24/11/2011 The One Show

Hello and welcome to the One Show with Matt Baker. And Alex Jones.

Our guest, the actor who taught Harry Potter how to fly and is

about to teach Marilyn Monroe how to act. She has previously played

her door, a leprechaun, a talking piece of skin, and one of the best-

known sitcom mums on British telly. It is Zoe Wanamaker. You played

Cassandre, a piece of skin, in Doctor Who. That must have been

challenging. It was great. Did it stretch you as an actor? Yes,

tremendously, I loved it. My Family came to an end in September. Do you

think it was time? I think so. We had great fun doing it and it was

always a surprise when we were commissioned to do more. We always

had good fun. I think it had had its time. 11 years is a long time

and you said you were glad you would not have to sit on the sofa

again because it was uncomfortable. I wanted to get rid of it. I beg

for it to disappear. It cut you off right there, and if his atomic you

were like that. Yours is better because it makes you sit up. -- and

if you sat on it. Later, more tips from Arthur Smith on how to write a

best-selling novel and we will be chatting to Zoe about her new film

which tells the story of Marilyn Monroe's visit to the UK in 1956.

And Alex is incredibly excited because she will be wearing one of

Marilyn Monroe's dresses. She had her eyes down and everything.

know. Before that, Anita Rani looks at the enduring legacy of the

biggest blonde bombshell of them all.

Marilyn Monroe, one of the most famous faces of the 20th century,

and now the subject of a new movie. As well known for her life off-

camera as on screen, Marilyn starred in 30 films and was married

three times. But what was Marilyn really like, and why does her

legacy live on the almost 50 years later? Marilyn Monroe arrived in

London with her new husband and playwright, Arthur Miller, to make

The Prince And The Showgirl. The film starred and was directed by

revered actor Laurence Olivier. would come on the set and you would

hope that she would remember her line said it would all go well. You

would think, my goodness, I hope she is going to be all right. Once

she got the flow and whatever it is, it was fine. What was the

atmosphere like concept? She was always late. You can imagine,

people get frustrated. You think, what are we going to do, we have to

keep on schedule. What was her relationship with Sir Laurence

Olivier? He was patients himself with her and he would surely her

long, but the tension was there. She wanted to be a great actress

and she certainly picked a great man to help her. She was like a

child, but she was magic when she appeared, that is the point. She

was magic in front of the camera. And it is part of this time that a

week with Marilyn focuses on, featuring the seven days missing

from the original diaries of a third assistant director, Colin

Clark. We decided to take you on an adventure. It was a week in which

their friendship grew and she played hookey from the set. Michele

Morgan has spent years researching Marilyn, publishing several books

about her. I have seen the movie and you have read the diaries. Do

you believe Colin Clark's story? Whether the diaries that he kept

were entirely true or embellished somewhat, I don't think we will

ever know. She must have had some determination because she came from

nothing and became the most famous woman on the planet. To go from

being in an orphanage to be in the world's most famous movie star, she

had a lot of guts and ambition. Once she decided to do something,

there was no stopping her. Marilyn won several awards in her acting

career, including the Golden Globe, but never the much coveted Oscar.

The ultimate question, was she a talented actress? I think she was a

talented actress to convince us that she was like the movie persona

of Marilyn Monroe, because in real life I think she was very different

but we were totally convinced that her blonde personality is her real

personality. What was her enduring appeal? Certainly the vulnerability

that we see in Marilyn Monroe has added to the iconic status over the

years. But I don't think anybody has got close to actually telling

us who the real Marilyn Monroe was. Marilyn Monroe continues to

mesmerise new generations, thanks to a life that was equally as

fascinating and as flawed as the park as any of the roles she played.

You play her acting coach, Paula Strasberg, but really she is much

more than that. I think so. Her husband started an acting school,

which was basically taken from the way of work for actors which was

completely different from declamatory acting, people hanging

on to the curtains and being completely over-the-top. He started

a method of working for actors to actually try to touch base with

their characters and transform themselves into the character.

Paula Strasberg's husband took that into his own method. And a lot of

actors, particularly in the 1940s and 1950s, got involved with that.

Was that what she was struggling with? I think Marilyn felt she was

not a proper actress. Therefore, she took up the method to try to

make herself a better actor. So I think when she came to London, she

was an American working with Laurence Olivier, who was the

greatest star actor in the world. And she was the greatest film

actress in the world. And that chemical combination should have

been wonderful. Because Marilyn was struggling, trying to be a method

actress, Paula was there to help her through that. It is difficult

when she is playing a little chorus girl. I said she is more than that.

