nipple
you're delighted by, isn't it?"

967
00:56:02,320 --> 00:56:04,879
"What are you talking about?"

968
00:56:04,880 --> 00:56:08,959
He was pretty
easy to tease.

969
00:56:08,960 --> 00:56:11,719
'My performance has regularly
been singled out

970
00:56:11,720 --> 00:56:13,799
'as one of the better Bond villains,

971
00:56:13,800 --> 00:56:16,559
'and that is a compliment
I don't take lightly.

972
00:56:16,560 --> 00:56:19,520
'My star had risen. I had arrived.'

973
00:56:20,640 --> 00:56:24,799
I think the first time he ever got
ever any kind of nice treatment

974
00:56:24,800 --> 00:56:28,799
by the critics in the UK
was The Man with the Golden Gun.

975
00:56:28,800 --> 00:56:31,519
He was a very sensitive man
and he'd been, really,

976
00:56:31,520 --> 00:56:34,799
cruelly treated by the critics
and everything for years.

977
00:56:34,800 --> 00:56:37,799
There's a little, little
touch of bad luck even here

978
00:56:37,800 --> 00:56:40,759
because finally Christopher
is playing a Bond villain

979
00:56:40,760 --> 00:56:44,679
and he's being, to my mind,
one of the very best Bond villains,

980
00:56:44,680 --> 00:56:47,799
but he's in a Bond film that is...

981
00:56:47,800 --> 00:56:50,199
..a bit of a curate's egg.

982
00:56:50,200 --> 00:56:52,079
You know, I mean, look,

983
00:56:52,080 --> 00:56:54,639
by comparison to most
of Christopher Lee's films,

984
00:56:54,640 --> 00:56:57,879
The Man with the Golden Gun
made squillions of dollars.

985
00:56:57,880 --> 00:57:00,559
But by comparison to the other
James Bond films up to that time,

986
00:57:00,560 --> 00:57:03,079
it was a little bit of a damp squib,
even commercially.

987
00:57:03,080 --> 00:57:06,639
So, you know, there were these-
these little touches of bad luck

988
00:57:06,640 --> 00:57:10,079
sort of drop through
even at the moments of zenith.

989
00:57:10,080 --> 00:57:14,319
But maybe- maybe that's, you know,
the actor's lot in many ways.

990
00:57:14,320 --> 00:57:17,079
On my return to Britain,
all that awaited me

991
00:57:17,080 --> 00:57:19,879
were more dismal deaths
in dank dungeons.

992
00:57:19,880 --> 00:57:22,279
And to be honest,
not so many of those

993
00:57:22,280 --> 00:57:25,159
since Hammer was in steep decline.

994
00:57:25,160 --> 00:57:28,039
'In our mutual interest,
I had picked up the rights

995
00:57:28,040 --> 00:57:30,719
'to some of Dennis Wheatley's
literary properties

996
00:57:30,720 --> 00:57:34,719
'and hoped to motivate Hammer into
action on a more modern type of film,

997
00:57:34,720 --> 00:57:38,359
'which might compete
with the likes of The Exorcist.'

998
00:57:44,000 --> 00:57:47,439
'Well, they dragged their feet,
but eventually got it made.

999
00:57:47,440 --> 00:57:50,920
'A tepid adaptation which
angered Wheatley.'

1000
00:58:18,080 --> 00:58:20,719
'It would be my last film for Hammer,

1001
00:58:20,720 --> 00:58:22,960
the end of an era.

1002
00:58:24,800 --> 00:58:27,839
'They had managed to snare
Richard Widmark as leading man,

1003
00:58:27,840 --> 00:58:30,159
and he joined
the Transatlantic Chorus,

1004
00:58:30,160 --> 00:58:33,439
'started a decade ago by Billy Wilder
and finally convinced me

1005
00:58:33,440 --> 00:58:36,880
'that it was time to up sticks
and move, lock stock to America.'

1006
00:58:37,840 --> 00:58:41,439
America, where I was
appreciated, respected,

1007
00:58:41,440 --> 00:58:44,080
and where Hollywood
seemed ripe with promise.

1008
00:58:45,080 --> 00:58:47,159
He had a decent life here.

1009
00:58:47,160 --> 00:58:48,919
It wasn't...

1010
00:58:48,920 --> 00:58:52,120
a life of discotheques
and things like that.

1011
00:58:53,600 --> 00:58:55,359
It was a life of work

1012
00:58:55,360 --> 00:58:57,799
because he did work quite a bit

1013
00:58:57,800 --> 00:58:59,479
when he came to Hollywood.

1014
00:58:59,480 --> 00:59:02,959
It was a very fruitful period
for Christopher.

1015
00:59:02,960 --> 00:59:04,999
It really was.

1016
00:59:05,000 --> 00:59:08,999
He loved being in Hollywood
and he was working.

1017
00:59:09,000 --> 00:59:11,919
He got to work with Jack Lemmon
and Lee Grant, you know?

1018
00:59:11,920 --> 00:59:14,519
Real actors and real
Hollywood stars,

1019
00:59:14,520 --> 00:59:16,759
and he really enjoyed it.

1020
00:59:16,760 --> 00:59:19,919
'My first film was a huge
movie for Universal,

1021
00:59:19,920 --> 00:59:21,960
'Airport 77.

1022
00:59:22,920 --> 00:59:26,399
'The Airport films were
the original and finest exponents

1023
00:59:26,400 --> 00:59:29,559
'of the very popular, new
'disaster movie' genre.

1024
00:59:29,560 --> 00:59:31,919
'The format was simple and effective.

1025
00:59:31,920 --> 00:59:34,839
'A large cast of popular celebrities,
old and new,

1026
00:59:34,840 --> 00:59:37,679
'are thrust into
a cataclysmic situation.

1027
00:59:37,680 --> 00:59:41,439
'The fun of these films
was the absolute unpredictability

1028
00:59:41,440 --> 00:59:44,320
'as to who would survive
and who would die.

1029
00:59:45,480 --> 00:59:48,879
'I would be sharing the screen
and the first-class lounge

1030
00:59:48,880 --> 00:59:51,439
'with Jack Lemmon,
Olivia de Haviland,

1031
00:59:51,440 --> 00:59:55,159
'Joseph Cotton, and Jimmy Stewart.

1032
00:59:55,160 --> 00:59:58,199
'To absolutely nobody in
the world's surprise,

1033
00:59:58,200 --> 00:59:59,839
'I died.

1034
00:59:59,840 --> 01:00:01,839
'But it was a good death,

1035
01:00:01,840 --> 01:00:04,680
'a hero's death, a new death.

1036
01:00:05,600 --> 01:00:08,719
'I had to train for a week
in a water tank to accomplish it.

1037
01:00:08,720 --> 01:00:10,999
'And upon completion,
I received an award

1038
01:00:11,000 --> 01:00:12,960
'more meaningful to me than an Oscar.

1039
01:00:13,960 --> 01:00:16,799
'The hallowed Stunt Team belt buckle,

1040
01:00:16,800 --> 01:00:20,199
'a recognition that
you were one of them.

1041
01:00:20,200 --> 01:00:22,399
This is a good start! I mean,

1042
01:00:22,400 --> 01:00:25,439
it's a slightly silly disaster film
of the period, but nevertheless

1043
01:00:25,440 --> 01:00:28,839
it's a big thing. But because of
Christopher's workaholic tendencies,

1044
01:00:28,840 --> 01:00:31,079
the next thing he does involves
going to Canada

1045
01:00:31,080 --> 01:00:33,960
to appear in something called
Starship Invasions.

1046
01:00:34,960 --> 01:00:36,960
Um...

1047
01:00:37,880 --> 01:00:41,759
And you know that film is
an embarrassment on many levels.

1048
01:00:41,760 --> 01:00:46,639
However, there are some wonderful
things happening for him in the USA.

1049
01:00:46,640 --> 01:00:49,599
He goes over to NYC to be guest host

1050
01:00:49,600 --> 01:00:52,479
on Saturday Night Live
in March 1978.

1051
01:00:52,480 --> 01:00:56,279
'I had a wonderful time but was
grateful to learn after the fact,

1052
01:00:56,280 --> 01:00:59,920
'that the audience viewing figures
were as high as 35 million.

1053
01:01:00,920 --> 01:01:05,119
'By far my largest audience for
anything I had ever previously done.

1054
01:01:05,120 --> 01:01:07,679
'Had I known such
a figure before taking part,

1055
01:01:07,680 --> 01:01:09,839
'I'd have been a babbling fool.

