TV Directing: a Cautionary Tale.

Can't think of a photo so . . .

An advertisment for my song.

Here's a cautionary tale – or even a tail – about knocking people on the way up – you may meet them on the way down and you may need them

I remember seeing the film 'Carrie' – the original one – and loved it; especially the end when the whole cinema erupted; then we went to the pub and talked about it, trembled and rushed to get that last pint as this was in the day when pubs closed at 10.30 pm – and I was working at a theatre in Cheltenham where 10:30 closing time meant 10:30 closing time and as the film finished at about 10:24 it was quite a rush.

The director of that film was Brian De Palma and even though he has made good movies since he has never quite fulfilled the promise he showed earlier on and do you ever wonder why? No! I didn't think you did because you're not like that, are you?

I saw Michael Douglas on a talk show once; he was chatting away about this and that and he was asked a question about Brian De Palma and, even though I can't remember the exact words he used, it seems he had stood in the way of Michael getting a role and Michael said 'he didn't know who he was dealing with' or words to that affect.

De Palma had obviously upset him not knowing that Michael Douglas was to become one of the most powerful producers in Hollywood -so maybe that's why he didn't fulfil the promise he showed earlier - or maybe his films weren't that good after all.

I'm not sure if I could be that vindictive; I had the chance once to get my own back on someone once who had treated me badly and I didn't take the opportunity. One thing you need to know is that in the 40 years I have been an actor I have never been involved in any big arguments or been treated nasty by a director, producer or big star but I remember one day I had a call from a producer at the BBC. He was Gerard Glaister who produced a lot of quality television series from the late 1950s up to 1991; in fact it was in 1990-91 that I had the call from him.

It was completely out of the blue; I may have written to him at some point, I don't know, but when I met him he told me he was doing a television series about horse racing. He actually gave me a cup of tea – or he sent for one – and we chatted about the series and what he was going to do with it. He had some pictures on the wall of some of the actors that were due to be in it and he showed me plans and shooting dates.

Then he said that as some of the money was coming from Ireland he would like an Irish actor in the series to play a trainer and he said he thought I would be right for the part. Wonderful, I thought, but I had been acting for 20 years so I never put any reliance on anything anybody said to me unless it was the time of the first rehearsal.

Let me check on something, he said, and he got on the phone and asked to speak to the director, who was called Jeremy Summers; I'd like you to meet him, he said, and when he (Summers) answered the phone they arranged it between them.

I was told he was on the floor below and down I trotted to see him.

When I walked in the first thing he said to me was - What's this about?

What's this about????

I explained that Gerard Glaister had said they would be looking for an Irishman to play the trainer and he interrupted me and said - who said he was Irish?

I told him that I was told by Gerard Glaister.

- We haven't decided yet what he should be, he said, and what were you doing with Gerard Glaister?

I explained that he had called me in and he said – why would he call you in? Did you write to him.

He said that as if Gerard Glaister was an idiot and called everybody in who wrote to him; maybe he did, who knows.

We were not getting on!

I can't even remember leaving the office; I had been swimming along, minding my own business when a hand came in to the water and picked me out. Oh what a nice little fish you are, the hand said, I'll feed you and show you to my friend. Then the hand showed it to his friend and said – do you like this little fish and the friend said no; throw him back in.

I just looked on the IMDb and noticed Jeremy Summers only directed the one episode of Trainer, which is what the series was called and it was just my luck to meet the shit bag on that day.

But that's it I'm sure the person he cast in the role did it splendidly and had loads of charisma and star quality but then . . . .

Some time later I was with a company in Percy Street and I was involved in a TV series. If you saw my little movie The Scroll, it was based on the two characters in that and was set in some of the most exciting countries in Europe.

I devised it, as I had created the characters, and it was called Hard On Their Heels; the two main characters from The Scroll would follow two girls who had conned them out of money and a private detective was following the boys (us).

I took the pilot to Cannes and we talked to a lot of people and on a few occasions we nearly got it off the ground – but it didn't happen.

One day, before we went to Cannes, my partner was sitting in the office after partaking of a very heavy liquid lunch and the phone rang. It was a casting service, rather like The Breakdown Services in Los Angeles. They were after information to publish so agents could submit their clients for roles etc.

One of the characters I wanted in my series, was a French Count – a smooth kind of playboy and my partner told the casting service about this character. He told them that I was directing the series but my first priority was to cast this particular part.

From the following day the mail box was full of suggestions from agents and actors after this role. I didn't do anything about it and if anybody ever called I would explain that it was a mistake.

The submissions were from all kinds and not necessarily for the 'count' – I had letters from composers, who wanted to do the music for the series, actors and actresses for other roles and agents with lists of clients; one agent wrote and said their client would be a great director and would I consider him – his name? Yes – Jeremy Summers.

I was so tempted to call him in and mess him about but, as I aforementioned, I don't think I could be vindictive.