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Ewan News
All the Latest. 24/7
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News Archive
July - December 2002
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Ewan's new Roots Coffee commercial online!
Japander.com has made available a
second Roots Coffee commercial that stars Ewan.
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Friday, December
27, 2002 // 10:28 p.m.
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RENÉE: I'M SO TUNED IN TO EWAN
22 December 2002
EWAN McGREGOR is teaming up with Renée Zellweger in a movie musical tribute to Rock Hudson and
Doris Day.
The Scots star is making a habit of hitting the high notes with Hollywood's sexiest stars after
starring with Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge.
Renée is no stranger to song-and-dance routines either. She's starring in the film version of the hit stage
musical Chicago.
Their pairing in 1960s-style romantic comedy Down With Love sounds like a match made in heaven - and there's
even talk of Ewan and Renée releasing a single.
In New York yesterday for the launch of Chicago, which opens at Scottish cinemas on January 17, Renée admitted
she's a big fan of Ewan's musical talents.
She said: "It was natural that Ewan McGregor should go and do a movie musical because he has it in him.
"When we were making Down With Love, Ewan was on his guitar the whole time.
"You could hear him playing and singing down the hall every day.
"Everything he does has rhythm to it. He's also very suave but he is not conscious of it. Even when he is joking around,
he has this tremendous presence."
Renée - who flew to New York from Transylvania where she is filming the American Civil War drama Cold Mountain with
Nicole Kidman and Jude Law - also revealed that Ewan is pretty nimble on the dance floor. She said: "He dances far better
than I do. He is such a dancer you can't believe it.
"We have dance numbers in this movie and we sing a little bit.
"We are talking about a duet right now - that'll be as soon as my voice heals from screaming on Cold Mountain.
I don't know if there will be a single, they are talking about it. We'll see what happens."
Chicago and now Down With Love have shown an unexpected side to Renée.
The star, who got her big break starring opposite Tom Cruise in Jerry Maguire, never imagined she could sing and dance
in public.
She said: "I was not going to open my mouth to sing for anybody besides my dogs outside the shower. That was it."
But Chicago director Rob Marshall gave her the confidence to sing and dance alongside Catherine Zeta Jones.
Now her performance is being tipped to earn her another Oscar nomination to match the one she got for Bridget Jones's
Diary.
Source: Sunday
Mail
Thank you xcbug for the heads up!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Saturday, December
21, 2002 // 06:56 p.m.
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 TATTROO LOVE
Dec 17 2002
Kevin Turner
FAMILY man Ewan McGregor showed he doesn't wear his heart on his sleeve yesterday - he wears it on
his skin.
The devoted father displayed a stunning heart and dagger tattoo featuring the names of daughters Clara
and Esther and wife Ève.
McGregor looked far from the movie superstar he is as he took a well- earned break from the pressures of filming on holiday
on Mauritius.
The Star Wars hero looked delighted to be spending some quality time with his family as the trio relaxed by the sea.
One onlooker said: "It's no surprise that Ewan has a tattoo featuring his wife and kids' names because he obviously
dotes on his family.
"They all seem incredibly close and appeared to be enjoying the sunshine."
McGregor's tattoo was unveiled just days after David Beckham revealed he's had baby Romeo's name inked on
his back.
The footballer already had his eldest son Brooklyn's moniker tattooed across his spine.
He went under the needle shortly after Brooklyn was born three years ago.
But the Manchester United star has not revealed exactly where on his back the name Romeo is tattooed.
And Beckham dropped a broad hint he and Posh planned more kids by revealing there was room for more names.
Source: Daily
Record
Thank you xcbug for the heads up. |
Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Monday, December
16, 2002 // 07:57 p.m.
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Go-ahead for children's hospice
Tuesday, 10 December, 2002, 17:58 GMT
Campaigners for a new children's hospice near Loch Lomond say they are "overjoyed" that planners have given the project
the green light.
The hospice will be built at Balloch within the boundaries of the new Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park.
Members of the new National Park Authority had been considering a recommendation to refuse the proposal.
However, after a concerted campaign by the Children's Hospice Association Scotland (Chas), which received huge public
support, the authority's planning committee backed the development.
Up to 300 supporters cheered as the committee made its decision by seven votes to three.
Chas chief executive Agnes Malone said everyone involved in the campaign was thrilled.
She said: "We spent more than a year looking for a suitable place to build the new hospice, during which time we scoured
Scotland inspecting nearly 50 different locations.
"Of all the prospective sites we saw, Ledrishbeg Farm was by far the most appropriate when judged against our wish list."
Ms Malone added: "It's great news that we are now a step closer to gaining planning consent for this site."
Planning permission
The campaigners won the support of leading public figures, including film star Ewan McGregor.
He said: "I am absolutely delighted that the planning permission has gone through.
"It is the most fantastic news for all the families and children who need this essential care.
"Scotland will now be able to boast two wonderful centres for the care of its children and I look forward to my first visit
to the new hospice at Balloch."
The decision was also welcomed by Gilbert and Sylvia Watterson, from Knightswood, Glasgow, whose six-year-old daughter
Robyn suffers from a degenerative disease called Hurler Syndrome.
She has received care from Rachel House in Kinross, Scotland's first hospice, for more than four years.
Mr Watterson, 35, said: "I feel very patriotic and emotional today. Thank you Scotland."
The committee heard acting planning director Richard Hickman argue that the hospice did not meet the key criteria of "specific
locational need".
He said there were better sites on which to build the hospice which would not mean an infringement of planning policies.
But Alan Farningham, a planning consultant for Chas, said: "Although it represents a departure from the development plan,
the site unashamedly ranked best, in Chas's opinion.
"Rejection would set realisation of the children's hospice back by at least two years."
Committee chairman Ronnie McColl was one of a number of park officials who visited Rachel House at the weekend as part
of their deliberations.
He moved approval for the new hospice on Tuesday, describing it as a "vote for Scotland's children".
Difficult decisions
"I would say to any member, to vote against application would make our national park a national disgrace."
In supporting the motion, the committee indicated that they felt an exceptional case could be made.
However, members were cautioned that it may lead to difficult decisions in the future because of the precedent that has
been set.
On Tuesday morning, committee members visited the proposed site in Balloch.
Construction of the new facility should start in the new year.
The charity said the hospice would cost £10m to establish and maintain, for which a fundraising appeal had been launched.
Source: BBC News
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Tuesday, December
10, 2002 // 03:57 p.m.
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First Photos from Down With Love
By Edward Havens
Date: December 5, 2002
When a rookie director scores an expected hit, as Peyton Reed did with "Bring It On," studios will fall over each other trying
to get them to come to their lot and make a film for them. Even if the main reason "Bring It On" was a hit was due to the
dozen or so hot young chicks in cheerleader outfits or washing cars in their bikinis. For his second film, Reed is shooting
craps with forty plus million of Fox's dollars, hoping the dice don't come up snake eyes on his revisionist romcom "Down
With Love." Awash with psuedo-Technicolor colors, process shots and split screens, Reed wants to have fun in the final part
of that age of innocence that would end with the assassination of President Kennedy, mimicing the halcyon days of Rock Hudson
and Doris Day. Ewan McGregor and Renée Zellweger star as two jaded writers (he a womanizing sportswriter, she a feminist
author) who try their best not to fall in love with each other.
 
The film, produced by the team behind "American Beauty," lands on American shores this April before opening worldwide during
the summer months.
Source: FilmJerk.com
Thank you Mary for the heads up! |
Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Thursday, December
5, 2002 // 08:59 p.m.
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GIVE KIDS A CHANCE
Dec 5 2002
Keith Mcleod
Readers back our hospice campaign
THE plans for Scotland's second children's hospice have received a massive vote of approval
from the public.
The hospice, planned for Loch Lomondside, would provide much-needed respite care for terminally ill youngsters and their
families in the West of Scotland.
It would relieve some of the pressure on Scotland's existing children's hospice, Rachel House, in Kinross, which
was set up with the help of money raised by Record readers.
However, as we revealed yesterday, pen-pusher Richard Hickman has recommended the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park
planning committee refuse permission to build the hospice in Balloch.