1056
01:01:09,840 --> 01:01:13,479
'My appearance, seen by really
everyone who was anyone,

1057
01:01:13,480 --> 01:01:17,559
'announced to the American film
and TV industry that I was alive,

1058
01:01:17,560 --> 01:01:21,319
'that I was available,
and that I was perhaps

1059
01:01:21,320 --> 01:01:24,399
'more versatile than
they might have expected.'

1060
01:01:24,400 --> 01:01:26,799
Having shown America
my capacity for humour,

1061
01:01:26,800 --> 01:01:28,679
the phone started ringing

1062
01:01:28,680 --> 01:01:31,440
and one of those calls
was from Steven Spielberg.

1063
01:01:32,760 --> 01:01:35,119
'His next film was to be a comedy.

1064
01:01:35,120 --> 01:01:37,839
'Set around the confusion
in the immediate aftermath

1065
01:01:37,840 --> 01:01:40,999
'of the bombing of Pearl Harbour.
It would see me paired

1066
01:01:41,000 --> 01:01:44,399
'with the legendary Japanese actor,
Toshiro Mifune.

1067
01:01:44,400 --> 01:01:46,439
'I played a German U-boat captain,

1068
01:01:46,440 --> 01:01:48,599
'speaking entirely
in the German language.

1069
01:01:48,600 --> 01:01:50,839
'Mifune played my begrudging partner,

1070
01:01:50,840 --> 01:01:53,319
'a Japanese submarine commander

1071
01:01:53,320 --> 01:01:55,999
'who spoke entirely in,
of course, Japanese.

1072
01:01:56,000 --> 01:01:59,159
'Now, the joke was that
we railed against one another

1073
01:01:59,160 --> 01:02:02,920
'in our mother tongues but could
understand each other perfectly.

1074
01:02:03,840 --> 01:02:05,639
'And therein lies the problem.

1075
01:02:05,640 --> 01:02:08,079
'It's not a particularly
funny concept.

1076
01:02:08,080 --> 01:02:11,319
'True to its subject matter,
the movie bombed.

1077
01:02:11,320 --> 01:02:14,279
'Serial was a very modern
satire of life

1078
01:02:14,280 --> 01:02:17,799
'for the Baby Boomers
in 1970s San Francisco.

1079
01:02:17,800 --> 01:02:20,839
'I played Luckman,
a local businessman,

1080
01:02:20,840 --> 01:02:23,799
'respected and successful,
who, on weekends,

1081
01:02:23,800 --> 01:02:26,559
'donned leathers and became Skull,

1082
01:02:26,560 --> 01:02:30,320
'fearsome leader of the local
homosexual motorcycle gang.'

1083
01:02:33,880 --> 01:02:38,479
♪ Might I say that
I'm old-fashioned... ♪

1084
01:02:43,040 --> 01:02:45,439
'My run of strange and wonderful
pictures continued

1085
01:02:45,440 --> 01:02:49,479
'with a jaunt to Australia to film
The Return of Captain Invincible.

1086
01:02:49,480 --> 01:02:53,319
'I was firmly back in mad
fascistic villain territory,

1087
01:02:53,320 --> 01:02:55,919
'but the rest of the film
was truly bizarre.'

1088
01:02:55,920 --> 01:02:58,559
I built a fish!
Hit the dirt!

1089
01:02:58,560 --> 01:03:01,359
'Only Captain Invincible can stop me,

1090
01:03:01,360 --> 01:03:04,079
if he can kick his addiction
to the booze.'

1091
01:03:04,080 --> 01:03:06,919
♪ If you don't name your poison

1092
01:03:06,920 --> 01:03:09,759
♪ I'll have to get the boys in

1093
01:03:09,760 --> 01:03:15,079
♪ The spirit of adventure
opens one's eyes

1094
01:03:15,080 --> 01:03:17,599
♪ If you don't name your poison...

1095
01:03:17,600 --> 01:03:20,679
'To finally sing on film,

1096
01:03:20,680 --> 01:03:23,359
'do you think I might have been
enjoying myself?'

1097
01:03:23,360 --> 01:03:27,640
♪ Sunrise ♪

1098
01:03:28,800 --> 01:03:31,839
There's no one that is in any
doubt of how versatile he was

1099
01:03:31,840 --> 01:03:34,279
and the fact he was capable
of other things. You know?

1100
01:03:34,280 --> 01:03:36,919
But I think a lot of the movies
he made from the 1970s onwards

1101
01:03:36,920 --> 01:03:40,199
were really a reaction
of getting as far away

1102
01:03:40,200 --> 01:03:42,759
from those horror movies

1103
01:03:42,760 --> 01:03:45,079
as he possibly could.

1104
01:03:45,080 --> 01:03:47,439
Christopher was very keen
on playing,

1105
01:03:47,440 --> 01:03:49,559
as he called them, Short roles.

1106
01:03:49,560 --> 01:03:51,359
He didn't carry a film.

1107
01:03:51,360 --> 01:03:53,359
He punctuated a film

1108
01:03:53,360 --> 01:03:56,079
in an enormously exciting
and brilliant way.

1109
01:03:56,080 --> 01:03:59,399
But he punctuated stories
rather than carrying them.

1110
01:03:59,400 --> 01:04:02,039
Short roles enabled him to go

1111
01:04:02,040 --> 01:04:04,439
from film to film, to film, to film,

1112
01:04:04,440 --> 01:04:07,439
sometimes to make
multiple films at the same time.

1113
01:04:07,440 --> 01:04:10,920
'My antagonistic services
became very much in demand.

1114
01:04:11,960 --> 01:04:15,279
'Now, admittedly, not all
of the roles I played were in

1115
01:04:15,280 --> 01:04:18,680
'what one might consider
premium quality productions.'

1116
01:04:22,600 --> 01:04:25,759
I wouldn't hesitate to shoot
this young lady, you know?

1117
01:04:25,760 --> 01:04:28,639
As you can hear,
I don't have very much choice.

1118
01:04:31,280 --> 01:04:34,280
That's better. Easy does it.

1119
01:04:46,720 --> 01:04:49,239
I would say maybe
half the movies that he made

1120
01:04:49,240 --> 01:04:51,799
are more or less forgettable.

1121
01:04:51,800 --> 01:04:54,439
And he once said to me
that he pitied me

1122
01:04:54,440 --> 01:04:56,479
because I had seen
so many of his movies.

1123
01:04:56,480 --> 01:04:58,759
I think he had such a hunger to...

1124
01:04:58,760 --> 01:05:00,799
to keep doing things,

1125
01:05:00,800 --> 01:05:02,839
such a curiosity about doing things.

1126
01:05:02,840 --> 01:05:06,159
He didn't always say, "Is there
any artistic merit in this?"

1127
01:05:06,160 --> 01:05:08,120
He didn't wanna be left out.

1128
01:05:09,960 --> 01:05:13,239
He just... He just felt that,

1129
01:05:13,240 --> 01:05:15,719
"The next one is gonna be the...

1130
01:05:15,720 --> 01:05:17,839
a better one."

1131
01:05:17,840 --> 01:05:20,759
I think he just took
the rough with the smooth

1132
01:05:20,760 --> 01:05:23,039
all the way through his career.

1133
01:05:23,040 --> 01:05:25,639
And things didn't quite work out
how he always wanted them

1134
01:05:25,640 --> 01:05:28,079
to work out, you know?
He put that in perspective

1135
01:05:28,080 --> 01:05:30,800
with his wartime experiences
and so what?

1136
01:05:36,840 --> 01:05:39,479
We had spent
almost a decade in America,

1137
01:05:39,480 --> 01:05:42,079
and I had somewhat
stretched my wings there,

1138
01:05:42,080 --> 01:05:45,040
but life, as it will,
conspired to bring me back home.

1139
01:05:48,480 --> 01:05:51,439
'I was in Las Vegas shooting
the movie Jocks

1140
01:05:51,440 --> 01:05:53,480
'when I felt quite unwell.

1141
01:05:55,600 --> 01:05:59,279
'I was getting tired very easily
and walking became quite exhausting.'

1142
01:06:10,320 --> 01:06:12,280
'I went to see a doctor.

1143
01:06:13,840 --> 01:06:16,559
'She told me that my mitral valve
in my left ventricle

1144
01:06:16,560 --> 01:06:18,799
'wasn't closing correctly.

1145
01:06:18,800 --> 01:06:21,959
'In that moment, I realised that,
quite literally,

1146
01:06:21,960 --> 01:06:24,480
'my heart was no longer in it.

1147
01:06:29,800 --> 01:06:32,479
'Our departure was swift.

