In the lead up to Christmas, we thought we would
bring you a film exclusive. Our reporter,was
on the set of new feature film, 51st State starring
Samuel L. Jackson and Robert Carlyle.
It was way back in October 2000 when
Liverpool was host to its very own version of
Hollywood and I was lucky enough to do some
work on the film set. Step aside Nicole,
Julia, and Jennifer, Miranda Schunke is coming
through! Well, not quite, I was involved doing
some background work as an extra and I was as
pleased as punch when my agent called to say
that my services were required. Shooting
for the big budget feature film began on
October 1st which was also my first day on
set. Ronny Yu directed the film and was
very
hands on from the first moment. After
leaving base camp where all the trucks and
caravans were located at Kings Dock, we were
bussed over to the action. Much of the
filming was done at the India Buildings in
Water Street including many of the violent
scenes which I was involved with. The building
was transformed into a hotel setting where all
manner of things were going on. I must
admit it was bizarre to see Samuel dressed in
a kilt but he looked very handsome while being
totally professional. I was involved in
one scene where golf clubs were being swung
around and at one point, Samuel got quite
close to where I was standing leaving me just
a little scared. Robert Carlyle was also
in my proximity which was a treat considering
I am big fan of his work. Concerning the golf
clubs, there was one episode where there was a
major accident on set. We were
rehearsing the scene we were doing when Samuel
accidently swung a golf club at full force
into the temple of one of the stuntmen.
Undoubtedly, he would have received a hefty
payoff for the injury but it was quite
alarming to see the man collapsed on the floor
hardly moving. There really was a hushed
tone to the people in the room at that moment!
Jackson was obviously shaken by what he had
done and filming was ceased for the rest of
the day which was well received after such a
long day already. Other scenes of the film
were shot in Manchester and various other
parts of Liverpool including some very large
crowd scenes. The crew and multitude of
stars, including Meatloaf, Rhys Ifans and
Ricky Tomlinson, certainly caused a stir all
over the region. It was such hot news that, as
one actor told me, he had been mobbed while
visiting Southport one night but then again,
he was Samuel's double!
As
the race for the Christmas number one hots up, everyone is
asking, who will it be. Please, no, not Cliff, or even
The Tweenies for that matter! After hitting number one
in the album charts with his 'Swing While You're
Winning', Robbie Williams has managed to also peak in the
singles chart with
his duet with Nicole Kidman. Could 'Something' Stupid'
do it for another
week??? Quite possibly methinks. The Christmas
number one will be
announced on Radio 1 on Sunday at the usual time so get down
the betting
shop if you feel like a flutter!
Behind the scenes:- 51st State.