Let's have a look at you trying to convince her that she is great.

were superb, Marilyn, divine. Have faith in your talent. He was

disappointed in me. You are a great actress. All my life I have prayed

for a great actress who I could help and guide. Like this. I prayed

to God on my knees and he has given me you. You are that great actress,

man in. Trust yourself, trust your talent. Get up. Not until you admit

you are great. Do you, as an actress, think that

Marilyn Monroe was a good actress? Yes, I do. That is what Lawrence

Olivier was struggling with. Her instincts were funny, and she was

bright. I think she was really bright and she doubted that. She

had great doubt in her talent and her belief that what she had innate

sleep was good enough. But I think a lot of performers have that

problem, people have that problem. Everybody has that problem. For

Marilyn, it was about becoming the character she played and finding

confidence in that. But she was also sick at the time. Marilyn was

sick during the filming of that. There is a possibility that she

lost her baby during that time. All of that was going on, plus her

feeling insecure. She was surrounded by British actors.

out tomorrow, My Week With Marilyn. Arthur Smith is on a mission,

finding out how to write a best- selling novel. Last week he

discovered he needed good characters and settings but also

had to choose a pen name beginning with C. Even after all that, there

is the small matter of getting it Many of our greatest best-selling

authors must have been shocked to learn that writing a book was a lot

easier than getting it published. So, if I were to write a potential

bestseller, how do I get myself spotted? Stephen Kelman is a new

author who was not just spotted but shortlisted for this year's Booker

Prize. I did what we are told to do as aspiring writers, which was to

try to find myself and agent. I did that by buying a copy of the

Writers' and artists' Yearbook and getting a list of agents from that

and sending off my three sample chapters and my covering letter.

The first three rejected it for various reasons. 4th time around I

struck gold with my eventual agent. After six months of polishing, we

sent it to publishers. Within a week, there were 12 knocking on the

door, wanting to snap up the rights. You must have been amazed at the

trajectory of a man in his flat on his own. There you are at literary

parties end up for awards. Yes, it was a long dream of mine since I

was six, the only thing I had ever wanted to do. His success rested on

publishing editors picking his manuscript from the hundreds they

receive each week. What makes one stand out? I will firstly consider

how it has been pitched by the agent. If the story they are

telling me has grabbed me, that will make me want to look at it. If

in the opening pages I have been grabbed by the voice or the set-up,

I will put that on to the top of my pile and read it as quickly as I

can. Whether you like it or not must be decided sometimes on how

you are feeling on that day. Yes, it could be that if one comes along

set in South Africa in 1870 and I have read three prior to that set

in the same pot of the world at the same time, I may be feeling set-up

-- fed up. It is not any fault of the novelist, but for that reason I

think editors should remain humble. Also, authors should keep hope and

keep trying, because who knows what is going on in the mind of the

editors, or on their desk? Publishing comes from the age of

the printing press. With the Internet, maybe that is a thing of

the past. Perhaps I should publish myself. Self-publishing is not a

new thing. A lot of people have had books published, vanity publishing.

It is interesting that one or two people have sold over a million

copies without the books ever being imprint. So I could effectively

published myself. Yes. There are always exceptions but you would

probably languish on Amazon at number 553,026. But if you did

something to promote it, you would probably see your book moving up

the chart. And he should know. 14 years ago, his company spotted the

potential of the then unknown Harry Potter. But even Harry Potter did

not fly officials immediately. boss set us a target to sell 30,000

by Christmas and we would get a set -- a case of champagne. We just

scraped it. When the second one came, the retailers did not jump up

and down on it, so we promoted the books. The painted a train red. JK

Rowling arrived at King's Cross station and we got a fantastic

amount of media coverage. That started to kick things off. After

you have written your first bestseller, the question is, can

you write another? Stephen Kelman is facing the challenge of the

second book. It has come with a few added pressures. The expectations

are different. Most of all, I don't want to disappoint people. I don't

want to disappoint myself. I want to prove that I can repeat whatever

success the first one has had. have published your bestseller. All

that you have to do now is to write the next one, and the one after

that, and the one after that. luck with that. Zoe, talking about

Harry Potter, you played Madam Hooch. Hogwarts flying instructor.

