Victor Spinetti Great Lives

This programme contains strong language.

'Richard Burton called him the most underrated actor in Britain.

'A man who's extraordinary work has been seen

'at the Royal Shakespeare Company, in pantomime,

'at the National Theatre, and most notably with the Beatles.

He's got a great sense of fun.

And he's no-nonsense. That's what I love about Victor.

"Oh, bollocks! Don't listen to them."

And that was good for us because we were coming into the business,

looking around, looking to see what we should do,

who we should listen to, who we didn't need to listen to.

I think he steered us very well on that.

'He's played everyone from Albert Einstein to a pimp,

'and directed plays from those of John Lennon to the musical "Hair".'

Victor came in to play the ponce of the two prostitutes,

and he brought such fun to it, but also a rascal.

And you kind...

I always remember saying to him,

"I quite enjoy being a prostitute with you!"

'He's worked with the likes of Peter Sellers,

'Laurence Olivier and Elizabeth Taylor.

'Still performing today, he remains an inspiration to a new generation.'

I used to do an impression of Vic, and it would basically be -

"Anyway, so there I was, and John Lennon said,

"Hey Vic, do you wanna go some place warm?

"Where do you mean, the kitchen? Next thing you know, we're in Morocco!

"I was like a pig in surely you've heard that story."

'Is he an actor? Is he a comedian?

'Is he Welsh? Is he Italian?

'I'm not sure. What I do know is that he's someone who takes no prisoners.

'He's a five star character.

'He's a master storyteller who's led an extraordinary life

'and his name is Victor Spinetti.'

Good evening Mr Spinetti. It's good to see you, sir.

Steps are a nuisance!

There we are. OK?

Victor, it's a wonderful privilege to be with you this evening.

I can tell you this,

I've been awake for the last three nights talking to you.

So I'm glad you've turned up at last!

I've been going on in my mind.

# Close your eyes And I'll kiss you. #

'Victor Spinetti is known for many things,

'but especially as the only non Beatle to appear in all of their films.

'He was riding high in the West End when director Richard Lester,

'John Lennon and George Harrison went to see him perform.'

George Harrison said, "You gotta be in our film.

"You gotta be in all our films,

"otherwise me mum won't come and see 'em cos she fancies you."

'Victor was asked to play the part of the television director in A Hard Days Night.

'A part he decided to portray as highly strung and added a twist

'by wearing one of his own very special jumpers.'

Right. Let's hear no more about it. You're probably right.

If you think I'm unsuitable, let's have it out in the open.

I can't stand these backstage politics.

Aren't you turning to black and white the situation somewhat?

Quite honestly, I wasn't expecting a musical arranger to question my ability picture wise.

I could listen to him for hours!

I walked round the set in this jumper with all the Beatles there.

And I said, "Right, you're late for rehearsals.

"I'm a director of this show..."

And John said, "You're not a director.

"You're Victor Spinetti playing the part of a director."

And I said...

-I won an award.

-A likely story.

-It's on the wall in my office.

And John said, "Office? You haven't even got a dressing room!"

We wrote it from our ad-libs just in life.

So I think it looked very true to life.

A lot of it was scripted,

but Richard Lester was clever enough to allow us to ad-lib

if it was happening, if anyone came up with an idea.

And of course, Victor can roll with those punches very easily.

You know, he's...

That doesn't flummox him at all.

I remember saying the one thing.

If this goes on, I'll end up doing the news in Welsh!

'While he was improvising in the film,

'he employs a technique of drawing from his own experience.'

-Where's Ringo?

-There he is. We've got him.

-Great.

You don't know what this means to me.

If you hadn't come back, it would have meant the epilogue or the news in Welsh for life.

'Victor Spinetti was born in the small town of Cwm near Ebbw Vale.

'The family first arrived when his grandfather walked over 1,000 miles

'from Bardi in Italy.

'Victor's father, Giuseppe, known locally as Joe,

'opened a chip shop in 1926.

'It survives to this day.

See that window up there? That's where I was born.

In there.

I remember the time too because it was twelve o'clock

and the twelve o'clock hooter sounded at the pit!

And honest to God, the first time I ever heard pop songs

was lying in that bed up there as a kid.

And the miners coming up from the pit down there

from the night shift, walking along.

I'd hear the boots

and then the men kept gulping the fresh air from being in the pit.