1148
01:06:32,480 --> 01:06:35,319
'Back in London I took
to Harley Street,

1149
01:06:35,320 --> 01:06:37,519
'province of the private clinician,

1150
01:06:37,520 --> 01:06:39,479
'where, at great expense,

1151
01:06:39,480 --> 01:06:42,559
'I was pricked and prodded
and invaded and examined,

1152
01:06:42,560 --> 01:06:45,720
'and the decision was taken
that surgery was essential.

1153
01:06:46,640 --> 01:06:49,879
'I campaigned against one of those
new-fangled plastic valves

1154
01:06:49,880 --> 01:06:52,679
'as I had heard terrifying tales of
recipients of such

1155
01:06:52,680 --> 01:06:54,999
'dropping dead mid-sentence.

1156
01:06:55,000 --> 01:06:59,439
'As an aspirational raconteur and a
connoisseur of the act of death,

1157
01:06:59,440 --> 01:07:01,880
'I could think of no worse
way to expire.

1158
01:07:02,920 --> 01:07:05,679
'So, they offered me
the valve of a pig,

1159
01:07:05,680 --> 01:07:08,199
'which I gladly accepted.

1160
01:07:08,200 --> 01:07:11,960
'In the moment, however, they decided
to mend rather than replace.

1161
01:07:13,600 --> 01:07:16,799
'So much of my life had been
spent as a purveyor of fear,

1162
01:07:16,800 --> 01:07:18,959
'terror, darkness, and blood.

1163
01:07:18,960 --> 01:07:21,959
'Here I was now at their mercy.

1164
01:07:21,960 --> 01:07:24,000
'I was scared.

1165
01:07:24,920 --> 01:07:27,399
'I wrote letters
to Gitte and Christina

1166
01:07:27,400 --> 01:07:31,399
'should the worst happen, and then
as I waited for the hour to come,

1167
01:07:31,400 --> 01:07:35,280
'I took comfort in that
which has always given me comfort.

1168
01:07:36,640 --> 01:07:39,639
'I first read The Lord of the Rings
upon publication.

1169
01:07:39,640 --> 01:07:42,879
'All three volumes were released
in quite quick succession

1170
01:07:42,880 --> 01:07:45,840
'within a year or so,
and I absolutely devoured them.

1171
01:07:47,320 --> 01:07:50,759
'I was obsessed to the degree
that I read the full trilogy

1172
01:07:50,760 --> 01:07:53,400
'every single year
for the rest of my life.

1173
01:07:56,640 --> 01:07:59,440
'I met Tolkien in the '50s
quite by chance.

1174
01:08:03,560 --> 01:08:05,359
'I was in Oxford with friends.

1175
01:08:05,360 --> 01:08:07,919
'We were drinking merrily
in the Eagle and Child Pub

1176
01:08:07,920 --> 01:08:10,479
#when the door opened
and in he walked.

1177
01:08:10,480 --> 01:08:14,559
'You see, I recognised him from his
photograph on the dust jacket.

1178
01:08:14,560 --> 01:08:18,160
'In he came and somehow, he joined
our group for a couple of ales.

1179
01:08:19,480 --> 01:08:22,199
'All I could say was,
"How do you do?"

1180
01:08:22,200 --> 01:08:24,520
'That is it, all I could manage.

1181
01:08:25,520 --> 01:08:29,199
'I had so many questions for him
I didn't know where to start

1182
01:08:29,200 --> 01:08:31,919
'and really didn't know how it
might end up.

1183
01:08:31,920 --> 01:08:35,720
'So, I just smiled and nodded
and enjoyed his presence.

1184
01:08:36,600 --> 01:08:39,840
'I enjoyed being in his presence
and I have no regrets.

1185
01:08:41,040 --> 01:08:44,879
'I could well have scared him
away or upset or annoyed him

1186
01:08:44,880 --> 01:08:47,879
'and that I would've
regretted to this day.

1187
01:08:47,880 --> 01:08:50,920
'No, it was quite alright
just to have been around him.

1188
01:08:51,720 --> 01:08:53,919
'It is a very good memory.

1189
01:08:53,920 --> 01:08:57,839
'So, before my operation
and in my sick bed

1190
01:08:57,840 --> 01:09:00,199
'and during my recuperation,

1191
01:09:00,200 --> 01:09:03,079
'I mentally transported myself
to Middle Earth.

1192
01:09:03,080 --> 01:09:06,559
'And The Fellowship with all
of their goodness and decency,

1193
01:09:06,560 --> 01:09:09,840
'played a role in my recovery
and recover I did.

1194
01:09:14,320 --> 01:09:17,640
'My return to London also marked
a return to old friends.

1195
01:09:18,840 --> 01:09:21,079
'House of the Long Shadows,

1196
01:09:21,080 --> 01:09:23,479
'really more of
a Gothic chamber piece

1197
01:09:23,480 --> 01:09:27,319
'with the occasional unfortunate
demise and a risible ending.

1198
01:09:27,320 --> 01:09:30,079
'This project would see me
reunited on screen,

1199
01:09:30,080 --> 01:09:32,919
'not just with Peter,
but also Vincent.

1200
01:09:32,920 --> 01:09:36,159
'Who could say no
to a family reunion?

1201
01:09:36,160 --> 01:09:39,919
They were such gentlemen.
You know, so respectful

1202
01:09:39,920 --> 01:09:42,439
of each other's talent and...

1203
01:09:42,440 --> 01:09:44,599
and of all the crew.

1204
01:09:44,600 --> 01:09:48,159
And modest, all very modest,
about their talent.

1205
01:09:48,160 --> 01:09:52,279
'Cause they are, yes, as we said,
the Holy Trinity of Horror.

1206
01:09:52,280 --> 01:09:55,119
'I was the youngest
of the trio by a decade.

1207
01:09:55,120 --> 01:09:57,279
'Vincent was the youngest in spirit.

1208
01:09:57,280 --> 01:10:00,319
'But it was clear
that Peter was winding down.

1209
01:10:00,320 --> 01:10:03,559
'Peter, if we're truthful,
had been winding down

1210
01:10:03,560 --> 01:10:06,879
'since the death of his beloved wife,
Helen, a decade earlier.

1211
01:10:06,880 --> 01:10:10,719
'He never recovered.
Had no desire to recover, you see.

1212
01:10:10,720 --> 01:10:12,599
'From the moment he lost her,

1213
01:10:12,600 --> 01:10:16,679
'he was just passing time until
they could be reunited in death.

1214
01:10:16,680 --> 01:10:18,439
'He kept busy.

1215
01:10:18,440 --> 01:10:21,079
'He had a huge success
appearing in Star Wars,

1216
01:10:21,080 --> 01:10:23,039
'but I don't think he cared.

1217
01:10:23,040 --> 01:10:26,399
'He cared about being professional
and giving a great performance.

1218
01:10:26,400 --> 01:10:28,639
'He just didn't care
about his standing

1219
01:10:28,640 --> 01:10:30,879
'or the acclaim or the money.

1220
01:10:30,880 --> 01:10:34,439
'He lived a quiet life
in Whitstable, by the sea there.

1221
01:10:34,440 --> 01:10:37,560
'He painted his miniatures,
and he passed the time.

1222
01:10:38,960 --> 01:10:42,439
'Ultimately, he waited 23 years

1223
01:10:42,440 --> 01:10:44,800
'until he could join his dear Helen.

1224
01:10:46,320 --> 01:10:48,999
'He was truly a special man,

1225
01:10:49,000 --> 01:10:51,320
'and he was my friend.

1226
01:10:53,320 --> 01:10:55,199
'His last job was to narrate
a documentary

1227
01:10:55,200 --> 01:10:57,759
'about Hammer films with me.'

1228
01:10:57,760 --> 01:11:01,759
I was in Cannes for two days
- recently.
- Say that louder.

1229
01:11:01,760 --> 01:11:04,719
I was in Cannes
for two days recently.

1230
01:11:04,720 --> 01:11:07,919
And everybody gave me a big welcome.
What were you doing there?

1231
01:11:07,920 --> 01:11:10,079
Well, talking about you.
That's it for you.

1232
01:11:10,080 --> 01:11:12,839
- As usual.
- Yes.
And somebody said to me,

1233
01:11:12,840 --> 01:11:15,079
"And how is Mr Cushing?"

1234
01:11:15,080 --> 01:11:17,560
I said,
"I don't know."

1235
01:11:19,000 --> 01:11:21,279
This is happening all over the world.

1236
01:11:21,280 --> 01:11:23,599
People say to me,
"How is Mr Cushing?"

1237
01:11:23,600 --> 01:11:26,039
Sometimes they say,
"Good morning, Mr Cushing."

1238
01:11:28,200 --> 01:11:31,759
Sometimes they do that too. It's
either that or Mr Price.