What a claim to fame. In the first Harry Potter film. That was good

fun. That photograph was my first day of filming. I walked onto the

green and I saw these kids standing there with broomsticks. I thought

it was the best thing ever. Because it is the book. That, I suppose,

when you read a book and then it comes to life like that, it is very

joyous. You have had an incredible career, but your parents, both

actors, did not want you to go into the profession. No. Why? Your dad

was so successful. I think they know it is a very precarious and

competitive situation to throw yourself into. Especially for a

girl. I think for a woman, it gets harder and harder as you get older.

Also, I think they were scared I was not very good. Which is a

What was the turning point? I think because I really, really wanted to

do it. I really wanted to do it. I went to

art school. I did... I went to a secretary course for a while. I

just really wanted to do it. I think when that happens you can't

stop anybody. If they want to do it, then on your own head.

Somebody else who is passionate is Marty Jopson. N and so far, Marty

Jopson has played with begun powder and dapled with dynamite. Tonight

he finds out how to launch a projectile using explosives. It is

not brain surgery, is it? No, it is rocket science.

Today rockets launch satellites into space, flares into the sky and

even landed us on the moon, but what is a rocket? It is an

explosion, a controlled and contained explosion, but still, a

big, noisy explosion. Paul Mulvihill is a pyrotechnics

expert who has studied the history of rockets. We have come to a

testing range to see how a 1,000- year-old Chinese weapon of war

rocket called a Ground Rat would scare off the enemies.

The bamboo would have begun powder pushed into the end with a diffuse

it would scare off the enemy. Ready? 5, 4, 3, 2, 1... It is still

doing something?! The Ground Rat was effective in early warfare. It

works in the same way as all rockets. From this little toy to

the latest rocket being developed by NASA. A rock set a tube that

shoots gases out of one end. That action pushes the body out of the

body of the rocket in the other direction. It is Newton's Law.

As I pump air into this plastic bottle, there is so much air, the

air rushes out and the rocket body bit flys in the other direction

like this... That's rocket science. A British military colonel called

William Congrieve saw its potential. The disused buildings in Waltham

Abbey, uepbl recently, Dave Simms worked here, it makes him a proper

rocket scientist. So, where did you get the

inspiration for the rocket? Indians used rockets against the

British in India it did cause casualties. I guess he thought that

would be useful for us too. He worked night and day for five

years, perfecting the design in 1806.

This is a mark II rocket. With an iron case.

There is a pressed charge inside. So this is all begun powder?

Correct. That propels it forward. At the top end, contained in a

thicker case, this would explode. So that was the bomb at the end?

Exactly. Stabilised by a pole that make it is years to aim, the rocket

uses two explosives, one to proel and one to explode, making it

devastating. Used against Napoleon, the rocket soon spread to other

wars. The most famous use was in a battle

with the Americans that we had at Fort McHenry, it is commemorated in

the American National Anthem. # The rockets red flare

# Bursting into air... # Paul and I are making something a bit like

this Congrieve rocket. We are using a pre-made begun powder rocket

motor. That's the motor, we are attaching

that to a stick or something? bamboo stick.

So, that will go on the side there? Yes.

Well, we should give it a whirl, I suppose.

# Setting off a rocket. # Slot it into this here... Perfect fit.

Here we go. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1! Welcome at that! That was brilliant! It was

good, wasn't it? A firework display in the daytime. You can't beat it.

Now, another fan of the rockets is here. Dan Snow, by the 20th century,

other nations were winning the rocket race? As so often, the

Americans, probably the father of modern rockets, a guy called Robert

Goddard. He worked with liquid pro pull shone.

That went 2.5 seconds in the air, it went 50m and crashed into a

cabbage patch. Basically, that was the beginning of something big. In

his life he was ridiculed, it is only know we are regarding him as

the great generator of the whole thing. Who had the lead in the

Second World War? The Germans weren't so. The Americans did early

running, sorry, the Germans invested loads. The V2 rockets,

thousands of them were launched against Britain in 1934. One in

November 1934 it killed two people. It terrifying rocket. You could not

shoot them down. There was nothing you could do. Developed by Tom

Werner. After the war his Nazi credentials were forgotten about

and he masterminded America's rockets.

The man on the moon, a lot of it is down to him.

On to another bombshell of a different type, Alex, it is time

for you to get changed. I can't wait.

Marilyn's dress, off you go. Before, that 2012 Olympics, some of

the UK's athletics are seeing their dreams failing before they finish

their training. Bozboz has wondered what the 1988

Olympics Committee would say about that.

A world-class stadium, the state- of-the-art facilities and a luxury

athletes' village. That is what the whopping �9 billion budget is to

bring to 2012 Olympics. Now, with all of this money being

spent it would be nice to think that everything possible is being

done to help Britain's top sports men and women prepare for this once

in a lifetime opportunity. 00 metre runner, Richard Buck has

had success on the track winning four major medals.