Sometimes with a little fag.

And I used to hear them singing quietly.

That's the first time I heard pop songs.

# Every time it rains It rains pennies from heaven. #

Or...

# Amapola my pretty little poppy. #

Or...

# The music goes round and round

# Whoa, who, whoa. #

Do you know what the beautiful thing about it was?

They sang quietly. They knew there were people sleeping.

They didn't come up and sing loudly.

# The music goes round and round. #

No. It was to themselves. Singing.

Hello. Alright? Happy new year.

Hello.

How are you? Alright?

Well, well, well. Oh my God!

Look at those photos!

I'd forgotten about those.

'At the start of the Second World War,

'the fear of an enemy within meant that even an Italian chip shop owner

'was considered a threat to the state.'

One day I'm Welsh, the next day I'm a spy.

The police came, erm... Four o'clock in the morning.

I heard this scuffling, I opened the door

and I saw Dad's face disappearing down the stairs with the police

and Mam saying, "What are you doing?"

"Mrs Spinetti, your husband's an alien."

"Alien?! He's my husband!"

Anyway, off he went.

He wasn't allowed to take an overcoat, no toothbrush, no razor,

no overcoat, nothing.

So the next day I rushed into school and said,

"The police came last night and took our Dad away."

And he said, "Fuck off you Italian bastard!"

'This experience was to have a lasting effect on Victor's attitude towards authority

'and brought out a rebellious streak in him, which invariably led to conflict with his father,

'who had a strong desire to conform to Valleys life.'

Although he was Italian, Dad wasn't really that demonstrative.

Our Mam was the demonstrative one.

Everybody used to think that she was the Italian.

They used to think that Dad...

Dad wanted to be a Cwm boyo.

All our Dad wanted to be was a Cwm boyo.

He wanted to wear a cap, smoke cigarettes

and drink Rhymney bitter in the local legion club.

He didn't want anything else.

'Victor was naturally curious about life and had ambitions for himself.

'When teachers suggested that he would benefit

'from going away to boarding school at Monmouth,

'it was advice that both Victor and his father were happy to take.'

I think Dad was glad to get me out of the house because I was irksome.

I remember sitting and reading a paper, and this was in 1936.

"Oh look Dad, the Queen Mary has just crossed the Atlantic."

"Who told you that?" "There it is."

Clip, because the poor bugger could hardly read English,

and there was this child yakking away.

One time, Dad threw some of my books on the fire.

"Reading! Only girls read!"

'The way out of the valley was acting.

'First through amateur dramatics,

'followed by a stint at the new Cardiff College of Music and Drama.

'With his horizons broadened and the chance to escape,

'he headed for London.'

There was a pub in Hammersmith I used to sing in.

I got three quid for the weekend.

# If ever the devil was born. #

I'd do all that!

And old Jolson numbers.

'A natural hard worker meant that when Victor wasn't doing a turn in pubs,

'he was working in a lampshade factory

'that allowed time off for auditions.'

I said to the foreman, I've got an audition at Drury Lane.

Off I'd go, paint splattered, jeans, T-shirt, crew cut,

going down to Drury Lane.

And of course, there were all these actors

leaning on their umbrellas, looking like Ralph Richardson!

And there was me with paint on my shoes!

The show was South Pacific, which I'd never seen.

I looked like a Seabee.

I walked in and this guy said, "What's your name?

"What are you doing? Are you an actor?

"Christ! Are you sure?"

I said, "Yes."

He said, "Give him that script to read."

So I read this script and he said,

"OK, you've got the part. Join the show tonight. It's in Coventry."

And years later, I said to him, "Why did you do it?"

He said, "You looked as if you can do it,

"and if you look as if you can do it, we can make you do it."

'Victor's first break came

'when the lead in South Pacific had an accident.

'A young Scottish actor was on hand

'to make sure Victor grabbed his chance.'

Sean Connery was in the show as well. It was his first show.

He stood behind me, pushed me and said, "You're on."

I went on to the stage, "And..."

He was marvellous. He sat up with me in the digs all night.

We didn't know about drugs. We were just drinking coffee.

He said, "Stay awake because tomorrow you've got to give a performance.

"Tonight, you got through on nerves."

'Touring the provinces is all very well,

'but the aspiring young actor needs to get known

'and to get work in London.

