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| Rebecca Santos |
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| "How dare
you answer me back!" Anna Wing with Rebecca Santos |
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| Olegar Fedoro |
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| Anna Wing |
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Cleaner Lilli is warned that
her latest client, Mrs Furnival, is mad. Lilli is to discover
to her cost just how mad… |
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UK, 2005. Pathétique
Films.
Produced by David McGillivray
Directed by Keith Claxton
Written by David McGillivray and Keith Claxton
ph: Sam Hardy. sd. rec: Godfrey Kirby. ed: Chuck Cartmel. music: Dominic Glynn. make-up: Ian
Brown. costumes: Samantha Cousins. hair: Fernando
Hortiguela. prod designer: Kate Halsall. asst. dir: Gary White. on-line ed: Bryan Farrar. sd. design: Steve Rogers. colourist: Lesley Russell. catering: Christopher Turner. camera asst: Joseph Brett. wardrobe
asst: Helen Walter. prod assts: Yuba Bessaoud,
Ernesto Pitts.
cast: Anna Wig (Mrs Furnival), Victor Spinetti
(Mr Pomeroy), Rebecca Santos (Lilli), Flaminia
Cinque (Janice), Olegar Fedoro (Shopkeeper),
Nicola Cussons (Olga), Patrick Murphy (Postman).
Colour. 15 mins
Shot in Crouch End and King's Cross, London,
September 5-8, 11 and 17, 2005. |
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| This interview reveals the
ending |
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"When I was an unemployed
actor in the 60s, I did domestic work for an agency called
Clean-a-Flat. They had one particularly mad client and I was
intrigued by the many stories about her. Sure enough, she
told me to do one thing, then the opposite; and she whispered
about me to a gentleman caller in the same way Mrs Furnival
talks about Lilli in Wednesday. I was only 18 or 19
and I thought these people were easily capable of murder.
I wrote the part of Mrs Furnival specifically to coax Marianne
Stone out of retirement. As you may know, she's appeared in
more films than any other British actress, maybe 200 or more
including quite a few Carry Ons. I worked for her husband,
show biz columnist Peter Noble, in the 70s; and when he died
in 1997, Marianne asked me to officiate at his funeral. That
was the greatest honour of my life. Marianne used to make
something of every part she played, even if she only had two
lines, and I really wanted her to do this film for me. But
she wouldn't. She was absolutely adamant. Too bad. I met Victor
Spinetti, who agreed to play Mr Pomeroy, and then his agent
suggested another client, Anna Wing, for Mrs Furnival. Keith
and I went round to see her. She said, "Do you want me
to read for you?" and then she said, "Do you want
me to take my clothes off?" It was very hard to believe
she was 92. We thought she'd be fun, and she was. Victor is
a grumpy old man. He admits it himself. But he was good value.
I met Rebecca Santos at a party at my house. I thought she'd
be right for Lilli. I found out later she'd been in Seed
of Chucky, playing virtually the same part, a cleaner
who gets murdered. The postman, Patrick Murphy, is actually
my postman. I didn't want to hire a Royal Mail uniform. I
told him we wanted to tie him up and put him in a cupboard.
He was a bit apprehensive. But he enjoyed it so much that
afterwards he asked me how he could get some more film work!
The house is my friend Joe Lang's. We wrecked it. Never, ever
allow a film crew in your house, unless you're being paid
£1000 a day (which Joe wasn't).
I believe the first assembly of Wednesday was about
25 minutes. The rough cut was still too long and we had to
take drastic action. Two actors were left on the cutting room
floor. Originally the film opened with a private investigator
(Sean Lewis) making enquiries. Then, when the killers are
burying Lilli in the garden, a neighbour (Pauline Munro),
leans out of a window and asks them what they're doing. I
was mortified when both Sean and Pauline turned up for the
film's premiere at "Frightfest" at the Prince Charles
the following March. But they took it very well." |
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