8692/21611
My second day of filming on Zak The Ripper, though the crew and some of the cast have been working pretty solidly since our first day on the 7th September. They were in good spirits, not quite as perky and excited as day one, with a few people suffering with exhaustion and bugs. But still laughing together and it sounds like filming has been going really well.
I was back in my double act with the very funny Esther Oladele, and we were doing a scene with the brilliant Tiffany Stevenson (with the briefest appearance by the eponymous hero of the movie Sy Thomas) and aside from not being able to say Detective John Sjuksköterska correctly (and rarely the same way twice) things ran very smoothly.
I think I eventually did some takes on my single shot which might be usable. The last thing you want in a film is a character who is not entirely sure how to say his own name. The director, Warren, thought this might be quite funny though, so doubtless he'll stitch me up in the edit.
I did mangle the word "chinwag" so it came out very close to being "titwank", which caused some amusement but also means that I am no cancelled and banned from all movie sets for life.
You have to remember I usually play perverts in bushes who rarely say anything other than titwank, so it's very hard for me to play a crumpled middle-aged detective, even one whose life is falling apart and is almost certainly recently divorced and wanking himself to death in a Travelodge (that's why I always insist on Premier Inn or above - I don't want to hear that in the next room- is what the people next door usually ring down to reception to say).
As always, there is time to learn your lines properly whilst waiting for set ups and when rehearsing and you do each bit so many times that it pretty quickly sinks in, even if it's a bit sketchy when you arrive. I continue to be annoyed at my brain's gradual decline and how tricky it is for me to get stuff to stick in there these days (when that used to be one of my main skills),
but I am still pretty good in the short term as my solo task on Taskmaster showed. (though fuck, that was maybe 7 years ago now!)
Not sure that gives the best showreel for my actual acting. And explains why I usually only end playing perverts.
It's very enjoyable doing the odd day of acting. It's a pretty tough discipline though as you have to do stuff so many times and keep up the energy and concentration and sometimes your character has a ridiculous name that you can't really say properly.
It's mainly ridiculous fun though and I had to eat crisps in one scene. What could be better than that? Being paid to eat free crisps. That's why I got into this business. That and being paid to show off.
