:00:18. > :00:24.My guest co-host tonight put his holiday plans on hold when he heard
:00:25. > :00:41.I did, Alex Jones. I am so pleased that Matt is in Bristol with the
:00:42. > :00:46.rickshaw. I get to meet the two men whose latest film The Lady In The
:00:47. > :00:53.Van is a cinematic triumph, funny, moving. I loved it. Please welcome
:00:54. > :00:58.Alan Bennett and Alex Jennings. Great to have you with us. During
:00:59. > :01:06.the course of the interview we will determine which one is which. Alex,
:01:07. > :01:10.quite a daunting prospect for an actor to play a person who is very
:01:11. > :01:14.much with us but also the person who has written the play and the
:01:15. > :01:21.screenplay. Did you ask for any advice? I played Alan in two short
:01:22. > :01:30.pieces that he wrote, one called Home and one called Almac cocktail
:01:31. > :01:36.Sticks. I had got it out of the cupboard before doing the film. That
:01:37. > :01:42.gave me confidence for the film. I am very easy to imitate. He had been
:01:43. > :01:49.doing it for years before it went on the stage. Is that right? I think
:01:50. > :01:55.that probably is right. When did you first realise that you were somebody
:01:56. > :02:02.who could be imitated? As soon as I realised my accent. It is a bit like
:02:03. > :02:09.me being Welsh. It is easy. Which attributes do you think he got
:02:10. > :02:12.spot-on? I used along to the filming and when I would be sitting there
:02:13. > :02:17.when they were filming and occasionally he would pass the door
:02:18. > :02:22.and I would think, he does look like me. Otherwise I do not see it,
:02:23. > :02:28.really. His hair was quite difficult to get right on the stage. They dyed
:02:29. > :02:34.his hair and he ended up looking like Veronica Lane. On the film it
:02:35. > :02:43.is much more realistic. Because it is a wig. Alan has won Olivier
:02:44. > :02:47.awards and Baftas and his workers on the National Curriculum and I
:02:48. > :02:54.studied him at university. Only a full would try to sum up the work of
:02:55. > :02:58.one of Britain's prolific playwrights in a minute and a half,
:02:59. > :03:07.so here we go. Alan Bennett's love of the absurd claim to the public
:03:08. > :03:12.notice in 1960 when he found almost -- instant fame and success. A TV
:03:13. > :03:22.series was a major influence on Monty Python. Goody-goody gumdrops,
:03:23. > :03:29.I want to sign it. GG gumdrops would be cheaper? His plays and films have
:03:30. > :03:39.often reflected life in the north of England, revealing the humour hidden
:03:40. > :03:43.inside the mundane. Fancy. There is a cream cracker under the city.
:03:44. > :03:48.Successful plays have become cinematic triumphs. The history boys
:03:49. > :03:59.launched the careers of young British talents like Dominic Cooper
:04:00. > :04:04.and James cordon. This Friday the two-storey of a lady who lived in a
:04:05. > :04:11.van for nearly 15 years is to be adapted for the big screen. I think
:04:12. > :04:18.I am about to be taken short. Can I use your lavatory? No. The flashes
:04:19. > :04:30.on the blink. I do not mind. Where is it? Alan, as we heard, the story
:04:31. > :04:35.in the move film is about this lady who parked on your driveway. She was
:04:36. > :04:46.supposed to be there for three month and it turned into 15 years. How did
:04:47. > :04:51.that come about? Won it takes place is on a slope and the van started
:04:52. > :04:56.parked at the top and gradually she led to drift down and I am at the
:04:57. > :05:01.bottom so she ended up opposite my house. It is opposite the Bay Mendel
:05:02. > :05:07.where I work. I used to see everything that went on. She used to
:05:08. > :05:12.get not quite rough cut but persecuted and aggravated by people.
:05:13. > :05:20.I found I was watching out for her. I sometimes had to go out and scare
:05:21. > :05:25.people off rather ineffectually. I was looking at her and it distracted
:05:26. > :05:35.me from my work, so eventually I said to her, listen, running into
:05:36. > :05:41.the drive, the drive is about here to the monitor, see what happens,
:05:42. > :05:46.thinking it would be about three month and it turned into 15 years.