1239
01:11:31,760 --> 01:11:34,120
Always. Always.

1240
01:11:35,120 --> 01:11:36,959
'We had a wonderful day together.

1241
01:11:36,960 --> 01:11:39,719
'But as we said, goodbye,
I had a premonition.

1242
01:11:39,720 --> 01:11:42,680
'I knew it would be the last time
I would see him.

1243
01:11:43,960 --> 01:11:45,960
'And it was.'

1244
01:11:46,760 --> 01:11:49,199
I did not wind down.

1245
01:11:49,200 --> 01:11:51,239
He really loved doing movies.

1246
01:11:51,240 --> 01:11:54,519
Not just the movie itself,
the whole process.

1247
01:11:54,520 --> 01:11:58,199
From reading the script
to meeting the people at the set,

1248
01:11:58,200 --> 01:12:01,119
meeting other actors,
exchanging ideas.

1249
01:12:01,120 --> 01:12:03,119
At home, he would be bored.

1250
01:12:03,120 --> 01:12:05,279
He would have nothing to do.
He was restless.

1251
01:12:05,280 --> 01:12:08,559
He was in a situation in where

1252
01:12:08,560 --> 01:12:12,119
he was not getting
any prominent movies.

1253
01:12:12,120 --> 01:12:14,639
In other words, he was getting...

1254
01:12:14,640 --> 01:12:16,479
meaningless parts.

1255
01:12:16,480 --> 01:12:19,119
The majority of people
thought that he had passed away

1256
01:12:19,120 --> 01:12:22,039
'cause he had not been
really in the mainstream.

1257
01:12:22,040 --> 01:12:24,839
At the time, I'm talking 1995.

1258
01:12:24,840 --> 01:12:28,519
From 1995 maybe to 1998,
around that time.

1259
01:12:28,520 --> 01:12:30,799
He didn't wanna do any
more horror movies

1260
01:12:30,800 --> 01:12:32,839
because he had done
everything already.

1261
01:12:32,840 --> 01:12:34,719
There wasn't anything else
to be done.

1262
01:12:34,720 --> 01:12:38,159
He thought that he had so much more
to give than just that,

1263
01:12:38,160 --> 01:12:41,879
so, he wasn't getting
the type of work that he wanted.

1264
01:12:41,880 --> 01:12:44,279
He came to see me playing
at Stratford-on-Avon

1265
01:12:44,280 --> 01:12:46,959
in the Royal Shakespeare Company,
and he came afterwards.

1266
01:12:46,960 --> 01:12:49,199
Afterwards, he said,
"I'm so jealous of you...

1267
01:12:49,200 --> 01:12:51,719
because, you know,
I'd love to have done

1268
01:12:51,720 --> 01:12:54,519
some of the great
classical roles on the stage."

1269
01:12:54,520 --> 01:12:57,559
He was very, very keen
to play Don Quixote.

1270
01:12:57,560 --> 01:13:00,959
I think that would've been
a fantastic part for him, actually.

1271
01:13:00,960 --> 01:13:05,239
Can you just see him sitting astride
that knackered old horse, you know?

1272
01:13:05,240 --> 01:13:08,840
In his Spanish armour,
tilting at windmills.

1273
01:13:09,760 --> 01:13:12,639
The whole idea- I think in
a way that role spoke to him.

1274
01:13:12,640 --> 01:13:15,439
'Cause the whole idea of
tilting at windmills, i.e.

1275
01:13:15,440 --> 01:13:18,039
at conventional film stardom,

1276
01:13:18,040 --> 01:13:20,759
was something that he understood.

1277
01:13:20,760 --> 01:13:23,239
He did have a lot of rejection,

1278
01:13:23,240 --> 01:13:25,279
um, which people don't know about.

1279
01:13:25,280 --> 01:13:27,399
And so, you do, you know,

1280
01:13:27,400 --> 01:13:31,279
you could spend hours of your day
being sad about where you didn't go.

1281
01:13:31,280 --> 01:13:33,759
And he did sometimes
get into that place.

1282
01:13:33,760 --> 01:13:36,199
He was jealous.

1283
01:13:36,200 --> 01:13:38,599
He was jealous of certain actors.

1284
01:13:38,600 --> 01:13:40,840
He was jealous of Michael Caine.

1285
01:13:42,120 --> 01:13:45,479
I said, "Christopher, why are you
jealous of Michael Caine?

1286
01:13:45,480 --> 01:13:48,760
Michael is a brilliant actor.
You're a brilliant actor."

1287
01:13:49,560 --> 01:13:51,799
He would never give me the reasons.

1288
01:13:51,800 --> 01:13:55,320
He just thought that Michael Caine
got more attention.

1289
01:13:56,200 --> 01:13:59,919
At this time, I actually turned
largely to my great hobby of singing

1290
01:13:59,920 --> 01:14:02,879
and took a serious stab
at making a go of it.

1291
01:14:02,880 --> 01:14:04,879
He did a narration
for Rhapsody of Fire.

1292
01:14:04,880 --> 01:14:07,359
That was the first time
that he worked

1293
01:14:07,360 --> 01:14:09,759
with a mainstream heavy metal band.

1294
01:14:09,760 --> 01:14:11,999
They were huge.
And they're still huge.

1295
01:14:12,000 --> 01:14:15,359
They are pioneers of
Symphonic and Power Metal.

1296
01:14:15,360 --> 01:14:17,839
He liked the music because...

1297
01:14:17,840 --> 01:14:20,559
it's very similar to the music
that he liked.

1298
01:14:20,560 --> 01:14:23,239
He loved Wagner. And in his opinion,

1299
01:14:23,240 --> 01:14:26,559
Wagner and heavy metal
are interconnected.

1300
01:14:26,560 --> 01:14:29,279
The music is very powerful,

1301
01:14:29,280 --> 01:14:31,679
big stories. So, you know,

1302
01:14:31,680 --> 01:14:34,959
that's how he knew about metal.

1303
01:14:34,960 --> 01:14:36,799
'I was hooked.

1304
01:14:36,800 --> 01:14:40,359
'A few years later,
I formed The Charlemagne Project.

1305
01:14:40,360 --> 01:14:43,359
'What would become two full albums.'

1306
01:14:43,360 --> 01:14:46,559
Christopher had worked before in
several albums,

1307
01:14:46,560 --> 01:14:49,519
several projects,
he wanted to do some more.

1308
01:14:49,520 --> 01:14:52,439
So there is where we came in, huh?

1309
01:14:52,440 --> 01:14:54,719
The project started with

1310
01:14:54,720 --> 01:14:56,879
By the Sword
and the Cross,

1311
01:14:56,880 --> 01:15:00,479
and then the second heavy metal
album, which was more heavy,

1312
01:15:00,480 --> 01:15:02,559
if that's a phrase.

1313
01:15:02,560 --> 01:15:05,159
Now the first album was more
symphonic metal.

1314
01:15:05,160 --> 01:15:09,759
♪ Four thousand men
all dead in one day

1315
01:15:09,760 --> 01:15:14,439
♪ They would not renounce
their heathen ways... ♪

1316
01:15:14,440 --> 01:15:16,439
We first, we did the symphonic one,

1317
01:15:16,440 --> 01:15:18,719
and there are two
generations of fans.

1318
01:15:18,720 --> 01:15:20,759
Some loved it because it was
symphonic.

1319
01:15:20,760 --> 01:15:23,359
It's light, they like that.
But the more extreme,

1320
01:15:23,360 --> 01:15:26,359
the more heavier fans, ah,
they were disappointed.

1321
01:15:26,360 --> 01:15:29,159
"Oh, this is not metal!
This is symphonic."

1322
01:15:29,160 --> 01:15:31,479
We had to do it heavier.

1323
01:15:31,480 --> 01:15:34,319
And also, Sir Christopher said,
"This needs to be one.

1324
01:15:34,320 --> 01:15:36,239
This needs to be heavier.

1325
01:15:36,240 --> 01:15:40,399
Needs to be much, much heavier!
The music is not powerful enough.

1326
01:15:40,400 --> 01:15:43,919
The orchestra, we need more power!"
Remember he said, "More power?"

1327
01:15:43,920 --> 01:15:47,519
"You know, I can sing much
louder than that," right?

1328
01:15:47,520 --> 01:15:49,679
♪ I shed blood of the Saxon man

1329
01:15:49,680 --> 01:15:51,959
♪ I shed the blood of the Saxon men

1330
01:15:51,960 --> 01:15:56,319
♪ I shed the blood of the Saxon man ♪

1331
01:15:56,320 --> 01:15:58,719
But in between
the Charlemagne albums,

1332
01:15:58,720 --> 01:16:00,799
he sung heavy metal singles.