'In Victor's case, this meant doing a turn on a stage

'in which the girls weren't actresses at all.'

The Irving Theatre Strip Club.

The only club were the nudes can move.

I went in to see it. I joined and then I went into the bar.

I was talking to the guy who ran it, Mr Choudary.

"I'm looking for somebody to play with my lovely girls."

I said, "Me." He said, "Start Monday." He was desperate.

On the Monday, I open in the West End. This little place.

Five shows a day, four on Sundays.

The tabs opened and my first number was -

# So this is London

# Where the sophisticates meet. #

I looked out in the audience and it was composed entirely

of four Chinese sailors playing with themselves!

'Doing reviews in the strip club

'meant he was learning how to hold his own as an entertainer.

'And then he had a life changing audition

'with the radical left wing theatre director, Joan Littlewood.'

...about the Soho underworld, under their director, Joan Littlewood.

'Joan Littlewood created plays for and about ordinary people.

'She was unique in the world of post war theatre.

'Amongst her many gifts was a flair for spotting original talent.'

A woman that I'll love until the end of my life. She was fabulous.

But I had to go an audition for her.

So I went up to Wyndhams. I had a break between shows.

I went to see her. "Hello, darling." Down she comes to the front.

"Have we met before?"

Because directors don't come down to the front. They sit in the back.

She said, "If somebody said, here's £1 million, pull down this theatre

"and turn it into a potato warehouse, what would you do?"

I said, "I'd pull it down and go round the world.

"There are lots of theatres in London and most of them are showing rubbish."

She said, "You've got the part. You can play Charlie."

A voice in the back said, "Charlie's the lead."

And she said, "You've got the lead, love."

'Joan Littlewood recognised a unique talent in Victor.

'Her methods, based on experiment and improvisation,

'played to Victor's strengths.'

She was a funny old creature, she was, you know.

I'm sure he...

I'm sure Victor thinks sometimes that she didn't like him.

But I think it's an admiration they've got for you.

They don't know how to put it, you know.

She'd just say, "Well Victor can do anything can't he?

"He can do any accent. He can do anything."

'In "Oh What a Lovely War", Victor played a variety of roles,

'most notably the compare and the sergeant major.'

Joan always said that we have to entertain.

She was one of those people that...

She loved the fact that I did variety.

She loved the fact that I could talk directly to an audience,

which is what she used in "Oh What a Lovely War".

But the way she worked was...

For example in "Oh What a Lovely War",

there was a scene at the end of act one in the trenches.

First of all, we rehearsed it, we did impressions.

How would Groucho Marx play this scene?

All sorts of lovely, fun, bubbly things, joyous things came in.

I was terribly upset when I wasn't called for rehearsals.

Actors couldn't wait to have a day off. I wanted to be there.

# Oh it's a lovely war. #

'After critical success in London,

'the show was about to move to Broadway

'when Victor's loyalty was tested

'by a lucrative offer from a big shot producer in Los Angeles.'

A million dollars, Hollywood.

I said, "But I've got to go to New York with Oh What a Lovely War."

He said, "I don't want you to go to New York with that.

"Anybody who's anybody has already seen you in that show in London.

"I don't want you to go to New York." I thought, "Who's he?"

I said, "I'm an integral part of the show. I can't just walk out now."

He said, "Make up your mind. A million dollars, Hollywood, or..."

I thought about it and I realised then that for me, it's no good.

Hollywood's no good for me. The whole idea of going to Hollywood.

You have a blonde with the biggest boobs,

the boyfriend in the closet, the smartest car,

and if Gene Kelly didn't invite you to his tennis weekend, you were nobody.

That is small town living.

There's not enough money in the world.

I think most people find it very hard to believe that any actor

wouldn't want to become a success in Hollywood.

That's the default setting in our society

is that the height of success in acting is to be in an American film.

Ideally, a successful one. But it's not necessarily the case.

I'm not putting words in his mouth,

but it's not necessarily the be all and end all.

'Victor decided to pass on the Hollywood contract

'and went to New York with "Oh What a Lovely War".

'Victor's performance on Broadway was a huge success

'and he went on to win a Tony Award,

'the highest accolade in American theatre.'

The night of the ceremony and Carol Channing was presenting the award

and she opened the envelope and said, "And the winner is Victor Spinetti."