The committee is due to vote on Tuesday and the result is balanced on a knife edge.
The Record can reveal that the 10-strong committee is split down the middle - five for, five against. That would leave the
nightmare scenario of chairman Ronnie McColl deciding the fate of the hospice with a casting vote.
The committee was only set up in July but soon split into two factions - McColl has already had to use his casting vote twice.
Like Hickman, the national park's acting planning director, conservationists on the committee are worried the hospice
will spoil the area's natural beauty.
The other members put dying children ahead of a nice view.
Some committee members were elected by local residents, some nominated by local authorities and some appointed by the Scottish
Executive.
Stand-off
One source close to the 25-member National Park Board said: "It looks like another stand-off in the planning committee.
"The chairman has already had to use his casting vote twice on much less important issues. There is no sign of the split
being healed."
Last night, support from the public flooded in to the Record.
Scots actor Ewan McGregor, a long-time supporter of the Children's Hospice Association Scotland, which runs Rachel
House and is behind the new hospice plan, also added his backing.
He fears the project could now be delayed by two years.
The Star Wars actor said: "The children and families I know from Rachel House desperately need this new hospice.
"I'd be extremely upset for them if anything stood in the way of the plans going ahead. I can see no reasons for any
objections."
Local Labour MSP Jackie Baillie said: "We have to use the time between now and the vote to convince committee members to
do what is right.
"If this application is rejected some of the children in need will never see
a hospice because time is not on their side."
Former Health Minister Susan Deacon also backed the hospice.
She said: "I am angry and outraged. Quite simply, it would be a disgrace if, at this stage, this project could not go ahead."
McColl, who is also an SNP councillor on West Dunbartonshire Council, declined to comment as rules prevent committee members
expressing a view ahead of the vote.
The hospice has the backing of West Dunbartonshire Council and most local people, many of whom have helped raised cash for
CHAS.
The Rev Robert Watt, of Riverside Parish Church in Dumbarton, said: "People here are astounded by the recommendation to
refuse permission.
"It seems like legalistic beaurocracy being put in the way of compassion and
care."
Only a few have opposed the hospice plan, such as pensioner Robert Findlay.
He lives half a mile from the site and was exposed by the Record in February for his NIMBY attitude.
HEARTFELT PLEA
THE parents of a terminally ill six-year-old said the loss of the Balloch hospice would be "devastating". Gilbert and Sylvia
Watterson's only child Robyn has rare metabolic illness, Hurler Disease. Gilbert, 35, of Knightswood, Glasgow, said: "For
the sake of one field, to help so many dying children, what does it take to bend a few rules?"
KIDS' FATE IN THEIR HANDS
THESE 10 people will decide on the site of the new children's hospice but the National Park Authority would not
supply pictures of two of them
Ronald McColl
LOCAL authority nominee and an SNP councillor on West Dunbartonshire Council. His term is for two years.
Mike Luti
DIRECTLY elected by local people and a partner in his family's catering business. His term is for four years.
Alistair McKenzie
DIRECTLY elected. Resident of Balloch for 30 years and served 26 years as a retained firefighter. Four-year term.
Catherine Organ
LOCAL authority nominee. Former chair of Stirling Council's Industry Committee. Her term is for two years.
William Petrie
LOCAL authority nominee is Convener of Argyll and Bute Council. Rhu postmaster is serving two-year term.
Kate Sankey
EXECUTIVE nominee. Wildlife expert at Stirling University and runs a conservation farm. Her term is for four years.
Colin Crabbe
LOCAL authority nominee. A farmer who is also on Perth and Kinross Council. His term runs for two years.
Owen McKee
DIRECTLY elected. Specialist in finance and former member of Forth Valley Health Council. Four-year term.
Lady Glasgow
APPOINTED by the Executive. Chair of the Scottish Council for National Parks. Her term runs for four years.
Terry Levinthal
EXECUTIVE nominee. Technical Director of Scottish Civic Trust and National Transport Forum member. Four-year term.
Source: Daily
Record
Thank you xcbug for the heads up!
Ewan McGregor steps into row over new children's hospice.
Thursday December 5th 2002, 21:05
 The
film star Ewan McGregor has stepped into a growing row over plans to build a children's hospice on Loch Lomondside.
Planning officials of the new National Park authority are recommending that the proposal, from the Children's Hospice
Association, should be rejected.
The news comes as a devastating blow to the campaigners who have been fund-raising for years for the project, with the support
of the Hollywood actor.
Ewan McGregor said: "It's devastating news. People are on the whole optimistic about it and I cannot accept that it
will not go ahead. It is desperately needed this second hospice."
Workmen have today been marking out the outline for the new hospice in Balloch, but there is now a real chance it could be
a wasted effort.
Hollywood star Ewan McGregor is a long-time supporter of the Children's Hospice Association, raising funds for Scotland's
first - Rachel House in Kinross. Parents from across the country use it but there is a desperate need for another.
Ewan McGregor added: "I think it is essential that we have these places. I think it is some of the most important work that's
done in the world, looking after sick children. The idea of trying to stop that is beyond me. I don't understand it."
"I would say to the people who are objecting to come up here and spend the day, meet someof the families and some of the
children. I'm sure their minds would be changed. It is not a threat to the countryside. It is a lovely thing to have
in a national pary, a hospice."
The decision now rests with the National Park Authority. It took over responsibility in July from West Dunbartonshire Council
who had already approved the plans
Ronnie McColl from the National Park's Planning Committee said: "Planning law is difficult, but the overall consideration
has to be the national importance of this development."
The National Park Authority's Planning Committee will visit the site next Tuesday before making their final decision
at a public meeting later that day. But the recommendation to reject the aplication has cast a dark shadow over the hopes
of the charity and the families of terminally ill children.
Source: Scotland Today
There is a video of Ewan being interviewed on Scotland Today's site.
Thank you MarGwan for the heads up!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Wednesday, December
4, 2002 // 11:32 p.m.
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RACHEL HOUSE UPDATE
For those of you concerned about Rachel House, there is a new article at the Daily
Record that states that the planning committee will be visiting Rachel House on Sunday. The article was not reproduced
here as it does not contain news about Ewan.
Thank you xcbug for the heads up! |
Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Friday, December
6, 2002 // 09:50 p.m.
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Actor's fears for hospice plan
Wednesday, 4 December, 2002, 12:19 GMT
 Film
star Ewan McGregor has described as "very damaging" the prospect of planning permission being refused for
Scotland's second children's hospice.
McGregor, who has been involved with the hospice charity Children's Hospice Association Scotland (Chas)
for more than six years, said the move could delay the whole project by two years.
Planning permission for the hospice at Balloch is set to be rejected because the site falls within the newly-created Loch
Lomond and Trossachs National Park.
The Star Wars actor said a visit to Scotland's first hospice, Rachel House in Perthshire, would convince planners
that the project had to go ahead.
"There is nothing I can see that should stop it being built anywhere, national park or not," he
told BBC Scotland.
The hospice was backed by West Dunbartonshire Council prior to the responsibility for planning being taken over by the new
park authority, which says it does not comply with new rules on land use.
The park's acting planning director, Richard Hickman, said the proposal would be a "significant departure from the development
plan".
 'Best
in world'
He has recommended that the application is refused at next Tuesday's meeting of the authority's planning committee.
Perthshire-born actor McGregor has campaigned for the charity since the mid-nineties.
He said the effort of staff at Rachel House in Kinross, near Perth was the "best work done in the world".
 "It
is just very damaging for us. If we were to lose the planning permission at this stage, the whole project would possibly
be knocked back for two years," he said.
"The children that are going to be using the hospice do not have that time."
McGregor, whose mother was a deputy headmistress at a special needs school, said the present hospice only had eight beds.
'Come and see'
In the whole of Scotland, 600 families could use terminal care if it was on offer, he said.
"There is a demand for another hospice. Eight beds in the whole of Scotland is not enough for children who have a life-shortening
disease," McGregor
said.
"It just strikes me as one of the very important things in life.
"If the people who are objecting were to come up and spend the day at Rachel House I'm sure they would change their
minds."