:05:47. > :05:51.It was my own fault I asked her in. You should perhaps have set a time
:05:52. > :05:54.limit. It would have made no difference. She was very strong
:05:55. > :05:59.willed. She knew she was going to stay and she did. When did you first
:06:00. > :06:06.think there might be a play in this? I used to keep notes. She was so
:06:07. > :06:11.close to me. If anything happened I would write it down. Anything funny.
:06:12. > :06:20.I could not do anything when she was still alive and she died in 1989 and
:06:21. > :06:24.it was after that... In the van. In the van. I thought I might be able
:06:25. > :06:30.to do something. This is one of the many moments that Miss Shepherd gets
:06:31. > :06:36.the attention of many of the residents. You have to mix it. I
:06:37. > :06:42.have mixed it. I have Madeira cake in it. All of her vehicles ended up
:06:43. > :06:48.looking as if they had been given a coat of clustered or scrambled egg.
:06:49. > :06:53.There were a few occasions on which once saw how genuinely happy she was
:06:54. > :07:03.and one of these was when she was putting paint on. Jackson Pollock
:07:04. > :07:08.could not have done it better. Alan, and some ways this film could be
:07:09. > :07:13.subtitled The Man In Your House because it is about you observing
:07:14. > :07:16.the lady in the van and your reaction to her and the reaction of
:07:17. > :07:22.the residents to her. Why did you put yourself into this? You could
:07:23. > :07:30.have made it a fictional neighbour. She used to aggravate me. If it had
:07:31. > :07:35.been a nice sweet film or sweet story where I was a nice
:07:36. > :07:40.compassionate person and I asked her in because I felt charitable... It
:07:41. > :07:46.was not like that. She used to irritate me to a great degree. You
:07:47. > :07:53.are very clear in the film that you are not a saint. You swear, you get
:07:54. > :08:03.annoyed. That is not modest. She was a real pain. Not only is there one
:08:04. > :08:07.Alan, there are really two. Your task with playing both. One is the
:08:08. > :08:16.writer, one of the landlord. They are very different. They are. The
:08:17. > :08:20.clues are there in Alan's writing. The writer is tougher and more
:08:21. > :08:29.objective about her and prodding the Alan living the life to have a more
:08:30. > :08:35.exciting life I suppose. Alan is kind of hard on himself I think in
:08:36. > :08:38.that his life... We are very grateful that you have lived the
:08:39. > :08:47.life you have lived because you have given us this extraordinary work.
:08:48. > :08:53.And observation of the quirks and strangeness of people. Good you
:08:54. > :09:00.almost look the arrival of Miss Shepherd as a kind of gift? She was
:09:01. > :09:06.a gift. If you are a writer anything is a gift. I have been doing
:09:07. > :09:10.something with a Danish writer whose name I forget but he specialises in
:09:11. > :09:20.boredom and boredom is a gift to him. We filmed it on the Crescent in
:09:21. > :09:23.Alan's house, the van was there, and the physical closeness, literally
:09:24. > :09:31.you open the door and the van is there. And the smell. Our van was
:09:32. > :09:35.not smelly and Maggie was not smelly. You have to go round the van
:09:36. > :09:40.to get in the street. Extraordinary to be shooting in the same house
:09:41. > :09:45.looking at the same window. People used to come and see me and very
:09:46. > :09:50.often did not mention the van. This was extraordinary because you have
:09:51. > :09:57.to squeeze past it. The best occasion was choral brown, who was
:09:58. > :10:03.married to Vincent Price, and they came and had supper, no mention of
:10:04. > :10:08.this terrible van. When they were leaving they balls have quite loud
:10:09. > :10:20.voices and were talking as they left and as they past there was a voice,
:10:21. > :10:25.make less din. The incident prize nearly jumped. It was very
:10:26. > :10:32.satisfying. Maggie Smith has done a fabulous job. Three fantastic
:10:33. > :10:36.central performances. The film is out on Friday. We want you to get in
:10:37. > :10:39.touch of there something on your drive you thought would only be
:10:40. > :10:44.there for a few months but has been there for years. Relatives not
:10:45. > :10:48.included. Take a picture, send it in, and we will look at the end of
:10:49. > :10:52.the show. It is time to catch up with Matthew. If you are mourning
:10:53. > :10:58.about how your Monday has been going this is when you realise it is
:10:59. > :11:01.nothing compared to what Team Rickshaw are putting themselves
:11:02. > :11:04.through. After some of the worst weather Team Rickshaw have had to
:11:05. > :11:11.face we are hoping that the weekend would be drier. It is very windy
:11:12. > :11:22.this morning and we are expecting a lot of rain. Anyway, heads down.