I didn't expect to win so I ran up on stage, I had no speech prepared.

But I thought, I'll do it in phoney Welsh. I mean, they won't know.

So I said to the audience, "I'd like to make my acceptance speech

"in the language of the country of my birth."

They thought Italian, right? But I did it in Welsh.

I don't speak Welsh but I know the tune. This was my speech.

I said, "(PRETENDS TO SPEAK WELSH)... the director, Joan Littlewood."

IMPERSONATES APPLAUSE

Then, "(PRETENDS TO SPEAK WELSH)... the producer, David Merrick."

IMPERSONATES APPLAUSE

Then I said, "(PRETENDS TO SPEAK WELSH)... the cast."

IMPERSONATES APPLAUSE

I came off stage and they said, "Oh Mr Spinetti, from that little country."

There wasn't a word of Welsh in it!

'Victor's flair for the surreal fitted perfectly

'in the Beatles' next film, "Magical Mystery Tour",

'where he was able to reprise his role

'of the sergeant major character from "Oh What a Lovely War"

'and demonstrate his ability to play the absurd.'

Waa-aye-jolly-bow-oo-aa-thaa-oop-see- it-see-aa-sop-right.

I said, you know the thing you did in Lovely War, that's fantastic.

Can we have that character pretty much and just make it up.

I'll be sort of, "Oh jolly good."

I'll just nod occasionally and you just take the scene.

I knew he could do it.

Na-come-n-told-and-n-come-n-told-and- me-come-sure-velsut!

Jolly good!

That's great. Wonderful.

You-wanna-come-to-buddy-ongl-jon-o lly-out-of.

'His unique improvisational style demands virtuosic technique.'

Why?

-Why?

-Why?

You-loss-on-hoi-you-low-tha-bloody-j ean-tha-cut-tha-sta-a-drow.

O-eh-tha-come-a-start-a-drow.

You-ga-mas-anasonic.

You get your bloody hair cut!

A Beatle at the National Theatre.

An excerpt from 'In His Own Right'. John Lennon the writer.

And Victor Spinetti, who adapted and directed it.

'In 1968, Victor worked with his friend John Lennon,

'directing and adapting John's books into a play - In His Own Right.

'This was his first foray into the world of directing theatre.'

An awful lot of the play is about radio and TV.

Well, that's all I ever heard.

-I mean, you go home and...

-Comic books.

-You've got your comic books, your church...

-Your classic comics.

-Your classic comics.

-Your Beano.

-Your school.

Your school, your pub and your TV and your radio.

-Exactly.

-And that was it.

It's a funny thing you didn't put in pop music.

-This is before.

-No, because up until then, it hadn't hit me.

Pop music didn't hit me until I was 16 and this is all before,

the things that happened before 16.

But it's not really John's childhood, it's all of ours really.

It is. We're all one, Victor. We're all one, aren't we?

It was a kind of knack to get into our inner circle.

And it was the knack of not being bothered, of not thinking,

"I must get into that inner circle."

Anyone who thought that couldn't get in,

because you could see they were trying too hard.

Someone like Victor, he just was in anyway.

You couldn't get him out!

'Over the years, Victor Spinetti has appeared principally in comic roles

'in the West End and on Broadway.

'He's made over 30 films

'and yet it is still the challenge of the work itself that drives him.

'In 2005 he departed from comedy by playing Albert Einstein,

'a character wracked with guilt at the end of his life,

'in the fringe production of Albert's Boy

'by the highly regarded young playwright James Graham.'

I don't know how he does it but you only have to look into his eyes.

And somewhere behind there, something was going on

that wasn't necessarily in my text, or that I'd earned,

but there was such a weight of pain, remorse, regret,

torment... I don't where he gets it from,

I imagine from the things that's happened in his life.

But he brought it all to this part

and he would do it with the way he used his mouth,

or the very small glazing over of his eyes.

But it's just incredible the emotional truth he can bring

to a part and he broke my heart every night.

You've had this extraordinary life. Do you have any regrets?

Well, yes. Of course.

Regrets about not being able to say to people at the right time,

when you needed to say it, like "I love you",

or... Sometimes that's difficult to say, or things that you...

Those things.

'Victor Spinetti's character is rooted in family and friends.

'Wherever he performed or where one of the shows he directed was playing, Victor always made sure

'that his nearest and dearest were there, often in the plushest of circumstances.