1333
01:16:00,800 --> 01:16:03,599
You know, we started with the
Heavy Metal Christmas then

1334
01:16:03,600 --> 01:16:07,519
Heavy Metal Christmas Two,
- with Jingle Hells.
- Oh yeah.

1335
01:16:07,520 --> 01:16:11,719
♪ Jingle hell, jingle hell,
jingle all the way

1336
01:16:11,720 --> 01:16:16,519
♪ Oh, what fun it is to ride
in a one-horse open sleigh ♪

1337
01:16:16,520 --> 01:16:20,599
He actually went number 18 on the-
The American Billboard charts.

1338
01:16:20,600 --> 01:16:23,479
On the billboard single
- charts in America.
- Number 22,

1339
01:16:23,480 --> 01:16:27,799
and then number 22, and then from
the PR of getting to number 22,

1340
01:16:27,800 --> 01:16:30,479
he went to number 18
in the Billboard charts.

1341
01:16:30,480 --> 01:16:34,639
It meant that Christopher became
the oldest, now careful here,

1342
01:16:34,640 --> 01:16:39,279
recording artist,
not somebody that wrote some music

1343
01:16:39,280 --> 01:16:42,159
and all of a sudden, you know, at 90

1344
01:16:42,160 --> 01:16:45,239
his music appears on the charts,
he was 92-

1345
01:16:45,240 --> 01:16:48,119
91 and a half years old
when he recorded,

1346
01:16:48,120 --> 01:16:51,279
and he became the oldest
performing artist

1347
01:16:51,280 --> 01:16:53,639
to have ever charted.

1348
01:16:53,640 --> 01:16:57,280
♪ In the name of Jesus Christo,
our lord

1349
01:16:58,160 --> 01:17:02,360
♪ On a day on Verden, no mercy given

1350
01:17:03,240 --> 01:17:07,159
♪ Victory for the chosen people ♪

1351
01:17:07,160 --> 01:17:10,560
Every single music magazine
in the world...

1352
01:17:11,480 --> 01:17:15,439
...started to refer to him
as a heavy metal star.

1353
01:17:15,440 --> 01:17:18,319
Right? So, he started

1354
01:17:18,320 --> 01:17:21,120
as somebody who wanted to sing...

1355
01:17:22,240 --> 01:17:24,999
...and at the end, he was respected

1356
01:17:25,000 --> 01:17:27,599
by every single
heavy metal musician.

1357
01:17:27,600 --> 01:17:31,119
'One of the founding
members of Black Sabbath, Tony Iommi

1358
01:17:31,120 --> 01:17:34,160
'presented me with the
Metal Hammer Golden God award.'

1359
01:17:35,000 --> 01:17:37,999
I think it was probably
the most memorable day

1360
01:17:38,000 --> 01:17:39,999
that I can remember
in the whole of my life.

1361
01:17:40,000 --> 01:17:42,919
He was born again,
he felt the energy of the place.

1362
01:17:42,920 --> 01:17:45,719
I remember that we were in the
changing rooms with Tony Iommi

1363
01:17:45,720 --> 01:17:47,879
and Sir Christopher,
they were talking.

1364
01:17:47,880 --> 01:17:50,879
They had a very long conversation
in the changing room.

1365
01:17:50,880 --> 01:17:52,879
Sir Christopher said to him,

1366
01:17:52,880 --> 01:17:55,999
"You invented heavy metal,
you are the father of metal."

1367
01:17:56,000 --> 01:17:59,359
He said. And Tony Iommi replied,

1368
01:17:59,360 --> 01:18:03,639
"No, you were the one that created
heavy metal with your movies,

1369
01:18:03,640 --> 01:18:05,959
I was inspired by your movies."

1370
01:18:05,960 --> 01:18:09,159
Sir Christopher, "My movies?
The good ones I hope!"

1371
01:18:09,160 --> 01:18:11,960
He always said this,
"The good ones I hope!"

1372
01:18:12,920 --> 01:18:16,199
By 1998, I was 76-years-old

1373
01:18:16,200 --> 01:18:18,399
and it could well have been assumed

1374
01:18:18,400 --> 01:18:21,119
that my most fruitful years
were behind me.

1375
01:18:21,120 --> 01:18:23,919
But then, something happened.

1376
01:18:23,920 --> 01:18:27,999
Something wonderful
and quite unexpected happened.

1377
01:18:28,000 --> 01:18:30,359
I received an invitation to tea

1378
01:18:30,360 --> 01:18:32,679
at the Basil Street Hotel
in Knightsbridge.

1379
01:18:32,680 --> 01:18:35,399
My hosts there were
the head of Islamic studies

1380
01:18:35,400 --> 01:18:37,679
from Cambridge university,
Akbar Ahmed

1381
01:18:37,680 --> 01:18:41,239
and his friend,
the film director, Jamil Dehlavi.

1382
01:18:41,240 --> 01:18:43,239
They had a question for me.

1383
01:18:43,240 --> 01:18:45,280
"What do you know about Jinnah?"

1384
01:18:46,560 --> 01:18:48,239
'"Well," I replied.

1385
01:18:48,240 --> 01:18:51,319
'"I know that Mohammed Ali Jinnah
was the Baba-e-Qaum,

1386
01:18:51,320 --> 01:18:53,799
'forefather of the nation
of Pakistan,

1387
01:18:53,800 --> 01:18:55,799
'the state he founded in 1947

1388
01:18:55,800 --> 01:18:58,679
'and became the first
Governor General of.

1389
01:18:58,680 --> 01:19:02,239
'It was his committed endeavour
to create a separate state

1390
01:19:02,240 --> 01:19:04,119
'for Indian Muslims.

1391
01:19:04,120 --> 01:19:07,359
'I believe him to have been an
extraordinary man

1392
01:19:07,360 --> 01:19:09,159
'of determination and brilliance.

1393
01:19:09,160 --> 01:19:11,959
'"We should like you to play Jinnah."
They replied.

1394
01:19:11,960 --> 01:19:15,439
'Jinnah was by far the most
important film I made

1395
01:19:15,440 --> 01:19:19,479
in terms of its subject and the great
responsibility I had as an actor.

1396
01:19:19,480 --> 01:19:22,239
'I am immensely proud
of this picture.

1397
01:19:22,240 --> 01:19:25,879
'I received, really,
the best reviews I've ever had.'

1398
01:19:25,880 --> 01:19:28,719
He was reminding you that
he could do these longer parts,

1399
01:19:28,720 --> 01:19:30,959
these more conventional
dramatic roles

1400
01:19:30,960 --> 01:19:33,439
and he could bring nuance and...

1401
01:19:33,440 --> 01:19:35,399
subtlety and, you know,

1402
01:19:35,400 --> 01:19:38,359
statesmanship in that particular
instance, playing Jinnah.

1403
01:19:38,360 --> 01:19:41,359
He could bring all that to a
role in a more conventional vein.

1404
01:19:41,360 --> 01:19:43,039
But you see...

1405
01:19:43,040 --> 01:19:45,319
because he'd done
so many short parts,

1406
01:19:45,320 --> 01:19:48,759
I don't think casting directors,
very often, saw him that way.

1407
01:19:48,760 --> 01:19:51,119
'The film was a smash hit
with the critics

1408
01:19:51,120 --> 01:19:53,879
'but barely saw
the inside of a cinema.

1409
01:19:53,880 --> 01:19:57,239
'It seems many could not accept
the notion of a white Englishman

1410
01:19:57,240 --> 01:19:59,839
'playing such an important
Indian icon.

1411
01:19:59,840 --> 01:20:02,480
'It passed largely unseen.'

1412
01:20:03,400 --> 01:20:06,039
Had this been the coda
to my career in film,

1413
01:20:06,040 --> 01:20:08,720
well, it would have been
a most satisfactory one.

1414
01:20:09,560 --> 01:20:11,559
But Jinnah was not the end.

1415
01:20:11,560 --> 01:20:13,559
It was the beginning of the end.

1416
01:20:13,560 --> 01:20:15,600
And what an end it was to be.

1417
01:20:16,640 --> 01:20:21,559
Almost a decade earlier, Vincent had
enjoyed a magical last act revival.

1418
01:20:21,560 --> 01:20:24,799
After a decade of films which
were often beneath him,

1419
01:20:24,800 --> 01:20:27,559
his final film, his final role,

1420
01:20:27,560 --> 01:20:30,279
his final moment on the silver screen

1421
01:20:30,280 --> 01:20:33,119
was a work of great beauty.

1422
01:20:33,120 --> 01:20:35,759
'Edward Scissorhands was
an early picture

1423
01:20:35,760 --> 01:20:37,879
'from two of cinemas great artists.