:11:23. > :11:28.By! Get in the zone. That is great, Amira. As predicted it was not long
:11:29. > :11:37.before the heavens opened. This is absolutely ridiculous. It is verging
:11:38. > :11:44.on painful rain. If anybody is in two minds, Amira, about whether to
:11:45. > :11:50.text, what would you say? Text! Eventually the rain stops but the
:11:51. > :11:55.pain sets in. Making it hard for one of our riders who suffers from
:11:56. > :12:01.severe arthritis. How is your need? If I am putting pressure on it it is
:12:02. > :12:07.a bit more swollen. How are you doing on pain? About four going up
:12:08. > :12:12.hills. Because she is so tough we have had to work out a way of
:12:13. > :12:16.gauging the pain level she has had. We started on three and are up to
:12:17. > :12:23.four. We will stop when we get to five. We do stop. Her team-mates
:12:24. > :12:34.step in to give her a helping hand. Are we ready? Yes! Being a member of
:12:35. > :12:40.Team Rickshaw is never easy and four George Griffiths the hills are one
:12:41. > :12:55.thing... That is the top of the hill... He is also feeling homesick.
:12:56. > :13:05.I want dad. I miss him. George's brother Henry is providing the
:13:06. > :13:09.family support. I have a quick word. He really misses his dad. I am not
:13:10. > :13:20.sure if there is any chance of getting him off. We will get him. I
:13:21. > :13:31.miss you. Tell them what you just did. I went up really high hills.
:13:32. > :13:36.Two years ago when he was 14 Elliott from Essex was diagnosed with
:13:37. > :13:41.cancer. He is in remission but it still remains a worry for his
:13:42. > :13:48.family. What do you remember about the day when they told you the news?
:13:49. > :13:53.The enormity of it hit me. I cried like ten tears I think and then I
:13:54. > :14:00.was basically saying I have to be strong for my family. As a parent I
:14:01. > :14:06.cannot imagine what that must feel like. It must have affected them so
:14:07. > :14:13.badly, psychologically. At the beginning you sort of feel like you
:14:14. > :14:17.are the only teenager with cancer. But even though everything might
:14:18. > :14:22.seem like it is lost it is not so there is no point letting it get you
:14:23. > :14:26.down, you have to stay positive. I am sure lots of people are watching
:14:27. > :14:32.that are in a similar position and to hear you say that must give them
:14:33. > :14:39.an enormous amount of strength. Yes. What did you make of the rest of
:14:40. > :14:44.Team Rickshaw? I love it. It is like a family. Everybody has been talking
:14:45. > :14:50.about their charity. You have this common thread of being incredibly
:14:51. > :14:54.determined. That determination lends itself to great support. In
:14:55. > :15:00.Bridgwater we have an impressive escort.
:15:01. > :15:13.The Fire Brigade have joined us, and Pudsey is hitching a ride! Next
:15:14. > :15:22.stop, Clifton suspension Bridge. And look at this for an image to draw
:15:23. > :15:31.day four to a close. George riding across Clifton Suspension bridge,
:15:32. > :15:38.and here are the whole family here, his dad and mum. Mark, you go on
:15:39. > :15:46.over there. George, look who's here!