But after the glory... Despair. UK Sport invest more than �100 million

a year to support our elite athletes, but UK Athletics, the

body that decides which athletes get the funding say that they can

only back those with a realistic chance of fining -- finishing in

the top eight of their athletic event. That means for some, like

Richard, their dream means they don't get out of the starting

blocks. 2012 Olympics disease not think

that Richard has it in him to win one. From next month his funding

comes to an end. I lost �10,000 in cash and extras

such as medical insurance. It is like losing your job, but you have

to turn up to work but not get paid. I am picking up extra work and

training crazy hours in the morning and the evening. It is not easy.

When you look at people with the funding, they don't have to

compromise their training funding. Richard is not the only one

suddenly facing a cash crisis. The brutal reality of being an

Olympic hopeful. If you are not good enough, you will not get a

penny. That is what happened to Sophie Johnston. She is ranked

British number two in her judo weight, but faces her toughest

fight so far. Competing for selection for next year's Olympics,

having lost her funding from British Judo worth �7,000.

When I got the phone call I was devastated. It will make it very

difficult financially. How will you feel if you don't know

make it? Hmm... I would be devastated.

It has literally been everything in my life that I've been working

towards. I started judo when I was seven. I went to full-time training

at 18. I have been working towards this for a long time.

Training 24/7 does not come cheap. Sophie's funding helped to pay for

her to train with the other athletes in the gym.

It is hardly a glamorous life? not really. 18 of us live here in

the house sharing facilities. You are competing against people

with funding? I have to work inbetween to earn the money. It is

hard, but I'm determined to give it all that I can, obviously, to win a

medal at the Olympics next year. Which athletes get lottery funding

is reviewed every year, but by the time that next year's funding

decisions are announced, the Olympics are over. Both are

determined not to give up on their dream, so they are looking for

sponsorship while working more hours and trying to train. Can both

find inspiration from an earlier generation of athletics? Dorothy

and John both kpweeted in the 1948 -- competed in the 19 48 Games.

I was working, I would do an hour or so running and then go home and

work at the same time. Training camps were unheard of back in 1948.

Training went as far as a weekend at Butlins holiday camp. John

captured this on his camera. It was more of a social gathering.

We met people there we would not have met otherwise before the

Olympics it was enjoyable, but it was all very primitive.

I can't say that I have any sympathy for the ones who have lost

their funding. I believe it's a gift. God's gift

that I was able to run. So why should I accept money for it? A

medal is sufficient. Back in Loughborough, Richard is

not feeling sorry foyer himself. He is keeping body and soul together

by stacking shelves in a supermarket. Is there a worry that

the performance drops off as you are here rather than at the track?

There is always a worry, but it means I have to work harder here

and harder on the track to beat these people. It's the Olympics, no

matter how hard it gets I will keep pushing for it. It is my dream.

Good luck to all of our athletes working hard getting ready for 2012

Olympics. Now, has Alex managed to get into

Marilyn Munroe's dress? So many questions spring to mind. Alex, are

you there? I'm here, honey bunny! Well, the leg's in. Oh, my word,

look at that! Looking good, Al. How does it feel? It feels amazing. Who

would have thought I would be in a Marilyn Munroe's dress? Nice boys.

Well, Andrew Hansford has written a book about all of the dresses,

Dressing Marilyn. Tell us about this, Andrew? You look amazing in

this. Stunning. I have not seen it on anybody before.

This is actually marl ministerial marl's dress? Yes.

-- this is actually Marilyn Munroe's dress? Yes.

It is incredible. When it was new there would have been metal in it

to pop it out. Let's have a look at Marilyn in the

dress... See I'm not quite pulling it off like Marilyn? This is the

prototype? The prototype was the first. Created so she could run

around. So the fabric would have been different? No, it is exactly

the same. My goodness, amazing. What about this one? This is my

personal favourite. This was made for her it was made for a friend,

not a movie. It is more emotive. In particular Marilyn style she went

out, it was raining and she got a tyre mark up the side of it. You

can see there. There is a lipstick stain also on the bottom! Now, I

tried this dress on too, which was marvellous! This one fitted like a

glove, but how much would the dresses cost? I could not say. Very

few have been sold. It is a difficult one. The white dress did

sell a few months ago for $4 .3 million.

I'm so glad I did not drop coffee on this.

Well, that is all we have time for, My Week With Marilyn is out