Street roots., September 12, 2014, Page 7, Image 7

7
Street roots
S ep t 12, 2014
E.I.: Robert Watson-Watt was tenacious as
well. I will always play characters that are
determined bastards. Without Watson-Watt
and his team, the Germans could have
invaded and occupied Britain. And if that
had happened, it would have been much
more difficult to get the Nazi cancer out of
Germany. They were expecting every day,
right through the summer of 1940 that the
invasion could come. Without the invention
of radar, the result of the war could have
been very different — exactly how different
is impossible to tell. It builds up to the
Battle of Britain, and the big question is
whether we will have a system that can give
us 20 minutes to get our planes up there
rather than chasing after their planes when
they have already bombed the crap out of
us.
A.L.: And he is backed by Churchill (played
by Tim Mclnnerny)?
E J.: This is Churchill during his.
wilderness years. He is not in power, he is a
backbencher, but he is pointing out that
Hitler might be a danger. He is rising back
up after being out of favor for some time. It
isn’t that Watson-Watt backed the right
horse in Churchill, it is that Churchill backs
the right horse in Watson-Watt.
A.L.: It’s a nice change to See a war story
where the scientist is the hero...
R EU TER S/JESSIC A R IN A L D I
Comedian Eddie Izzard gestures as he speaks after being presented with the sixth annual Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award in Cultural
Humanism at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., in 2013. ,
■
Radar, phone bugging,, death rays and always those pesky Nazis!
Izzard is also plotting a run for political
office. Already a strong presence within the
Labour Party, the comic has promised to
t is the last day of filming on “Castles in
the Sky.” We are in Eddie Izzard’s trailer, stand in the “personality-led” race for
London mayor. And if that doesn’t succeed?
in a car park in Edinburgh. It is sparse,
no home comforts here, with just an iPhone, He has another plart. And besides, he says,
“I’m a tenacious bastard.”
a pair of headphones and a script on the
table to hint that it is in use. “You’re from
Adrian Lobb: Is that a characteristic you
The Big Issue,” he says. “Oh, well, that’s
admire in people?
good. Not Nazis Weekly, then?”
Izzard wears the 1940s scientist chic well
Eddie Izzard: As long as they have a
- braces, horn-rimmed glasses, slick slide­
heart Some people are really determined
parting. “I seem to morph quite easily into
but are also realty evil. So determination and
different looks,” he says, with a lopsided
struggle and doing good and interesting
grin. “This is a good one.”
work — I do admire those people. Nelson
But he is tired. Filming has been intense,
a 90-minute drama filmed on a documentary Mandela is obviously one. I think he may
have been one of the greatest people who
budget But what a story. Izzard plays
has ever lived. Because he is not calling on
Robert Watson-Watt, the scientist from
god, he is not saying he is a saint, he is just
Brechin, Scotland, whose team developed
a guy but he did push very hard and did it
radar - beating the German scientists to
with such honour. He learnt Afrikaans, he
this game-changing invention, enabling the
learnt the language of people who were
early detection of bombing raids and victory
against him. And I am learning languages
in the Battle of Britain.
now and doing stand-up in the languages of
“It’s a good role and a great story,” says
people who are not against us, but who in
Izzard. “I knew about radar and I m
our history we have been pitted against. I’m
somewhat encyclopedic about World War II
doing stand-up in German this year.
but I didn’t know it was Robert Watson-Watt
BY ADRIAN LOBB
C O N TR IB UTIN G WRITER
S
who had put it together. It is good to get
their story out to people. It is kind of
“Rocky” for scientists; a story of these
people pulling off this incredible invention
on a wing and a prayer.
“I’m interested in all history, not just this
period. But World War II is incredible,
because of the energy changes in the world.
That is why wars get into our focus. A lot of
things are changing at once. Times of •
extremes are very interesting.”
But war stories are just one of Izzard’s
interests. An obsessive and an enthusiast,
his mind jumps from one subject to another
at an alarming pace. This will surprise no
one who has witnessed his stand-up. And a
schedule that includes appearing in almost
every scene of this film, preparing for stand­
up shows in German, French and English,
preparing for pilot season in the US and
shooting the TV series “Hannibal” in
Canada is extreme by any standards. But
A.L.: How do you make your comedy
universal, to work across different languages
and cultures?
this whole thing about whether America
bugged Angela Merkel’s phone — I just
think, what is the point? What bad stuff is
going to come up? What are you listening
for? I don’t see Obama doing it - 1 presume
someone left the gas on from the Bush era.