Source: BBC News
Thank you Gail and Mary for the heads up!
Angry reaction to hospice move
Wednesday, 4 December, 2002, 13:51 GMT
 A
decision to recommend the refusal of a planning application for Scotland's second children's hospice has been
condemned by campaigners and local councillors.
Plans for the hospice at Balloch, near Loch Lomond, look set to be rejected because the site falls within the new national
park.
West Dunbartonshire Council, whose area includes Balloch, had recommended the plans for approval.
Cllr Iain Robertson, convener of the council's planning committee, said he was "extremely disappointed" to hear of
the report from the national park authority acting planning director Richard Hickman.
Mr Robertson said the hospice was "a development of major local and national importance".
"The people of West Dunbartonshire have been actively involved in fundraising for Chas (Children's Hospice Association
Scotland) and will be greatly concerned if the committee
approves this report."
The chief executive of Chas, Agnes Malone, said she was "devastated" by the recommendation.
She said the search for the Balloch site had taken 18 months and planning the development a similar length of time.
Natural beauty
"I will fight to the end to get this. I hope we will be able to convince the committee next week that this is a good and
proper thing to do for the people
of Scotland."
One fundraiser, who is currently organising a world record charity golf event specifically to raise money for the new hospice,
contacted BBC News Online to voice his disbelief at the move.
 Paul
Coffey said: "It's bad enough that families have to put up with the trauma of losing a child but now being told by a
penpusher that a facility which helps to care for both the child and their family shouldn't be in an area of natural
beauty because it doesn't quite fit with their idea of what the park is all about is outrageous.
"Doesn't this guy understand that all right thinking people would prefer that one of Scotland's natural treasures
(Loch Lomond) should be shared by another of Scotland's
treasures, its children.
"If it's the case that this decision is based on what the land is for, I wonder if he could tell us where he would rather
these children and their families
were cared for.
"After all, his own guidelines state specifically 'to promote understanding and enjoyment (including enjoyment in the
form of recreation) of the special qualities of the area by the public' - not if you're a child that's dying,
apparently."
Source: BBC News
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Wednesday, December
4, 2002 // 12:36 p.m.
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Clock painted by Ewan on eBay
Ewan designed and hand painted a Royal Daulton plate which was made into a clock by Rotary Watches and
is being auctioned off to raise funds for the Princes Trust.
You can follow the auction here (bid
currently at £500).
Thank you Jane for the heads up! |
Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Tuesday, December
3, 2002 // 03:07 p.m.
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EWAN'S REAR PASSENGER
Nov 30 2002
ACTOR Ewan McGregor revealed his secret passion at a roadside rendezvous yesterday.
But despite the Scottish star of Star Wars and Trainspotting cuddling up to TV presenter Suzi Perry, his real
love is far more high-powered.
Ewan and Suzi, who presents the Superbikes championships for Grandstand and is soon to star in a revival of the series Treasure
Hunt, were bonding over their shared love for high-powered motorbikes.
The leather-clad duo met at London's Ace Biker cafe to eye up the machines and film an interview for the BBC's
Sports Personality of the Year awards.
Source: Daily
Record
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Friday, November
29, 2002 // 10:29 p.m.
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EWAN AND A FAST LADY
Nov 30 2002
Donna Watson
WHAT was fast lady Suzi Perry doing at a country rendezvous with Scots movie heart- throb Ewan McGregor?
The Beeb's motorbike expert, who will soon appear in a new series of the vintage TV show Treasure Hunt, looked
very cosy with the Star Wars and Trainspotting star when they met.
The pair were both clad in leathers and seen deep in intense conversation.
So just what is the secret passion that they share? Find out inside the Daily Record.
Source: Daily
Record
The BBC's Sports Personality of the Year Awards is scheduled to be shown on BBC1 on Sunday 8 December 2002.
Thank you Jane for this information!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Friday, November
29, 2002 // 10:28 p.m.
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Ewan's Japanese Roots Coffee commercial available online
Japander.com has six commercials
that Ewan made for Japanese companies. The first five are for Aeon,
a Japanese English-language school and the sixth is for Roots
Coffee. Head on over to Japander.com to
see the commercials! |
Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Friday, November
29, 2002 // 07:23 a.m.
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I'll Be Your Actor Tonight
Dec. 02, 2002/Vol. 160 No. 23
BY JAMES INVERNE/LONDON
 For
a pair of London plays, surprise pays: mystery guest stars keep audiences coming back for more
When Kylie Minogue took the stage last week in The Play Wot I Wrote at Wyndham's Theatre in London, the crowd went crazy,
with cheers and whoops of "We love you!" The audience didn't know the Australian songbird would appear until she danced
out from the wings. Playing herself in the hit comedy — a homage to the legendary British funnymen Eric Morecambe and Ernie
Wise — Minogue was a typically good sport, letting the regular cast members make fun of her name (they kept calling her Kevin)
and her career (they played off her Aussie TV past by introducing her as the star of Skippy the Bush Kangaroo). At one point,
she even dressed up as a fat, balding French friar. Truth be told, she's not much of an actress. But the audience had
paid to be surprised by a mystery guest star, and it got its money's worth.
The secret ingredient in the success of The Play Wot I Wrote is, well, secrecy. Audiences have been entertained by
a succession of surprise guests — from Ralph Fiennes on the opening night a year ago, to Jude Law, Minnie Driver, Roger Moore and Ewan
McGregor. Even Kenneth Branagh, who directs the play, has taken a turn. The role is simple: a celebrity auditioning for a
part in a play-within-the play goes unrecognized by the lead actors, who proceed to tease and taunt him (or her) mercilessly.
In Kylie's big prison scene, her speech was interrupted by a fellow inmate asking, "What are you in for, bad acting?"
The conceit works precisely because the role has no fixed actor: the revolving-door casting constantly refreshes
the part, and by extension the play. The element of surprise also helps keep the play in the news. Says producer
David Pugh, "It's
the show's greatest marketing tool. The chance to see a celebrity brings in new audiences."
Pugh's guest-star innovation has launched a wave of London theater hits. He first employed the trick six years
ago for Art, the Yasmina Reza play now on its final run in London. After opening with Albert Finney and Tom Courtenay
in the main
roles, Pugh rang the changes every 12 weeks, bringing in British stars including TV comedians Frank Skinner and Jack Dee
and actor Nigel Havers. (In New York, he opened Art with Alan Alda, Victor Garber and Alfred Molina, and later brought
in George Wendt and Stacey Keach.) The technique helped make Art a worldwide hit: it has played in over 50 cities
and grossed
$125 million.
Director Laurence Boswell borrowed the idea for This Is Our Youth, now playing at London's Garrick Theatre. "Pugh",
he says, "smashed open that snobby system where the first cast of a play would be great, and then each new cast would go
down a notch." Last week, Boswell blooded his third cast in Kenneth Lonergan's sharp and funny three-hander: Colin
(son of Tom) Hanks, Kieran (brother of Macaulay) Culkin and Alison Lohman. Previous line-ups have included Matt Damon and
Anna
Paquin, and producer Anna Waterhouse is courting practically all of young Hollywood, from Christina Ricci and Natalie Portman
to Orlando Bloom and Josh Hartnett. There have even been rumors about a dream cast of Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire
and Kirsten Dunst, who met for a secret reading in America.
Pugh is lining up stars for the Broadway run of The Play Wot I Wrote, which starts March 30. Fiennes and McGregor will
reprise their appearances, and "everyone from Brad Pitt to Meryl Streep has shown interest," he says. But while the big
names are great at the box office, Pugh insists he doesn't want just any A-list player. "The star-rotation system is
an enormous help commercially," he says, "but they have to be good, and the balance has to be right." In Play, the celebrity
spot only works dramatically if the stars can play stiff and pompous, the better to have their ego balloons punctured by
the other actors. The aristocratic Fiennes was perfect for the part. Minogue, on the other hand, was too good-humored to
be properly sent up.
No matter: the crowd loved her, and the buzz generated by her appearance will keep audiences coming back for more.
Source: Time magazine
Thank you Darth Mystique for the heads up!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Monday, November
25, 2002 // 05:40 p.m.