:15:47. > :15:59.This is just the most beautiful sight. George has been waiting for
:16:00. > :16:02.this moment for so long. Kate, I know you are going to be with us
:16:03. > :16:06.now, because Henry is going to go home, but can you sum up what that
:16:07. > :16:11.was like, hearing those words of what your George was saying. I know
:16:12. > :16:16.it has been really tough. It is a rickshaw challenge. But you don't
:16:17. > :16:19.really realise how hard it is, especially with the weather and
:16:20. > :16:29.everything, but I am so proud and amazed. Look at this. You see? That
:16:30. > :16:37.is what it is all about. What did I say, George? Is this good enough for
:16:38. > :16:43.you? It's great! You are going to have lovely night. Have another big
:16:44. > :16:48.family cuddle. Have you seen who is over here, as well! It's practically
:16:49. > :16:53.all of George's family who have turned out. I don't know where you
:16:54. > :16:57.all staying! You have a lovely time while I talk to all the viewers at
:16:58. > :17:02.home, because it isn't just about peddling, this rickshaw challenge.
:17:03. > :17:10.Our riders also have to make a speech in front of a group. And the
:17:11. > :17:16.dancer, Amira, Totora famous dance floor. I am backstage at Strictly to
:17:17. > :17:22.give my speech for the rickshaw challenge. It is a massive
:17:23. > :17:27.achievement to do something like this. 12 months ago she would have
:17:28. > :17:30.been huddled in a corner. Ladies and gentlemen, we would like to welcome
:17:31. > :17:35.somebody very special to the dance floor. This is Amira. One of the
:17:36. > :17:39.most important people in my life is my big sister. I always felt sure
:17:40. > :17:43.that she would have a bright future. All of this changed to years ago
:17:44. > :17:49.when she had a brain haemorrhage. She was only 16, and suddenly she
:17:50. > :17:53.was fighting for her life. It is still unbearable to think that the
:17:54. > :17:58.times when I thought I might lose her. Eventually her condition
:17:59. > :18:05.stabilised, but she had severe rain damage which meant she couldn't move
:18:06. > :18:07.or communicate. We needed to find somewhere to help Elle to continue
:18:08. > :18:13.to get better. The children's trust didn't just care for Elle, they
:18:14. > :18:18.cared for the whole family. We had hard times coming to terms with
:18:19. > :18:25.this, and for awhile, I lost my confidence. Without the children's
:18:26. > :18:31.trust and Children in Need, we wouldn't be where we are now, so
:18:32. > :18:32.please make a donation because it can really make a difference to
:18:33. > :18:46.families like ours. I have to say, Amira, what you did
:18:47. > :18:50.today, at Cheddar Gorge, all the viewers will see that in the next
:18:51. > :18:54.few days, how you cycled up there, but to get that inner strength as
:18:55. > :19:00.well, that couldn't have been easy to go on Strictly and talks the way
:19:01. > :19:04.you did. To be fair, that was the biggest challenge, but it is all
:19:05. > :19:09.worth it. And you are doing this to raise money, to get as much support
:19:10. > :19:14.as you can for all those other youngsters, and Lucy, Erin, come
:19:15. > :19:17.over here, I am now going to reveal this total. Turnarounds are every
:19:18. > :19:26.body at home can see you. I asked what you hoped the total would be,
:19:27. > :19:29.and you said hopefully ?50,000. The total is behind us, and all these
:19:30. > :19:37.lovely people of Bristol are going to reveal it now. Can you lift up
:19:38. > :19:49.the total to reveal what Team Rickshaw paso raised so far.
:19:50. > :19:59.?582,000! High-5! Are you happy with that? So happy. We're not finished
:20:00. > :20:03.any means. We are now halfway. Amira, we're not even finished the
:20:04. > :20:07.day yet, so you keep going, and I will tell everybody what happening
:20:08. > :20:15.tomorrow. We are leaving this area at 2am, and this is the route that
:20:16. > :20:20.we will be going. It is 74 miles long, so there will be lots of fun
:20:21. > :20:23.and games along the way. We will be taking in Warminster, Wilton and
:20:24. > :20:31.Stockbridge. If you would like to track us, just go to the website and
:20:32. > :20:38.you will find it. That is just remarkable, ?582,000 so far. Please
:20:39. > :20:42.keep giving. Let's get this over a million. We will see you in
:20:43. > :20:47.Winchester tomorrow night to turn on the Christmas lights!