1424
01:20:37,880 --> 01:20:40,519
'Tim Burton and Johnny Depp.

1425
01:20:40,520 --> 01:20:43,439
'It would be my good fortune
to not only work with them

1426
01:20:43,440 --> 01:20:45,959
'but to call them friends.

1427
01:20:45,960 --> 01:20:48,999
'Our first picture together was,
Sleepy Hollow.

1428
01:20:49,000 --> 01:20:51,799
'Washington Irving's tale
of Ichabod Crane

1429
01:20:51,800 --> 01:20:53,879
'and the headless horseman.

1430
01:20:53,880 --> 01:20:57,239
'Their creepy but tongue-in-cheek
Gothic style was, of course,

1431
01:20:57,240 --> 01:21:00,839
'familiar and pleasing to me but,
unlike the Hammer films,

1432
01:21:00,840 --> 01:21:03,960
'there were no corners cut
and quality was paramount.

1433
01:21:05,520 --> 01:21:09,639
'I would go on to appear in four
more Depp-Burton collaborations

1434
01:21:09,640 --> 01:21:12,439
'and very fine they were too.'

1435
01:21:12,440 --> 01:21:15,319
I also found myself cast in
what would go on to be

1436
01:21:15,320 --> 01:21:18,839
the two biggest cinematic franchises
in the entire world

1437
01:21:18,840 --> 01:21:21,199
for the first decade
of the new millennium.

1438
01:21:21,200 --> 01:21:25,039
One of these was already the biggest
franchise in film history.

1439
01:21:25,040 --> 01:21:27,599
I would be following
my friend Peter,

1440
01:21:27,600 --> 01:21:31,079
to become a villainous antagonist
in a new Star Wars film

1441
01:21:31,080 --> 01:21:35,039
under the creator himself,
George Lucas.

1442
01:21:35,040 --> 01:21:37,839
'In the original Star Wars films
in the 1970's,

1443
01:21:37,840 --> 01:21:41,319
'Lucas had redefined what could be
achieved with special effects.

1444
01:21:41,320 --> 01:21:43,879
'But here, at the dawn
of a new century,

1445
01:21:43,880 --> 01:21:46,359
'he was pioneering
what could be achieved

1446
01:21:46,360 --> 01:21:48,720
'through digital manipulation
of the image.

1447
01:21:49,920 --> 01:21:52,959
'To be working on the cutting
edge of technology was a thrill

1448
01:21:52,960 --> 01:21:55,640
'but it was also unfamiliar
and disorienting.

1449
01:21:57,640 --> 01:22:00,319
'Forget the absence of other actors,

1450
01:22:00,320 --> 01:22:03,039
'oftentimes there weren't even sets.

1451
01:22:03,040 --> 01:22:05,759
'When one acts in nothing,
to nothing,

1452
01:22:05,760 --> 01:22:07,720
'well, it was a challenge.

1453
01:22:08,520 --> 01:22:10,720
'But to be challenged
is no bad thing.

1454
01:22:11,560 --> 01:22:15,360
'My high-point in this trilogy
was my duel with the iconic Yoda.

1455
01:22:16,360 --> 01:22:18,599
'A fight that didn't take place

1456
01:22:18,600 --> 01:22:20,480
'with a creature that didn't exist.

1457
01:22:42,240 --> 01:22:44,199
Fought well you have,

1458
01:22:44,200 --> 01:22:46,199
my old Padawan.

1459
01:22:46,200 --> 01:22:48,240
This is just the beginning.

1460
01:22:49,240 --> 01:22:51,759
The critics weren't always
kind to these films,

1461
01:22:51,760 --> 01:22:55,640
but George Lucas gave me a gift for
which I remain eternally grateful.

1462
01:22:56,440 --> 01:22:59,239
The generation of children who
grew up on these movies

1463
01:22:59,240 --> 01:23:01,559
have never even heard
of Hammer films.

1464
01:23:01,560 --> 01:23:04,039
He unshackled me from my past

1465
01:23:04,040 --> 01:23:07,800
and allowed me to be something
completely new to a modern audience.

1466
01:23:08,800 --> 01:23:11,079
My resurrection was becoming
a regeneration,

1467
01:23:11,080 --> 01:23:13,079
and it was far from over.

1468
01:23:13,080 --> 01:23:14,999
Suddenly I was in demand.

1469
01:23:15,000 --> 01:23:18,799
'Stephen Polliakoff wanted me
for Glorious 39.

1470
01:23:18,800 --> 01:23:22,640
'Martin Scorsese hired me for his
love letter to early cinema, Hugo.'

1471
01:23:23,680 --> 01:23:27,839
But the greatest gift was one
which had come from New Zealand.

1472
01:23:27,840 --> 01:23:30,519
My whole career, I had dreamt

1473
01:23:30,520 --> 01:23:32,999
of appearing in just one film.

1474
01:23:33,000 --> 01:23:36,519
He knew that The Lord of the Rings
was being produced

1475
01:23:36,520 --> 01:23:38,799
and he always wanted
to play Gandalf.

1476
01:23:38,800 --> 01:23:42,479
He read the books every year.
He was very excited about that.

1477
01:23:42,480 --> 01:23:44,799
So he said, "Juan, look,

1478
01:23:44,800 --> 01:23:47,639
find out on the internet,
put the word out

1479
01:23:47,640 --> 01:23:49,719
that I would like to be
in that movie."

1480
01:23:49,720 --> 01:23:52,919
Gandalf, Saruman, whatever,
as long as he was in the movie.

1481
01:23:52,920 --> 01:23:55,959
Christopher was someone
that we had in mind for Saruman.

1482
01:23:55,960 --> 01:23:57,999
Not just because of his background,

1483
01:23:58,000 --> 01:24:00,799
and because I had grown up
loving Christopher Lee's movies.

1484
01:24:00,800 --> 01:24:02,679
You know, he was perfect
for that role.

1485
01:24:02,680 --> 01:24:05,839
There's no doubt about it. You'd be
hard-pressed to find another actor

1486
01:24:05,840 --> 01:24:08,159
that would be better at
bringing Saruman to life.

1487
01:24:08,160 --> 01:24:11,599
What surprised us is that it
wasn't just a conversation where

1488
01:24:11,600 --> 01:24:14,319
we are trying to persuade him to,
you know,

1489
01:24:14,320 --> 01:24:17,079
to do the role
that we wanted him for.

1490
01:24:17,080 --> 01:24:20,159
He was super enthusiastic
'cause he was a huge Tolkien fan.

1491
01:24:20,160 --> 01:24:23,599
And then he said, "Well, I'd be
very happy to do Saruman, of course.

1492
01:24:23,600 --> 01:24:25,799
This is great." But he says,

1493
01:24:25,800 --> 01:24:28,279
"But did you ever
consider me for Gandalf?"

1494
01:24:28,280 --> 01:24:30,399
Which we hadn't done,

1495
01:24:30,400 --> 01:24:33,039
and it put us on the spot a bit
'cause I said, "Oh, really?"

1496
01:24:33,040 --> 01:24:35,639
He said, "Yes. I would much
prefer to play Gandalf, you know?"

1497
01:24:35,640 --> 01:24:39,479
And I understand why 'cause Gandalf
was pushing him as an actor

1498
01:24:39,480 --> 01:24:41,919
whereas Saruman was something,
you know,

1499
01:24:41,920 --> 01:24:45,239
we- everyone knows he could do
Saruman. He's perfect for that.

1500
01:24:45,240 --> 01:24:48,199
So, he said, "I prepared a scene.
Can you film me?

1501
01:24:48,200 --> 01:24:50,359
I'd like to do Gandalf.
I'd like to show you."

1502
01:24:50,360 --> 01:24:52,759
He auditioned for us,
which is the last thing we wanted

1503
01:24:52,760 --> 01:24:55,039
Christopher to do,
audition for the role of Gandalf.

1504
01:24:55,040 --> 01:24:57,919
He was good as Gandalf, but...
better as Saruman.

1505
01:24:57,920 --> 01:25:01,359
And what we actually ended
up realising

1506
01:25:01,360 --> 01:25:03,919
is that we had other
possibilities for Gandalf.

1507
01:25:03,920 --> 01:25:06,439
You know, there were other actors
that in different ways

1508
01:25:06,440 --> 01:25:08,319
could do Gandalf
and we were talking to Ian

1509
01:25:08,320 --> 01:25:10,599
and he would be certainly
top of the list.

1510
01:25:10,600 --> 01:25:13,879
But there is no other actor
we thought of that could do Saruman.

1511
01:25:13,880 --> 01:25:15,759
I mean, Christopher
was our only choice.