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Celebrities help out in appeal bid
Sat 23 Nov 2002
THE annual Help a Child Appeal Charity Auction, featuring signed merchandise from Robbie Williams, Darius
and Ewan McGregor, will be launched this Sunday.
The auctions will run daily on Edinburgh radio stations Forth One and Forth 2 until Friday, November 29.
The appeal has been fundraising across east central Scotland for almost 25 years and all the money raised is spent in the
local area.
From computers and specialised equipment for disabled children through to holiday homes and toys, the goods the appeal
provides help families and other children’s charities and schools in the region.
Items up for auction include signed merchandise from dozens of celebrities, including a limited edition framed Star Wars
Episode II poster signed by Ewan McGregor, the Forth One studio sign recently autographed by Westlife, Darius, Danni Minogue,
Liberty X and many more pop artists.
In addition to music and film memorabilia, hundreds of local businesses have donated auction items, such as health club memberships,
hotel breaks, mountain bikes and gift vouchers.
A spokesman for the auction said: "The base prices for items start from just a few pounds and with bidding starting at only
one-third of each item’s value, there will be plenty of opportunities to buy some really unique Christmas gifts without
spending a fortune."
Source: The Scotsman
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Saturday, November
23, 2002 // 10:27 p.m.
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Flora Flowers Again
21/11/2002
After being shelved a full two years ago, Jodie Foster's pet project Flora Plum is happily
back on track care of our favourite wee Scot, Ewan McGregor.
Set in the 1930s, Foster's tale revolves around a penniless girl who is taken in by a circus freak and as he falls in
love with the scheming lass, she launches a career in the circus herself. It's all career, career, career with some
girls, isn't it? With Foster reportedly turning down a reprisal of Clarice Starling for her "All About Eve in
a circus," the film was set to go into production in 2000 with Russell Crowe lined up to star opposite Claire Danes taking
time out of her study at Yale to play the manipulative young Flora. But then disaster struck in the shape of a shoulder injury
to the apparently invulnerable Crowe and Foster's dream lay in tatters.
So who better than the marvellous McGregor to step into the ring to declare the whole shebang back in action? Taking
on the role originally set for Crowe, McGregor will also star opposite Danes with production scheduled for either Autumn
next year or January 2004. With this being a Foster effort and all, that's far too long to wait.
Source: Empire Online
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Thursday, November
21, 2002 // 07:51 a.m.
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Ewan McGregor to play circus freak for Jodie Foster
Story filed: 09:14 Thursday 21st November 2002
Ewan McGregor is to star in a romantic film being directed by Jodie Foster.
He is to star in Flora Plum, a love story set during the Depression about a circus freak.
Russell Crowe had been due to star in the film two years ago, but pulled out when he hurt his shoulder.
Meryl Streep and Claire Danes have also been signed to appear in the film.
In the film McGregor's character will take pity on a penniless waif (Danes), with whom he falls in love while helping
her achieve fame.
Filming will begin either late next year or early 2004 according to www.hollywoodreporter.com.
Source: Ananova
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Thursday, November
21, 2002 // 07:50 a.m.
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Trio of stars set for 'Plum' roles in Foster feature
Thu Nov 21, 2:22 AM ET
By Zorianna Kit
LOS ANGELES (The Hollywood Reporter) --- After being shelved two years ago, the Jodie Foster-helmed "Flora Plum" is
coming back to life, with Ewan McGregor taking on the role that was once to be played by Russell Crowe.
Additionally, Meryl Streep
has committed to appear in the circus-set film, while Claire Danes, who was originally attached to star in the project,
is back to take on the title role, sources confirmed.
Production will begin in either fall 2003 or January 2004 with original producers Barry Mendel and Meg LeFauve
of Foster's
Egg Pictures back on board and currently in the process of packaging the project and finding a home for it as either an
independent feature or a studio project.
"Plum" was originally set up at USA Films and was to start production in September 2000. During preproduction, however, Crowe
suffered a shoulder injury while training for the film in Austin, Texas, and subsequently dropped out of the project (HR
9/7/00). Crowe initially signed on to star in "Plum" shortly after he and Foster engaged in a public display of affection
at parties after the Golden Globe Awards (news - web sites) in 2000, where Crowe was nominated for his role in "The Insider" (HR
2/1/00).
"Plum" would have been the first feature film Foster directed since "Home for the Holidays" in 1995. With an available slot
in her schedule, the actress ended up taking on the starring role in "Panic Room" when that film's original star,
Nicole Kidman, withdrew because of the effects from a
knee injury.
Meanwhile, Crowe, who at the time of his injury was in Austin recording with his band, 30 Odd Foot of Grunts, went on to
star in "A Beautiful Mind," which earned him an Oscar nomination.
"Flora Plum" is a love story set during the Depression about a circus freak (McGregor) who takes pity on a penniless waif
(Claire Danes), with whom he falls in love while helping her achieve fame. Stephen Rodgers wrote the screenplay to the
film.
Foster is repped by ICM, while Danes is at UTA. McGregor and Streep are repped by CAA.
Source: Yahoo
News
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Thursday,
November 21, 2002 // 07:49 a.m.
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Down with Love trailer news
Ewan fans in North America will have to wait until the premiere of the Renée Zellweger - Catherine Zeta-Jones
film, Chicago,
to see the trailer for Down With Love. Chicago opens in limited release on December 27th and then opens
across North America three weeks later.
Thank you xcbug for the information!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Tuesday, November
19, 2002 // 05:48 p.m.
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Ewan denies fall in river
Last April (5th), Zentertainment
reported that Ewan had fallen "into the freezing waters off the coast of Scotland at night" while filming Young
Adam.
Ewan fans who met his parents at the New York Tartan Day parade the next day told Ewan's dad, Jim, of Ewan's fall
in the river. Mr. McGregor didn't know anything about it.
It turns out that the story was untrue.
Last night, there was a behind the scenes program about Young Adam on Film 2002 in the UK (it will be repeated
on Saturday). Ewan fan Rebecca only caught the end of it, where Ewan was talking about someone coming up to his
parents and telling them that he'd fallen in the river.
Ewan said he hadn't fallen in at that point, although he did later on in the filming when he was supposed
to fall in.
Thank you Rebecca for the information!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Tuesday, November
19, 2002 // 08:53 a.m.
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Rhona is face of Scots BAFTAS
Nov 15 2002
Graham Martin
RHONA Cameron is to host this year's Scottish BAFTA New Talent Awards.
The Musselburgh comic will hand out prizes to up-and-coming stars of the country's film and TV industry.
The bash at Glasgow's Armadillo recognises young, new or first-time producers, directors and writers.
Organisers are hoping Rhona - one of the stars of I'm A Celebrity ... Get Me Out Of Here - will
be joined by Scots celebrities such as Ewan McGregor and Dennis Lawson at the event on November 24.
Source: Daily
Record
Thank you xcbug for the heads up!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Thursday, November
14, 2002 // 09:02 p.m.
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Big Fish casts wide net for extras
Local News - Nov. 7, 2002
By Rick Harmon
Montgomery Advertiser
When Tim Burton's "Big Fish" has an open casting call from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Saturday at the
old Cloverdale Junior High School gym, the film's casting directors will be looking for more than
6,000 extras from the Montgomery area.
As if needing 6,000 extras isn't a big enough indication that "Big Fish" is a big movie, it was announced Wednesday
that Jessica Lange, who won an Oscar for "Blue Sky," which was also filmed in Alabama, has been added to a cast that already
includes Albert Finney, Ewan McGregor and Billy Crudup.
"Using that many extras, it's staggering," said Brian Kurlander, the director of the Alabama Film Office.
"I knew there were some big scenes in the movie, but I had no idea that it was going to be this extraordinary an opportunity. 'Big
Fish' is a redefining event for the film industry in Alabama."
What sort of people do the casting agents want?
"We want all shapes, all sizes, all ages," said Tracy Kilpatrick, who will be coordinating the casting call.
"The movie is going to be shooting from the middle of January through sometime in May, and will involve scenes from the'40s
to the present day, so we need a very, very large number of extras."