:20:48. > :20:54.Thank you to Matt and the team, what a total and incredibly moving to
:20:55. > :20:56.watch. If you haven't yet donated...
:20:57. > :20:59.Here's how you can support Team Rickshaw and Children in Need.
:21:00. > :21:02.To donate ?5 to Children in Need, text the word TEAM to 70705.
:21:03. > :21:05.Or to donate ?10, text TEAM to 70710.
:21:06. > :21:07.Texts will cost your donation plus your standard
:21:08. > :21:12.All of your donation will go to Children in Need.
:21:13. > :21:15.You must be 16 or over, and please ask for the bill payer's permission.
:21:16. > :21:18.For more information and full terms and conditions go to
:21:19. > :21:30.where you can also donate online if you want to give a different amount.
:21:31. > :21:32.Alan has often written about isolated people living
:21:33. > :21:36.And we've found a family who chose to become exactly
:21:37. > :21:43.that when they upped sticks and moved to a tiny Welsh island.
:21:44. > :21:49.I think many of us dream about getting away from it all and living
:21:50. > :21:53.somewhere really remote, but imagine if that place had no cars, no
:21:54. > :21:58.flushing toilets, know what water, limited electricity, where eight
:21:59. > :22:03.trip to the supermarket meant a boat ride back to the mainland. This is
:22:04. > :22:20.the island of Hardy of the North Wales coast. It's only permanent
:22:21. > :22:24.human residents are the Porter family who are the caretakers. How
:22:25. > :22:30.did you make the decision to move out here? We had been coming here
:22:31. > :22:39.for visits for quite a long time, so we knew a lot of the residents.
:22:40. > :22:44.Having been home-schooled throughout his GCSEs and A-levels, Ben is about
:22:45. > :22:57.to join his older sister Lucy who is away at university. It will make
:22:58. > :23:01.things harder for his parents,. It is very satisfying to be able to sit
:23:02. > :23:06.down to a meal that is entirely from the island. We sometimes catch fish,
:23:07. > :23:10.and we grow potatoes and vegetables to Ben has lent me his bedroom for
:23:11. > :23:14.my stay here, and he has explained there are a few things I need to get
:23:15. > :23:19.used to. Head torches, limited electricity, going outside for the
:23:20. > :23:25.toilet. It is a compost loo. We use grass or
:23:26. > :23:34.sawdust. So in the middle of the night if I need a week, I have to
:23:35. > :23:37.come all we are out here? Yes. It is so peaceful here, I slept
:23:38. > :23:41.extremely well, but it has been an early awakening. Steve was the
:23:42. > :23:46.member of the family with the most worries about coming here. He
:23:47. > :23:49.enjoyed his job as an instructor in outdoor pursuits, and he loved to
:23:50. > :23:54.travel, so the island can feel very small. There is a time at the end of
:23:55. > :24:01.the winter most years where I feel like I have had enough. It is a
:24:02. > :24:06.long, soggy, windy, muddy winter. But then spring comes and there is
:24:07. > :24:09.so much new life on the visitors return and the season's new
:24:10. > :24:12.possibilities arrive. Everyone has to muck in on the farm, but the
:24:13. > :24:16.family have learned to use the island's resources in their own way
:24:17. > :24:22.to of the time. How important is it to have focus
:24:23. > :24:26.and structure? Really important. You are not in control, it is the
:24:27. > :24:30.weather, and you do have to fit in with that rhythm of the tides and
:24:31. > :24:36.the weather and the seasons. And if you could change any of this, a hot
:24:37. > :24:41.shower or something, what would it be?
:24:42. > :24:50.I am stumped there. That's brilliant! I think I am quite
:24:51. > :24:52.satisfied. They look really happy, don't they.