1512
01:25:15,760 --> 01:25:19,519
When he found out that he was
gonna be in the movie,

1513
01:25:19,520 --> 01:25:22,199
it was like a dream come true
to him.

1514
01:25:22,200 --> 01:25:25,359
He was a geek.
He was a Lord of the Rings geek.

1515
01:25:25,360 --> 01:25:27,879
So that was a dream come true.

1516
01:25:27,880 --> 01:25:30,319
'It was an incredibly
demanding shoot,

1517
01:25:30,320 --> 01:25:33,159
'requiring four stints of shooting
in New Zealand,

1518
01:25:33,160 --> 01:25:35,759
'early starts and long days.

1519
01:25:35,760 --> 01:25:38,359
I do remember his very first day
of filming...

1520
01:25:38,360 --> 01:25:41,679
was interesting. It was a scene
from Fellowship of the Ring

1521
01:25:41,680 --> 01:25:44,999
where Saruman and Gandalf are
walking in the Isengard garden

1522
01:25:45,000 --> 01:25:47,679
just talking with each other.
There's just the two of them.

1523
01:25:47,680 --> 01:25:50,919
So we were in a local park

1524
01:25:50,920 --> 01:25:53,359
in Wellington shooting
that sequence.

1525
01:25:53,360 --> 01:25:55,799
I remember part way through that
first day,

1526
01:25:55,800 --> 01:25:58,439
um, Ian came up to me

1527
01:25:58,440 --> 01:26:01,559
just in between setups and he said,

1528
01:26:01,560 --> 01:26:04,159
"Oh... you might-

1529
01:26:04,160 --> 01:26:06,319
you might need to have
a word with Christopher."

1530
01:26:06,320 --> 01:26:09,759
And I said, "Really? What? Why?"
I said, "He's going great."

1531
01:26:09,760 --> 01:26:12,999
And Ian said, "Christopher's
convinced that he's gonna get fired

1532
01:26:13,000 --> 01:26:15,919
at the end of the day. He's
convinced he's doing a terrible job.

1533
01:26:15,920 --> 01:26:18,719
He's convinced himself
that you don't like it,

1534
01:26:18,720 --> 01:26:21,279
and he's absolutely sure
that he's gonna get fired

1535
01:26:21,280 --> 01:26:24,279
when the day's finished."
Which was a terrible thing to hear

1536
01:26:24,280 --> 01:26:26,559
when we're only halfway
through a day, so.

1537
01:26:26,560 --> 01:26:30,079
I just started to really reassure
Christopher he was doing great.

1538
01:26:30,080 --> 01:26:32,799
It was quite a surprising
insecurity about him.

1539
01:26:32,800 --> 01:26:35,879
For somebody who'd done
200, 250 films,

1540
01:26:35,880 --> 01:26:39,119
however many he'd done at that
point, over decades of work,

1541
01:26:39,120 --> 01:26:42,159
he was still a very nervous,
insecure actor.

1542
01:26:42,160 --> 01:26:44,559
It was almost like
it was his first day

1543
01:26:44,560 --> 01:26:46,679
on the set of any film ever.

1544
01:26:46,680 --> 01:26:49,160
That's the way that he sort of,
he came across.

1545
01:26:50,040 --> 01:26:52,719
The first two had come out and
Christopher was great as Saruman.

1546
01:26:52,720 --> 01:26:55,599
Everyone loved the character,
and everyone was looking forward

1547
01:26:55,600 --> 01:26:58,039
to that third Lord of the Rings
film. But we were struggling

1548
01:26:58,040 --> 01:27:00,839
with the edit of it to really make
the best film we possibly could.

1549
01:27:00,840 --> 01:27:03,279
And it was very, very long.
I mean...

1550
01:27:03,280 --> 01:27:06,439
our first cut of Return to the King
was over four hours long,

1551
01:27:06,440 --> 01:27:08,799
and it was just too long.
And so, something-

1552
01:27:08,800 --> 01:27:11,359
We had to sort of,
had to condense it.

1553
01:27:11,360 --> 01:27:14,319
We had the sequences of him
in The Return of the King,

1554
01:27:14,320 --> 01:27:17,239
and we had to take time out,
we looked at them and thought,

1555
01:27:17,240 --> 01:27:20,239
"Well, this is really not
advancing the storyline."

1556
01:27:20,240 --> 01:27:23,559
It's like clearing up a loose
end from The Two Towers

1557
01:27:23,560 --> 01:27:25,919
is how it felt a little bit,
looking at it brutally.

1558
01:27:25,920 --> 01:27:30,199
So, a really tough decision was made
that we could delete his appearance

1559
01:27:30,200 --> 01:27:33,919
in Return of the King, despite
the fact we'd already shot it.

1560
01:27:33,920 --> 01:27:36,199
Chris was terribly upset about it.

1561
01:27:36,200 --> 01:27:38,719
And I remember saying to him
at the time,

1562
01:27:38,720 --> 01:27:42,679
"Hello! You're essential role
in Lord of the Rings.

1563
01:27:42,680 --> 01:27:45,040
Now you're part of Star Wars!

1564
01:27:47,000 --> 01:27:49,519
Relax!" You know?

1565
01:27:49,520 --> 01:27:52,719
He was thrilled to be in all
of the new popular movies

1566
01:27:52,720 --> 01:27:54,999
that were popular with, you know?

1567
01:27:55,000 --> 01:27:57,599
I mean, the movies,
he was always in popular movies.

1568
01:27:57,600 --> 01:27:59,799
Even the Hammer films
were popular pictures,

1569
01:27:59,800 --> 01:28:02,999
but they weren't mainstream
popular, like blockbuster popular.

1570
01:28:03,000 --> 01:28:05,319
And when you get into
working with George Lucas

1571
01:28:05,320 --> 01:28:08,159
and working with Peter Jackson,
I mean, now you're talking about

1572
01:28:08,160 --> 01:28:11,359
these are huge budget movies
that are seen by millions of people

1573
01:28:11,360 --> 01:28:13,879
in the world over,
and it's the top of the heap.

1574
01:28:13,880 --> 01:28:16,119
You really can't get much
higher than that.

1575
01:28:16,120 --> 01:28:19,199
And I think he was really thrilled
at that point in his career

1576
01:28:19,200 --> 01:28:21,959
to say that, "OK, I did this.
I went from here,

1577
01:28:21,960 --> 01:28:26,159
I went from... tiny parts
in swashbuckler movies

1578
01:28:26,160 --> 01:28:28,999
in the early '50s to, you know,

1579
01:28:29,000 --> 01:28:32,759
the top of the heap in playing
with the most respected directors,

1580
01:28:32,760 --> 01:28:35,640
Scorsese included, in the world."

1581
01:28:36,880 --> 01:28:39,999
He was very aware that these
were big name directors,

1582
01:28:40,000 --> 01:28:43,159
but he seemed to forget that he was
a big name actor or at any rate,

1583
01:28:43,160 --> 01:28:46,679
he had a huge heritage
stretching back several decades,

1584
01:28:46,680 --> 01:28:49,079
which is why they wanted him.

1585
01:28:49,080 --> 01:28:51,840
But it did constitute
an Indian summer.

1586
01:28:57,840 --> 01:29:00,639
The Lord
of the Rings, quite rightly,

1587
01:29:00,640 --> 01:29:02,479
won many awards.

1588
01:29:02,480 --> 01:29:04,959
And then I started to as well.

1589
01:29:04,960 --> 01:29:08,239
'I realised that there comes a point
at which they give you awards

1590
01:29:08,240 --> 01:29:10,359
'merely for still being alive.

1591
01:29:10,360 --> 01:29:13,279
'I was very moved and grateful
for all of them.

1592
01:29:13,280 --> 01:29:16,159
'But there is a none-too-coded
message attached

1593
01:29:16,160 --> 01:29:18,239
'to every Lifetime Achievement Award,

1594
01:29:18,240 --> 01:29:21,519
'which suggests that one might
no longer be considered

1595
01:29:21,520 --> 01:29:25,720
'the promising newcomer, and that
one's potential might now be spent.

1596
01:29:26,800 --> 01:29:28,800
'The Old Pipe and Slippers Award.'

1597
01:29:30,680 --> 01:29:33,039
The knighthood meant a lot to him.

1598
01:29:33,040 --> 01:29:35,959
He was a little disappointed
that it wasn't the Queen.

1599
01:29:35,960 --> 01:29:38,199
I think Prince Charles knighted him,

1600
01:29:38,200 --> 01:29:40,679
but... still, it meant a lot.

1601
01:29:40,680 --> 01:29:43,039
It meant a lot.