Kilpatrick, who helped cast movies such as "Forrest Gump," "Dead Man Walking," and "The Hudsucker Proxy," said
besides regular extras, she will be casting some featured extras and possibly a few speaking roles.
Kilpatrick said people will fill out information on site, so they don't need to bring resumes.
"All they need to bring is a picture of themselves that they can give to us and some patience," she said.
Source: Montgomery Advertiser
Thank you Perditum for the heads up!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Friday, November
8, 2002 // 06:32 p.m.
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"Big Fish" Needs Big Cast
November 2, 2002
If you missed out on the movie project with Cuba Gooding Junior and Beyonce Knowles in Columbus, another shot at stardom
is coming up.
All ages are invited to a casting call for a feature film in Montgomery November 9. This movie is called "Big Fish," stars
Ewan McGregor and Jessica Lange, and is written by a native Alabamian. Shooting will begin in mid January.
The auditions for extras are open to all ages, but you need to take a non-returnable current photo. The tryouts will be from
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. CT November 9 at the old Cloverdale Junior High School gym, 1125 E. Fairview Avenue. Call (334) 420-4801
for more details.
Source: WTVM News
Thank you Katie for the heads up!
For people who cannot attend the open casting call on Saturday November 9th you can mail a current photograph with your name
and phone number to the following address:
"Big Fish" Casting
1125 East Fairview Avenue
Montgomery, AL 36106
Crew Positions available for "Big Fish":
Please send resumes to:
Big Fish
Production Office
1125 East Fairview
Montgomery, Al 36106
No calls or walk-ins please
Source: Alabama Film
Thanks to Gayla for the heads up!
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Saturday, November
2, 2002 // 09:40 a.m.
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Visit Scotland
Today to watch real video footage of Ewan winning UK Personality of the Year at the British Independent
Film Awards the other night.
Thanks to John from Scotland Today for the heads up on this. |
Posted by ewanspotting.com on Thursday, October
31, 2002 // 10:30 p.m.
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Trainspotting No 2?
31/10/2002
If freaky head-spinning babies, brutal shooting-up sequences and diarrhoea-stained sheets were too much for you the first
time round, you might not be exactly over the moon to hear that a sequel to 1996 classic Trainspotting is looking more and
more likely. On the other hand if supreme direction, style in bucket loads and fantastic acting is your kind of thing, we
think you might be a tad excited.
With director Danny Boyle indicating that he wouldn't balk at the idea of revisiting Sick Boy and friends to Empire
Online only last month, Ewan McGregor added more heat to the rumour fire last night at the British Independent Film Awards.
He let slip that his attitude towards a reunion with Begbie has significantly shifted. "At first, I was quite sceptical about
it. Quite some time ago I was asked if I wanted to play Renton again and I said no – it's a funny thing to go back.
I've never done it before – except for the Star Wars character – and I thought it was best left. What if you made a
sequel to Trainspotting and it wasn't good? It would be a terrible shame."
But - we're more than slightly thrilled to say - McGregor completed a neat turnaround when he read writer Irvine Welsh's
follow-up book, Porno. "But then I read the book and went, "Ah, it's fantastic!" 'Cause it was so nice to find
what they're all up to, you know. Sick boy and wee Spud and Begbie – fuckin' hell…so we'll see. The only thing
to say is that if the script is good enough you'd go for it. I've lost that immediate negative feeling I won't
do it."
McGregor also gave us the inside nod on his next film to be released, Down with Love with Renee Zellweger. "It's set
in the 60s and is an absolute homage to the 60s sex comedies – the Doris Day, Rock Hudson movies. It's a brilliant laugh," he
commented. What, chaste kissing and separate beds for Ewan, we spluttered. "Well, I might have slipped the tongue in. You've
got to ask Renee. Probably!" Ah, yes, that's the Ewan McGregor we know and love.
Source: Empire Online
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Thursday, October
31, 2002 // 05:35 p.m.
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SCOTS MOVIE STARS' SWEET NIGHT
Newcomers' gritty drama scoops top awards at bash
Oct 31 2002
Jane Oddy
SWEET Sixteen led the way as Scots movie makers swept the boards at the fifth annual British Independent
Film Awards last night.
The gritty coming-of-age tale - set in Greenock - won Best Independent Film while its young star Martin Compston lifted the
Most Promising Newcomer gong.
And it wasn't alone in proving to the London audience that Scotland is the new home of movie talent.
Crieff-born star Ewan McGregor lifted the Variety UK Personality.
While Scots film Morvern Callar lifted two awards - Best Actress for lead Samantha Morton and Best Technical Achievement
for director photography Alwin Kuchler.
The night was also used to honour stars who have recently died.
Ex-Beatle George Harrison was honoured with a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to making movies.
And Richard Harris, who died last week, was nominated post-humously for Best Actor for his role in the movie My Kingdom.
British Independent Film Awards founder Elliot Grove paid tribute to the Scots after the bash.
He said: "We are delighted with the calibre of films this year, especially the Scottish contingent.
"It's great to see that Scotland has developed a strong film industry. It appears to be the new hot- bed for British
film-making".
Moulin Rouge and Star Wars heart-throb McGregor, who arrived with his French wife Ève, admitted he was bemused and thrilled
after lifting his prize. Dressed down for the event in jeans, he said: "Sportsmen get awards for being personalities - and
I'm no good at sports."
But the real star of the night was teenager Compston, who gave up his football career with Greenock Morton after rave reviews
for his first acting job.
He looked overwhelmed after being pounced on by photographers as he arrived in his Celtic-tartan kilt.
The youngster would only admit modestly: "I have put the football on hold and have already done a few bits on TV." But veteran
director Ken Loache - who missed out on the Best Director gong - was quick to sing his protege's praises.
He told the Record: "He was fantastic in the film. All the cast were knockout."
Loach used the ceremony to criticise censors who made Sweet Sixteen impossible to be seen by some audiences.
He said : `It's ridiculous that kids can't hear their own language in the cinema.
"It's a scandal and shows the patronising attitude of the middle class censor."
Sweet Sixteen beat Morvern Callar, football flick and widely tipped winner Bend It Like Beckham, Irish drama Bloody Sunday
and The Lawless Heart to the best film gong.
But it didn't go all Scotland's way.
Glasgow-born scriptwriter Paul Laverty may have won the Cannes jury prize for Sweet Sixteen but last night he lost out to
Tom Hunsinger and Neil Hunter for The Lawless Heart.
Morvern Callar's Lynne Ramsay also lost out on the Best Director and Best Screenplay awards.
She hid her disappointment, saying: "I like to make movies that are culturally relevant and it was absolutely fantastic
working with Samantha.
"But now I'm looking forward to getting on with my next project.
Trainspotting star Shirley Henderson also missed out on a Best Actress gong for Villa des Roses.
The evening was hosted by TV presenter Johnny Vaughan and honoured a wide selection of Independent films, the majority being
of British origin.
The British Independent Film Awards were set up to recognise the growing stature of the British Independent Film Industry
in the UK and world wide.
...THE WINNER IS
Best British Independent Film SWEET SIXTEEN
Best Actor JAMES NESBITT - BLOODY SUNDAY
Best Actress SAM MORTON - MORVERN CALLAR
Most Promising Newcomer MARTIN COMPSTON - SWEET SIXTEEN
Best Director PAUL GREENGRASS - BLOODY SUNDAY
Best Screenplay TOM HUNSINGER & NEIL HUNTER - THE LAWLESS HEART
Best Achievement in Production 24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE
Best Technical Achievement ALWIN KUCHLER - MORVERN CALLAR
Best Foreign Film - Foreign Language MONSOON WEDDING
Outstanding Contribution by an Actor RICHARD HARRIS
Best Foreign Film - English Language LANTANA
The Douglas Hickox Award, for a British director on their debut feature LINDY HEYMANN & CHRISTIAN TAYLOR - SHOWBOY
The Lifetime Achievement Award GEORGE HARRISON
The Variety UK Personality Award EWAN McGREGOR
Special Jury Prize BRIAN TUFANO (Cinematographer)
Most Effective Distribution Campaign WENDY STRIKE & NICK MORAN - from ILC - CHRISTIE MALRY'S OWN DOUBLE ENTRY
Source: Daily
Record
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Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Wednesday, October
30, 2002 // 10:42 p.m.