They should be bugging people who are
trying to do America harm, not a democratic
European country. It doesn’t make any
sense.
A.L.: You’re increasingly vocal about
politics, and have a higher profile within the
Labour Party than most MPs. You’ve spoken
out against Scottish Independence and the
Monarchy, and in favour of the EU, so will
you be running for office in the future as
you’ve promised?
E.I.: That is still very much on for 2920.
I’ll be doing th at
A.L.: And will that be running as Labour
candidate for London mayor? |
E.I.: It could be standing as an MP if
there is someone else [from Labour] in the
job as London mayor. But yes, I’ll either be
standing for Parliament or for mayor by
then.
A.L.: Before then, what are your acting
ambitions?
E.I.: I have made my comedy universal
E.I.: Being good in better roles. Onwards
for about 15 years now. It is only the
and upwards, Stuff that is outside the
cultural references that are different There
comfort zone. Keep pushing i t My early
are mainstream audiences and alternative
stuff is not great work - 1 had to hit a few
audiences in every country, and I’m OK as
brick walls before finding my feet. But I
long as I don’t get in front of a mainstream
have my feet under the table now. When did
one, because they will never get me. But an
I realize I knew what I was doing? Good
alternative audience just needs to hear the
words. Same stuff, change the language. It is question: I saw something towards the end
of shooting “Lost Christmas” (in 2011) that
the right way to follow this film. After
has stayed with me. It was very subtle,
playing the man who helped get the Nazi
sucking the camera in, rather than blowing
disease and cancer out of Germany, I’ll go
„
the
information into the camera.
and do stand-up, as me, in that country.
Since 1945 they have tried to be an
A.L.: You’re playing Robert Watson-Watt in
exemplary country. It is only the Nazis that
“
Castles
in the Sky* - how important was his
tried to kidnap the country. And they are
role in the war effort?
never going to go back in that direction. So
E.I.: Barnes Wallis is known for inventing
the bouncing bomb, and Mitchell is known
for building the Spitfire. But Spitfires are
beautiful to look at — you can show dogfights
— and in Wallis’s story you can show the
endless bouncing bomb trials. But with
radar, it is difficult to grab the visuals on it.
So we go through the story of the gang
tryingto make it happen, and Watson-Watt’s
family life. Laura Fraser and I filmed the
entirg24yearsofWatson-Watt’srelationship
with his wife over three days, with the
emotions going from positive to negative. It
was very tricky. While he saves the country,
it destroys his marriage.
A.L.: Are you a science boffin as well as a
linguist?
E.I.: I did sciences up to university, so
this, does cross over into areas that I know. I
don’t think I would have done it, but you
rewind your life and think, “Why didn’t I
concentrate more?” th e re is a potential that
I could have studied physics. There was a
point when I was realty digging physics, and
now I can dig it even more. In this film, it is
mission stuff, and when there is a real
mission you can get into it. They began by
trying to copy the rumored Nazi death rays
and came up with something different It
sounds very science fiction, but this is
applied science, science that makes things
happen. You know exactly what they are
trying to do with radar — they are going to
save the country.
A.L.: There have been some great war films
over the years - what have been your favorites?
E.I.: One that was very interesting was
called “Ike: Countdown to D Day,” which has
— who played Magnum PI? — Tom Selleck
playing Eisenhower. That is ah interesting
one that not many people know about [he
finds a picture on his phone] He looks great,
doesn’t he? And “Hope And Glory” is
another good one, about being evacuated
like my dad was at that time. I grew up with
my dad’s stories about how he could see
London burning from St. Albans.
A.L.: Where do you go from, here?
E.I.: I am in the middle of a massive tour,
I’m heading off to play in the Hannibal
Lecter TV series' I want to work in as many
countries in the world as I can. I also have
to write my own films. I am working on
several, which is exciting. I need to get
those out of my head....
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