:24:53. > :24:54.Alan, the Porters are in self-imposed isolation.
:24:55. > :24:56.Miss Shepherd isolates herself in her van parked on your drive
:24:57. > :25:12.It is important for a writer to isolate themselves to write? I am
:25:13. > :25:17.quite isolated in Yorkshire, but I have to come back to London, I can't
:25:18. > :25:25.write there. It would drive me mad being on an island, isolated. Miss
:25:26. > :25:29.Shepherd wasn't a recluse. And she wasn't a hermit. She lived in the
:25:30. > :25:34.middle of a community, and even though she didn't have much to do
:25:35. > :25:38.with Abel, she a recluse. And you do get the impression that she quite
:25:39. > :25:42.liked the closeness of having you there, even though not in the same
:25:43. > :25:48.house, necessarily, she knew that there was somebody keeping an eye on
:25:49. > :25:58.her. Alex, we saw you playing Prince Charles opposite Helen Mirren in the
:25:59. > :26:10.Queen. UI now about to embark on playing the Duke of Windsor in this
:26:11. > :26:16.mammoth series for Netflix called the Round. Do you think it is
:26:17. > :26:22.easier, or does it come with more baggage, playing somebody who has
:26:23. > :26:25.actually existed? It is a different process to playing Hamlet or Henry
:26:26. > :26:30.Higgins, both of which I have done. You listen and you what should the
:26:31. > :26:33.way, you can now go on you Tube and there is a lot of information out
:26:34. > :26:42.there, and that is a process I have used when I have played these real
:26:43. > :26:50.people. It is slightly different, because you don't want to be the
:26:51. > :26:56.Spitting Image puppet version of Alan!
:26:57. > :26:59.LAUGHTER Is it a bit late in the day for
:27:00. > :27:02.that? The Duke of Windsor has been dead
:27:03. > :27:08.for a long time, so there is less baggage. With Prince Charles, I have
:27:09. > :27:13.a huge amount of respect for him, and I didn't want to stitch up. I
:27:14. > :27:18.didn't Camilla say to you, what was it like playing my husband? She did
:27:19. > :27:23.ask me what it was like, and I said it was tricky, and she said, yes,
:27:24. > :27:25.I'm sure it was! But she was delightful and very twinkly about
:27:26. > :27:30.it, she said that when Charles hadn't actually seen it. In future
:27:31. > :27:33.film roles, if you got offered a part in Star Wars, and the director
:27:34. > :27:42.of the last-minute said, could you do it as Alan Bennett... I think
:27:43. > :27:45.that is all I am going to be doing! I play the Duke of Windsor as Alan
:27:46. > :27:52.Bennett! In homage to The Lady In The Van, we
:27:53. > :27:56.asked for your pictures of things that have been in your driveway for
:27:57. > :28:02.longer than necessary. We have some brilliant pictures here. Dan from
:28:03. > :28:10.Belfast has had this bath in his driveway for 13 years.
:28:11. > :28:17.Abigail has had this boat in her driveway so long, people ask her if
:28:18. > :28:24.she lives in the house with the boat. Gosselin has had this on her
:28:25. > :28:29.driveway for 13 years. This one is a good one. Andrew has had this
:28:30. > :28:33.caravan in his driveway for six years. Not the one I was thinking
:28:34. > :28:38.of. Another Andrew has sent us this
:28:39. > :28:43.picture of his parents' driveway, that is the plane. No idea how it
:28:44. > :28:47.got there. Plenty of inspiration there for some
:28:48. > :28:54.new players! Right!. Lots of parts for Maggie Smith. It has been
:28:55. > :29:02.marvellous to see you all. The Lady In The Van is out on Friday. And
:29:03. > :29:02.thank you to Paul, you have been wonderful.
:29:03. > :29:04.My pleasure. Nick Grimshaw will be
:29:05. > :29:06.in my place tomorrow, and Kate Join us on BBC One for a truly epic
:29:07. > :29:14.night of entertainment, featuring your favourite stars
:29:15. > :29:18.and shows.