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Where are Britain's leading men?
October 31, 2002
By Tina Brown
THE IMMINENT OPENING of the new Bond movie, starring the serviceable Pierce Brosnan, is a boost for British leading men.
They have been relegated to the second tier lately, superseded by the Australians, who can smoulder without the burden of
irony.
Tony Blair is the biggest British star in America (after Ozzy Osbourne). I am constantly asked to accept gratitude for
the PM’s mystifying wonderfulness towards the US. Even opponents of Bush and his Iraq policy approve of Blair because they
see him as a restraining influence. The British ambassador, Sir Christopher Meyer, who goes home in March, has been wildly
popular
with his affirmative, Kenneth More-like bounce, but he has been the beneficiary of a golden period in Anglo-American relations.
Sir Howard Stringer, the chairman and CEO of Sony, is the hottest after-dinner speaker in New York and Hollywood. He is blessed
with patrician height, plus a sense of humour that masks a shrewd avoidance of splashy magazine profiles and a keen ability
for monster management (which so much of the entertainment world is about).
Anthony Hopkins is the biggest box-office Brit in Hollywood, but it is dispiriting that his reputation has been made on the
doggedly British niche brands of serial killers and butlers.
Hugh Grant is big because he occupies the debonair David Niven slot, though I suspect he could do much more. “If you want
depth, get a Fiennes brother,” he murmured to me at one of the Golden Globes thrashes. Perhaps, but Joseph Fiennes vanished
after Shakespeare in Love (which is strange unless you agree with Gore Vidal that he played the bard like a Puerto Rican
florist) and Ralph hasn’t had the movies he deserves since The English Patient. This could change after Maid in Manhattan,
a Pretty Woman-style romp in which Wayne Wang had the sense to cast Ralph’s neurasthenic charms against Jennifer Lopez’s
radioactive butt.
The jury is still out on Ewan McGregor. The promising Colin Farrell hit a snake on his ladder last week when his next
movie Phone Booth, about a sniper, was pulled indefinitely by Fox on the grounds of excessive topicality.
Jeremy Irons’s prison pallor and pervy mole had fallen out of favour even before we were hit over the head with the new wholesome
America. Gay, schmay — Rupert Everett should get big romantic leads. When he bursts into a breakfast diner with his hair
jammed under a woollen beanie he has so much upscale sexual charisma that you think he has an entourage even when he’s
all by himself at a table for one.
Hearteningly, unlike the men, British women are not held back on the second tier. Americans love all the Kates — Blanchett
(who feels British even though she is, natch, Australian), Winslet, Beckinsale, Zeta-Jones and Reddy (the heroine of Allison
Pearson’s hit novel I Don’t Know How She Does It).
Plum Sykes, the noodle-slim British journo and playgirl, got a $625,000 advance the other day for her first novel, Bergdorf
Blondes, from Miramax books. It was a big lift for Plum, who hit town five years ago with her wilder twin sister Lucy and
needed something to freshen her act. A rumour made its way through Manhattan recently that the Sykeses are a) not twins
at all and b) not 31, but this was just an index of the town’s need for new angles. The book isn’t written yet but Miramax
already plans a movie.
There was a real frisson among British actresses after the Texan Renee Zellweger did her astonishingly flawless crossover
as Bridget Jones. Americans usually don’t achieve British class nuance as finely as this, so there was a sigh of relief
when the Hollywood chick Kate Hudson bombed last month in The Four Feathers, playing a late-Victorian toff in an out-of-period,
ersatz new-London blurt that sounded as if her voice coach was Guy Ritchie.
Mike Nichols is one American director who’s very partial to British actors. “I find them nicely odd,” he told me the other
day. “Many British actors travel only when their gardening permits.” As self-protection, he notes, most British actors
today can do an acceptable American accent, which was not true of the old-guard Hollywood Brits, who represented generalised
piss
elegance.
Daniel Day-Lewis displayed a reassuringly British brand of nutty angst when he dropped out for two years and went off to
Italy to become a cobbler, but there is no trace of a nervous Nelly in his comeback role next month. He plays the carnivorous
anti-immigrant villain Bill the Butcher in Gangs of New York, Martin Scorsese’s epic about the mean streets of 19th-century
Manhattan. The word is that it’s a performance so intense, physical and immediate that it will haunt our dreams and nightmares.
According to the historian Simon Schama, who had a sneak preview the other day, it is also something new: a performance
as American as Brando with roots as English as Edmund Kean.
MY CHILDREN WERE born in New York, but I have nourished their ethnic roots by force feeding them the Famous Five and HMS
Pinafore. I know I have succeeded when my computer screen pings with an instant message from my 12-year-old daughter: “Yo,
Mom! Wassup!?” On Sundays we often go to an obscure English café downtown called Tea and Sympathy, where authentically
scruffy Brits are hunched over flowery china tea pots on very small tables, their plates loaded with jam tarts and egg and
cucumber finger sandwiches edged with whiskery parsley. Sometimes puzzled American cultural commentators will stumble in
and misunderstand it as an exercise in shabby chic. In fact, it’s Narnia, the fantasy of vanished Britain.
Nigella Lawson’s cappuccino London has kissed goodbye to crumpets.
Source: The Times |
Posted by Best of Ewan McGregor on Wednesday, October
30, 2002 // 10:40 p.m.
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Ewan McGregor: questions from the floor
Monday October 28, 2002
From beginnings in television, Ewan McGregor has gone on to become one of Britain's most versatile
and prolific cinema actors. He spoke to Adrian Wooton at the NFT about dramatic method, the difficulties
of directing, and the joys of showing
off.
Adrian Wooton: I want to go right back to the beginning. In every interview I've read it seems acting is the only thing
you've ever wanted to do, ever since you were a little boy. Why?
Ewan MacGregor: There are three things. I was nine years old when I made up my mind that that was what I definitely wanted
to do. I can remember that because I was speaking to my uncle, Dennis Lawson, who's an actor, and asking him how to
become an actor. He said something like, "Shut up and ask me in 10 years", or something like that. So I was nine years
old.
So: three things. Firstly, my uncle Dennis's influence. I come from a town in rural Scotland called Crieff, a beautiful
place but very conservative - quite a lot of farmers and a lot of tweed. My uncle would appear back from London, where he
lived in the 70s, in sheepskin waistcoats and beads and no shoes. As an actor he had something about him that I liked and
wanted to have. So that's one element: to be like my uncle, to be different.
The other two things are... well, I had a huge appetite for old black and white movies on BBC 2. At the weekends they used
to run matinees, and the more romantic the better. We've lost touch with that unashamed romance of the films of the
30s and 40s. I was much happier watching old films than children's television.
The third element is just sex, really. As a child I was taken to the pantomime or the theatre and I would always, always
fall in love with somebody on the stage. And want to have sex with them. So it was very sexy. It was usually one of the
dancers, so no change there, I don't think.
AW: Weren't your mum and dad into film? Didn't they run the local film society?
EMG: They did, yeah. A tiny affair. The Crieff Hydro is a tiny hotel and there was a little theatre in there and they used
to help run the film club. I'd forgotten that.
AW: Let's flash forward. You went to drama school and got your first part on telly...
EMG: Can I flash back a wee bit? It's quite interesting... well, maybe it's not. My brother is two years older
than me and he was brilliant at everything, it seemed. He was captain of the cricket and rugby teams. We had this rather
archaic system of head boys and prefects at my school. I was in my fourth year - in Scotland we finish school in our sixth
year - and my brother had become head boy and brilliant at everything: academia, sports. In fact, all the things I wasn't
good at. Then he left and I couldn't get my head round anything, so I became depressed and got in trouble a lot. I remember
my mother driving me one night through heavy rain, with the windscreen wipers going. It was the first half term of my fifth
year and she said that she'd spoken to my dad and that I could leave school if I wanted to. I'd only assumed that
I'd have to stick it out until I was 18, but here I was being offered the chance to leave at 16. My whole world opened
up. I couldn't believe it. And I was out, as soon as she said those words.