1602
01:29:43,040 --> 01:29:45,679
To receive
the honour of knighthood,

1603
01:29:45,680 --> 01:29:50,520
Sir Christopher Lee for services
to drama and to charity.

1604
01:29:51,360 --> 01:29:54,359
So, what role would you
like to be most remembered for?

1605
01:29:54,360 --> 01:29:56,039
Probably Jinnah.

1606
01:29:56,040 --> 01:29:58,479
I think that's the most challenging

1607
01:29:58,480 --> 01:30:01,199
and important part I've ever had.

1608
01:30:01,200 --> 01:30:03,999
There have been others, of course.
The Man with the Golden Gun,

1609
01:30:04,000 --> 01:30:07,279
and of course in
The Lord of the Rings, Saruman,

1610
01:30:07,280 --> 01:30:09,279
and Count Dooku.

1611
01:30:09,280 --> 01:30:12,759
What's important to me is that...

1612
01:30:12,760 --> 01:30:15,359
it seems that now I'm known

1613
01:30:15,360 --> 01:30:18,319
to every generation, and after all,

1614
01:30:18,320 --> 01:30:20,199
that's what it's all about.

1615
01:30:20,200 --> 01:30:21,799
Survival.

1616
01:30:21,800 --> 01:30:24,119
Thank you very much
for speaking to us.

1617
01:30:24,120 --> 01:30:26,039
So there you have it.
A knight of the realm

1618
01:30:26,040 --> 01:30:28,119
but still the King of Horror.

1619
01:30:28,120 --> 01:30:30,239
The King of what?

1620
01:30:30,240 --> 01:30:32,840
Horror!
Don't say that, dear. I'm not.

1621
01:30:34,160 --> 01:30:37,239
But we remember you for-
But I'm not the King of Horror.

1622
01:30:37,240 --> 01:30:41,119
I haven't done a horror
film for 34 years.

1623
01:30:41,120 --> 01:30:43,119
Can I get you to say
- this on camera for me?
- Yes!

1624
01:30:43,120 --> 01:30:44,999
And then we can put it straight.

1625
01:30:45,000 --> 01:30:47,560
Please don't refer to me
as the King of Horror.

1626
01:31:12,760 --> 01:31:16,159
The day before he passed away,
we thought he was coming home.

1627
01:31:16,160 --> 01:31:19,479
He was being himself.
I thought he looked good, right?

1628
01:31:19,480 --> 01:31:22,679
I thought he was going home.
The doctor said, "He's fine.

1629
01:31:22,680 --> 01:31:25,639
He looks good. He looks well."
And that night he said, "Oh!

1630
01:31:25,640 --> 01:31:27,799
The Lord of the Rings
is on TV, right?

1631
01:31:27,800 --> 01:31:30,759
So, we'll watch The Lord of the
Rings with the nurses, right?

1632
01:31:30,760 --> 01:31:34,279
I'll explain to you how the movie
is." Because he loved the movie.

1633
01:31:34,280 --> 01:31:38,079
So, he watched that night The Lord
of the Rings with the nurses,

1634
01:31:38,080 --> 01:31:41,119
and we went home
and we were already thinking,

1635
01:31:41,120 --> 01:31:43,239
"OK, he's coming back."

1636
01:31:43,240 --> 01:31:45,039
Then that night,

1637
01:31:45,040 --> 01:31:47,359
all of a sudden, I was asleep

1638
01:31:47,360 --> 01:31:50,399
and I saw Christina stressed

1639
01:31:50,400 --> 01:31:53,159
and saying, "Daddy is gone."

1640
01:31:53,160 --> 01:31:55,599
And it was a very-

1641
01:31:55,600 --> 01:31:58,479
It actually, it hit us really hard

1642
01:31:58,480 --> 01:32:01,079
because we thought that he-

1643
01:32:01,080 --> 01:32:03,639
I actually thought
that he was eternal.

1644
01:32:03,640 --> 01:32:06,599
I thought that he would...

1645
01:32:06,600 --> 01:32:09,639
he would go past 100.
I really did think so.

1646
01:32:09,640 --> 01:32:12,319
So, it was a shock. It was more,

1647
01:32:12,320 --> 01:32:14,519
I thought, "Well, he's in hospital.

1648
01:32:14,520 --> 01:32:17,639
He's got some respiratory problems."
But he's always had problems.

1649
01:32:17,640 --> 01:32:19,680
He always had things.

1650
01:32:20,520 --> 01:32:23,599
But he just passed away.
That was it.

1651
01:32:23,600 --> 01:32:25,559
It was peaceful.

1652
01:32:25,560 --> 01:32:28,080
He didn't suffer.
He just went to sleep.

1653
01:32:31,200 --> 01:32:33,239
I was coming off stage,

1654
01:32:33,240 --> 01:32:35,879
got a message from Gitte
on my answering machine.

1655
01:32:35,880 --> 01:32:38,959
I had friends in my dressing room
who'd come to have a drink,

1656
01:32:38,960 --> 01:32:43,040
and I suddenly burst into tears
and told everyone to leave the room.

1657
01:32:44,720 --> 01:32:46,439
I go to London.

1658
01:32:46,440 --> 01:32:48,519
Now part of me always has
in the back of my mind,

1659
01:32:48,520 --> 01:32:51,399
"I must give Christopher a call."
You know? I'm still not quite-

1660
01:32:51,400 --> 01:32:54,559
'Cause London just, somehow when I'm
in London, I get that thing,

1661
01:32:54,560 --> 01:32:56,639
"Give Christopher a call"
gets triggered in me.

1662
01:32:56,640 --> 01:32:58,719
And so I still haven't got quite
used to the idea

1663
01:32:58,720 --> 01:33:00,760
that he's not there anymore.

1664
01:33:03,720 --> 01:33:05,719
Knowing him was a...

1665
01:33:05,720 --> 01:33:09,479
one of the perks of being
in the movie business.

1666
01:33:09,480 --> 01:33:11,520
I miss him greatly.

1667
01:33:12,600 --> 01:33:16,079
Christopher was certainly,
certainly one of those people

1668
01:33:16,080 --> 01:33:18,200
that was very much a part of me.

1669
01:33:19,440 --> 01:33:22,119
Very deeply much a part of me.

1670
01:33:22,120 --> 01:33:23,999
I feel...

1671
01:33:24,000 --> 01:33:27,640
just gratified that he was
so much part of my life.

1672
01:33:28,640 --> 01:33:30,360
And, uh...

1673
01:33:31,520 --> 01:33:34,080
...he made my life that much better.

1674
01:33:35,720 --> 01:33:37,720
Last time I saw Christopher?

1675
01:33:38,640 --> 01:33:41,759
It was about
four months before he died.

1676
01:33:41,760 --> 01:33:44,519
I went to visit him
in his flat in Cadogan Square.

1677
01:33:44,520 --> 01:33:47,319
I just felt, I don't know,
I got emotional

1678
01:33:47,320 --> 01:33:49,639
because he was talking about dying
and I was saying,

1679
01:33:49,640 --> 01:33:51,759
"Will you stop it?" You know?

1680
01:33:51,760 --> 01:33:53,359
"Jesus, Chris!

1681
01:33:53,360 --> 01:33:56,199
I didn't come to see you
to get depressed." You know?

1682
01:33:56,200 --> 01:33:59,239
Actually, he became
pretty funny after that.

1683
01:33:59,240 --> 01:34:01,279
And that's the last time I saw him.

1684
01:34:01,280 --> 01:34:04,679
I really, I really loved him.

1685
01:34:04,680 --> 01:34:07,439
I was delighted
and honoured to know him,

1686
01:34:07,440 --> 01:34:09,480
and I miss him terribly.

1687
01:34:12,640 --> 01:34:15,399
What really choked me up was
the next day

1688
01:34:15,400 --> 01:34:17,999
I looked up something about him

1689
01:34:18,000 --> 01:34:21,359
and it said, "Christopher Lee
WAS an actor..."

1690
01:34:21,360 --> 01:34:23,999
They changed the 'is' to 'was'
in 24 hours

1691
01:34:24,000 --> 01:34:26,280
and that really broke my heart.

1692
01:34:32,640 --> 01:34:34,680
Well, there we go.

1693
01:34:35,600 --> 01:34:37,799
Our time draws to a close

1694
01:34:37,800 --> 01:34:40,599
and the grave beckons me once more.

1695
01:34:40,600 --> 01:34:43,959
I do hope you have enjoyed
this exhumation

1696
01:34:43,960 --> 01:34:45,959
as much as I have.

1697
01:34:45,960 --> 01:34:48,000
Good evening.

1698
01:34:57,320 --> 01:35:03,160
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