'His occasionally difficult relationship with his father

'was finally resolved when Victor invited his parents

'to see his production of the hit musical Hair in Rome.'

'Strange, really, sons and their fathers.'

Victor always waited for Dad to tell him that you were good.

And he waited...

and he waited...

and then when he took Hair to Rome,

and Dad saw his name up in lights, cos he got them to Rome...

He said, "You must come over," he took this wonderful apartment

and he said to Mam and Dad, "You must come to Rome and see Hair in Rome."

And that's when my father stood outside the theatre in Rome

and burst into tears, because the Spinetti name was above the theatre.

'Victor Spinetti's relentless need to work

'means he has played everything, from Shakespeare at the RSC

'to the musical Oliver, from Taming the Shrew with Burton and Taylor,

'to directing the racy Let's Get Laid for Soho sex king Paul Raymond.

'Still living above the shop, Victor has a flat in Soho in London.

Yet, though he as at the centre of theatre land,

he still feels the need to keep his distance, to be an outsider.'

When I was with the RSC, very often I'd meet someone after,

"Oh, didn't you direct that play, something by Paul Raymond?"

I'd say, "Yes."

I was once warned off,

a member of the establishment, very high up,

said to Tony Shaffer, the guy who wrote Sleuth,

"Tell Victor Spinetti, if he directs another play for Paul Raymond,

"he's finished in this country."

I mean...

OK.

-< Have you got your own dressing room here yet?

-Number one.

What do you bloody expect?

My lav is bigger than my dressing room. Have a look.

'Now aged 81, Victor is still on tour,

'currently playing the role of an elderly butler

'in Ian Dickens' production of Murdered to Death.

'To this day, he remains stimulated by the process of acting

'and those who get to work with him consider it a privilege.'

'You have to work with Victor Spinetti if you've done anything in this business. He's a legend.

'He can be as big and as large as he wants or as subtle as he wants.'

He comes on as the butler,

makes people laugh and then runs off.

So he's got carte blanche to do his own stuff in this

and he camps it up fully.

This business of luvvie-ing...

Being in love with the business, it's not that.

It's finding out how to do what you want.

Some nights on stage, I've done this show for months,

to find the correct way to deliver a line.

At the moment, you think, "That's the way to deliver it!" That minute, you're a millionaire.

That's what the riches are in this business.

People that do it to become rich must be idiots. Be a banker!

I admire him, as one of the most talented actors I've ever seen, you know.

And to work with, he gives... he gives, he just doesn't take, he's a great giver.

He makes me laugh, he's very witty, he's wonderful to go out with.

I haven't worked with him for some time, but I go to see him in anything he does.

I said to him once, "You've worked with all these people #we consider to be the greats,

"these iconic figures. What do they share? What would you say they have in common?"

And he knew straight away.

He said, "They all lived in the moment."

They weren't thinking about what was coming or what had gone by,

but now...which is fascinating.

They say that's one of the things, one of the keys to happiness.

'A natural entertainer, the Welsh- Italian boy from the Valleys,

'always happy to conjure up a magical moment.'

One of Victor's things that he would do,

he would say, "I can make clouds disappear." We'd say, "Sure, get out of here!"

"No. I can. Do you want to see me do it?" We'd say, "Yeah!"

He'd say, "Right, choose a cloud." And we'd go, "That one."

He said, "OK."

And he would look at it and you'd look at it and it would disappear.

It was like, "Magic! How do you do that?"

He's very much admired and very loved.

Joan adored him.

Joan adored him because he was so fantastic.

He could take something and just do wonders with it.

'He spent a lifetime entertaining.

'During that time, he's won awards, reached the top of his profession,

'he's worked with all of the greats and has a wealth of experience he's happy to share,

'but far from resting on his laurels, Victor Spinetti lives in the moment

'and is looking forward to the next curtain call.'

I come out, mun, and there's life... there's life outside.

I mean, I grew up in the country in Cwm and I loved it.

I was up the mountains...

But now, I'm a townie.

I'm a townie. I love it!

I love it. I love being in the middle of things.

I think when you're older, you should be in the centre of things.

Not on the outskirts, in the middle. I come out of my front door

and there's this, there's Covent Garden, there's Soho.

I couldn't be happier.

I couldn't be luckier.

Bloody wonderful!

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