For months I'd been trying to get a job at Perth repertory theatre, something backstage, anything. They kept saying
that I had to be trained, so I kept getting knocked back. The week I'd decided to leave school, they needed extras
for A
Passage to India. So I was in! I donned a turban and blacked up shouted, "Asiskerjay! Asiskerjay!". I can't remember
what it means, but it involved running round the audience. I worked there for six months - I'd stayed after that production
and had become a member of the stage crew. Occasionally I'd get a few lines to say. That was when I started learning
stuff. Which is unfortunate for my school...
AW: You did a number of television things, and one of your big breaks was Lipstick on Your Collar. Could you talk
about working with Potter? Was he an important influence on you?
EMG: Suddenly you're required to do something, a skill or something, and you look back on your life and say, "Goodness
me!" Well, I wouldn't say, "Goodness me!", but one might. "Goodness me! Isn't it interesting that I learnt to do
that back there?"
The work I did on Lipstick on Your Collar stood me in stead for many, many things. The most important thing was
lip-synching. I was the musical fantasist in the series and so I got all the numbers. That set me up for lots of things.
First of all,
post-synching on a movie is quite difficult, but I've never found it that hard because of the work I did then. I had
to be absolutely spot-on. Also for Moulin Rouge. We'd recorded the music, but 80% of the time we were lip-synching.
It was also my first job. I was at Guildhall school of music and drama and we had our passing-out show quite early on,
earlier than the other schools. At that I got my agent, Lindy. I wouldn't be sitting up here without you, darling.
And Lindy put me up for Lipstick and a film her husband was directing. I was terribly arrogant, and still am, and
wasn't
really interested in doing this television series because I wanted to do the movie. So I went along with that air of arrogance
- and they really liked that!
So I had a recall for both and I got down to the last two for both of them. I had to do my final screen test for Lipstick at
Twickenham studios and then jump in a car and bomb across London to Clapham to do the final screen test for the movie.
So I did the screen test with Dennis, and I was very pleased to meet him, but I just wanted to get in a car to get to this
other
screen test, because I really wanted to do the film. It transpired that I didn't get the film, but I got the television
series. But the film folded a month later, so had I been offered the film I would definitely have taken it over the television
series and would have been left with neither. So I was really lucky.
Dennis was just lovely. I've never known anyone ruder in a restaurant. I was a waiter for a long time, and it made
my toes curl. He was just terribly impatient. He was crippled by illness for many, many years and it had worn away at his
patience,
I think.
We were filming in a graveyard and I was sitting there with Dennis Potter and an American producer. Just the three of us.
It was fairly near the end of the shoot...
(...it also gave me six months of film training. I'd done a year's theatre training in Scotland, and three year's
in London. But it gave me six months experience in front of a camera...)
...so we were sitting there, and he was taking these tablets that basically knocked out his weekends.
[Sound of banging]
It's Dennis! He's probably telling me that it wasn't the weekends.
So he lived a five-day week towards the end, I think. He was very ill for two days a week. It sometimes recurred during the
week, and this Wednesday was one of those days. We were sitting in the middle of the graveyard and he was talking to me about
what to do when this came out, and warning me about not jumping at the first thing...
[More banging]
You weren't rude in restaurants, Dennis. You were a really patient man!
But then he'd get up and have to run off to be sick behind a gravestone. He was so used to being ill that he'd
just sit back down and carry on. I've always remembered that - he took the time to warn me about things to look out
for. I'll forever be in his debt.
I watched that interview with him, the Melvyn Bragg one, which was just astounding. I really wanted to be in Cold Lazarus or Karaoke because
he'd given me my first job. So I asked to be in it, and I got a little scene walking past Albert Finney and Roy Hudd.
It was really nice for me to be able to do that.
AW: You did a number of other things. Then you met Danny Boyle and did Shallow Grave, Trainspotting and A
Life Less Ordinary. Could you talk about that relationship? Why was it so important at that time?
EMG: He was my first movie director. I'd worked on Scarlet and Black for the BBC, and it was during that that
I met them for the first time and got offered Shallow Grave. It was all of our first movies - it was Danny's
first as a director, John Hodge's first screenplay, Andy MacDonald's first movie as a producer and it was my first
feature film. Whether that binds you together, I don't know. All I can tell you is that it was effortless and it was
beautiful to work with Danny. I don't think I've ever been happier working with another director.
I think it showed. I'd do anything for him. It taught me a lesson which was an actor should not say, "I won't do
that." Once you've agreed the script, you must be willing to go as far as it needs to go on set. With some directors,
you do the scene and they say that it's fine, but you think to yourself, "Is that really enough? Is there not more?" On Shallow
Grave we all lived in a flat together for a week in Glasgow, and lived and breathed it to create the relationships between
the three of us.
Then on set we'd get a chance to rehearse with just Danny, he'd clear everything else away. That's often neglected,
which is awful because I think it's very important. It's an awful thing as an actor to come into a space and be
told to start there and go over there. I want to say, "How do you fucking know?" There's no discovery then. So with
Danny we'd rehearse then show it to the others, like a play, and then they'd decide how to shoot it.
I remember in Shallow Grave I remember a few times when we'd only have to do one take. But when you did have
to do more than one, you'd build on the one you'd done. It disheartens you if a director just gives you another
note, because you think, "Well, what were you watching?" Danny would make sure that he built on things and drag the work
out of you. I loved working with him. I'd look over and see him and be delighted that he was there. I was very happy
to be in his company.
AW: Since that experience, do you think that your attitude to performance has changed? Have you become more demanding
towards directors?
EMG: It's not my job to try and alter the director's style - he's in charge, and I'll always give him
my trust. I think what happens is that you learn how to deal with it if you're not getting the support you need or if
you're not being pushed. Occasionally you're doing two jobs at once: you're fooling the director into thinking
you've taken his note while doing what you think is better. It hasn't happened very often, but it's an awful
thing when you lose your trust in a director. But it's not for me to say.
The beautiful thing about it is that no two directors or actors work the same way. You also learn not to be afraid of discussion
and conflict. I don't mean throwing tantrums, but that it's OK when you might have differences of opinion about
a scene - it's part of the process. I don't think it's happened to me when someone has just said, "No."
I do remember once saying to a director, "You know, there are a thousand ways of playing this scene." And he said, "Pick
one." And walked off. Which was a good note.
AW: I read an interview when you did Velvet Goldmine and it said that you liked to wind yourself up before a scene.
EMG: Yeah, I love it. You walk out of your trailer thinking you might not be able to do it and then you come back an hour
later and you've done it and it's one of the best feelings. You surprise yourself all the time. You shouldn't
always know how to do it. I try to resist trying to nail it down before the camera's running because I love the element
of risk.
Sometimes it can be little bits that surprise you. It doesn't have to be the huge emotional scenes, it can be walking
down the corridor for a linking shot and suddenly you can't do it and they might be the hardest things to crack.
AW: In Moulin Rouge it appears that both you and Nicole Kidman had a good relationship with Baz Luhrmann. Can you
talk about that, because the production process seemed endless but turned out to be a marvellous movie.
EMG: Yeah. Well, it's just the way he works, and it infuriates the people who are paying for it. He's quite amazing,
Baz, really inspirational. He pushed you and pulled you and stretched you to the limits, which is brilliant as an actor because
that's how you want to feel at the end of the day. And he would be constantly re-writing. In the edit he was still
changing the storyline. We were pulled into that as actors.
Baz and his team were researching it for nearly four years, I think. We were called along to Australia to workshop a 300
page script, it was enormous, with Australian actors who were hired in for two weeks. We worked on key scenes and some of
the big musical numbers. At the end of these two weeks - there were singing lessons and dancing lessons, like being back
at drama school - we did a live reading of this huge script for about 90 people.
Then we went away. I made a film called Nora, Nicole went away and made a film. Then we went back four months later
to start rehearsing for the shoot. We rehearsed for four months doing singing, dancing and so on. By that time everyone else
was cast.
When we'd finished rehearsing a scene, Baz and Craig would go off as writers and re-write the scene. So the work we'd
done would be in the script. So we were actively involved in the creative process, which was such a treat because it doesn't
happen very often.
AW: What about the singing? Are you a closet Liam Gallagher?
EMG: I was for a while, yeah! I've always loved singing. While my brother was very academical and sporty, I was into
art and music. It's because it's performance, I think. At school there was no acting to be had other than school
plays which I did now and again. Mainly I was able to perform with music - I played the French horn, I would sing, and
I was a drummer in the pipe band. So I think it was a way to show off.
When Baz first came to meet me... I'd worked with Baz for a couple of hours for Romeo and Juliet - he's
great like that, he'll go round the world and work with actors, not just meet them. My audition for Romeo and Juliet was
probably more important in getting me into Moulin Rouge than anything else, because he'd remembered it. When
he said it was a musical it was kind of like a dream coming true. Fantastic. It never worried me or made me nervous at
all because I was so gung-ho about it.
I'd walk onto the Moulin Rouge dancehall set and it was just the most beautiful set. It took months to build
- there were walkways that could hold a hundred people, two bars (which was handy) and this beautiful paintwork. We loved
it and felt very at home there. It was smashed up at the end in one night, which was a shame because it could have been unbolted
and used as a club somewhere.
...
What was the question?
AW: Singing. Doing a Bruce Willis...
EMG: Oh. So I'd walk onto the set there... Sorry, I've got so many images of what "doing a Bruce Willis" might
be... So I'd walk out there for the big production at the end and there'd be hundreds of people on there. There
I was standing in the middle of it all with Nicole Kidman and Baz by the camera. It was the thing of dreams and felt quite
extraordinary. It felt fantastic because you'd done the music beforehand and they'd crank it up. It was just
brilliant.
AW: You mentioned Nora. That was one of the times you've played a real-life character, James Joyce, the other
being Nick Leeson in Rogue Trader. Did you approach either of those roles differently?
EMG: Yes. In Nick Leeson's case it was difficult because he was alive and in prison while we made the film, and people
know him. You feel a terrible responsibility. With James Joyce it was slightly different. It was more frightening because
I didn't know much about Joyce before I spoke to Pat Murphy, who directed the film, and she was very relieved and
wanted to keep it that way. She gave me what she wanted me to know and not the huge differences in opinion in Ireland about
Joyce
- he was accused by some of being a pornographer. She wanted to keep that away from me so I could portray the James Joyce
that she wanted in the movie.
Ultimately, you have to not worry about people thinking you should have played him differently. You're the one playing
the part so it has to be yours. I remember really early on with Scarlet and Black, I hadn't read the book and
didn't know anything about it, I told people I was doing it and every second person would say, "Oh! It's my favourite
book!" So you do feel responsible.
With Nick Leeson there were two video-taped interviews with him. The one with Sir David Frost was while he was trying to
be tried in Britain, because if he was tried in Britain he'd be charged with bringing down the bank whereas if he was
tried in Singapore he'd really get the book thrown at him. He was desperately trying to fight that and get back to Britain,
which he didn't manage to do.
The second interview was after he knew he wouldn't be tried in Britain. The difference was extraordinary. He was quite
polite in the first one and was really angry in the second one. That was all I worked on. He had this mannerism with the
side of his mouth that I tried to get now and again. It was fascinating because he was there on the TV. Then you have to
get to a point where you say, "Ok. I've done that. I trust that." Then you get in front of the camera.
AW: Nora was a production of Natural Nylon, the company you were involved in setting up. Why did you want to set
up a production company with your friends?
EMG: We wanted to do a film called The Hellfire Club, and we set it up to try to achieve that, really. With all our
arrogance and bravado we wanted to make films our way - we were lucky to be making them at all really. But we wanted to do
them our way - we want character driven work, not plot-driven. All good things, and I still agree with them all. Also, it
was a bit of a laugh.
It also saved Nora. I'd met Pat Murphy in Dublin and was making a film there called Serpent's Kiss.
I thought I was going down to read a few scenes with Susan Lynch who I'd seen in Cracker and thought she was
an unbelievable actress. It was a casting, neither of us had got the parts yet. So I got to her house and there were costumes
and camera and crew. We dressed up and shot every major scene of the film that afternoon. I hadn't worked on the accent,
so I'd love to see it now and see how shockingly bad it was. But that was it. We became Nora and James from then on.
There was this American production company involved, and we were just about to start pre-production when they pulled out.
So we couldn't make the film. We were all absolutely convinced that we were going to make that film. Pat Murphy had
written the film with her partner, who had died. And for a while she didn't know if she was going to carry on. But
it was so important that she did, and there was a closure there that was really important, and I think we all sensed that.
So
I took her to meet Bradley Adams, our producer at Natural Nylon, and then we started to put it together, again with American
money.
I was doing Eye of the Beholder in Canada and I was meant to be coming back to start Nora, but again the
American money pulled out. It proved to be a complete nightmare, financially. We funded it with Italian money, German money
and Irish
money. The German money came through, the Irish money came through and, er, the Italian money didn't. And still hasn't
come through. But we did manage to make it, by hook or by crook. And it's beautiful - I love it to bits. It was great
to work with Susan Lynch and it was great drama and dialogue. The relationship was so firy and full of sex and violence
and love.
It was an incredible shoot. We shot for three weeks in Ireland, did all the interiors in Germany. We shot for four weeks
in Trieste. It was beautiful.
AW: Are there more projects with Natural Nylon?
EMG: I don't know. I'm not a member anymore. I didn't have any time to do it and I felt bad about it so
I withdrew.
AW: In terms of production, you have dipped your toes in. You did something for the Tube Tales project. Do you want
to direct?
EMG: I do, yeah, I really do. Coming at it from being an actor would be brilliant. I don't have any worries about working
with actors, which I think is the most important thing. It's terribly frightening, the idea of directing a feature.
What stopped me was that I don't have a story to tell, and I don't want to direct for the sake of directing. That
is the key. I've found the story now, but I'm still terrified.
You need a year and a half to do it properly, so I'd have to say that I'd only direct for that whole time. I'm
not going to give up acting because it's fantastic fun and I love it to death. Also someone else has got the rights
to the book, so I've got to sort that out.
The way to direct, I think, is not to be terrified of being the director. You have the idea and the story and you employ
all these fantastically talented people to help you make it. To stand around and go, "We're going to do it like this,
because I'm the director and I fucking say so" is not the best way. What requires the bottle is to stand in the middle
and go, "OK, help me do it."
I have the confidence as an actor. But directing would a brand new thing, and there are areas I don't know much about.
Post-production is a minefield. When I did the short, sound design came up and I thought, "OK, who's doing sound design?" You
must have an idea about all of it. I look forward to it.
The little short I directed was called Bone, and it was for a series of 10 short films called Tube Tales.
People were asked to send their real-life stories of things that had happened to them on the tube. I thought it would be
fantastic
practice. So I get given a pile of about thirty stories and I picked one about a guy falling in love with a picture on
a lost tube pass. He went into graphic details of sexual fantasies, which I didn't go into in the film. Then I got a writer
from Scotland and we had a few meetings and I started this process which I'd never done before where anything was possible.
We'd meet, talk abut it, then he'd come back with it written down on a piece of paper. So simple. It was, like, "Fucking
hell! This is great! That's my idea!"
I didn't want any dialogue because as an actor there's nothing better than a great moody moment to play with nothing
to say. It's so much easier to do because you can really get inside your head. I had one guy saying, "Bye" at the
beginning.
There was a production office that I went to, and I was the director. And it was great! And my wife was designing it. And
that was great! My friend was doing the costumes. It was just like the real thing. I walked on set the first day and I
just about had an accident because there were all these people there and it was so thrilling. I appeared in most of the
rushes
because I'd get so excited that I wouldn't call cut, I'd just run into the actors.
There was one scene where I wanted the guy to walk past a sax player, and I had the scene exactly in my head. We shot it
and there it was - exactly how I wanted it - on the monitor. I | | |
It
was terrible news and so hard to believe anyone could deny the building of something so vital
to so many children.
