RA FRIDAY - WATERBOARDED , HE SPOKE!

1. LAST WEEK my RA Friday post contained a video quiz (click and see it) . A few of you took the time to watch it. Mulubinba and Phylly3 immediately guessed. It was not that hard, was it? Thanks for watching and commenting,  of course! For all the others , here’s the answer. The title of the clip is Strike Back quoting Spooks because … they used the same soundtrack. Have you noticed the music in the background while Lucas and Elizaveta talk is the same as that while John Porter is informally debriefed by his superior. I noticed it immediately, as I told you, because I had seen that scene from Spooks 7 more than once. Congratulations to those of you who guessed, then!

2. THIS WEEK I’d like to go on with the comparison . No quizzes, relax, but not too much. Tough issue, I'm afraid. I’m sure you noticed there is something more Spooks 7 and Strike Back have in common. You have to focus on the first two episodes of SB, those set in Iraq in which JP has to rescue reporter Katie Dartmouth (Orla Brady). What else do they have in common?

Waterboarding. Richard Armitage was again waterboarded as John Porter. But did Richard accept to be actually tortured this time too? It seems he did. I had doubts at first,  but watching carefully the sequence I think they didn’t use a stand-in. Though this time Richard didn’t talk about it at all, or did he? Promoting Spooks 7 he happened to discuss the shooting of that torture scene (series 7 ep. 3) in detail in many interviews, this time he didn’t even mention it, if I’m not wrong. Has he told anything about waterboarding in SB?

In 2007 Richard declared that consultants from both the CIA and the FSB, the Russian intelligence service, assured him that waterboarding was much more of a psychological device of extracting information, “a humane way of extracting information without hurting people”. According to Kudos Film & TV, producers of Spook , there was a health & safety advisor on the set and Lucas /Richard was totally in charge during the filming to the extent that there was an agreed upon signal that he could end the procedure should it become too much to handle. Richard said the signal was given somewhere between 3 and 5 seconds. He couldn’t resist more and he also said it was definitely awful. It was not a psychological device, a humane procedure but a real physical torture.

Think about it … It must be terribly hard - though you know you can stop it waving your hand. Think how stressing it can be when one - Richard - has not got a very good relationship with water. Reading what Richard said in 2007 can help us realize what a physical and psychological effort it may be even to a strong and fit man as he is.

Here are some articles/interviews in which Richard talked about it ( The Telegraph co.uk, Times Online and Daily Mail Online) . It seems Richard was really shocked by the experience. So it is incrdible that he  accepted to repeat it for Strike Back. I personally wouldn’t do it. But knowing his extreme sense of duty and his wish for authenticity in  acting, I suspect he might have done it again.

Richard goes on saying he is nothing like the tough blokes he has or had to play in Robin Hood, Spooks or Strike Back , that he could never be a good soldier like John Porter, but maybe he undervalues his strength. What makes a man heroic? was the title of my interview with author Beth Pattillo. I agree with her answer to my question: "I think a man who is a hero is strong enough to know when he can be weak, courageous enough to know when to be afraid..."

3. INTERVIEWS . I’ve loved reading Richard’s latest interview in The Mirror (it seems conducted on the SB Premiere but came out only on 30th May) and listening to the second part of the audio recording David Stephenson, TV editor for the Sunday Express, released from his interview with Richard a few weeks ago. Actually,  they didn’t have to waterboard him to extract information. He just seems to like speaking about himself, his work, his future plans.

From the audio interview

- It’s interesting to know  how much he cares for his Richard III project. (20 episodes? I’d love to see such a long costume series with Richard as the protagonist!)

- To listen to his voice talking about his middle-aged, quite well-educated , radio 4 listener fans is less disagreeable than reading the same words as they were put in the article by the journalist. The tone of his voice was caring and respectful, not ironic at all. He explained he knows the attention to him came through his John Thornton but it has then gone on . His fans even watched Robin Hood which was meant for kids ( black leather – clad Gisborne for kids? ) and now were ready to see Strike Back ... but maybe not to approve of it (He still doesn’t know or can't imagine how much his admirers are ready to widen their horizons!)


- He also jokes about working in the movies and going to America . Does he really want to do it? He doesn’t sound so sure. He seems to prefer Rupert Penry- Jones staying there and he being engaged in good British productions. But … who knows what he actually wants?

From the Mirror

- He still can’t believe he is considered sexy, a hot date, the not-so-much-secret dream of many a woman . A beanpole with a nose?!? That gorgeous giant?

- He was wearing Italian designer clothes at the SB Premiere (Dolce and Gabbana suit + Prada shirt) but usually wears Lucas’s clothes. He doesn’t like shopping for clothes. Neither do I.

- He would like to get married and have children but suffers from a sub-form of the Peter Pan syndrome: he doesn’t feel about 40 but 25 in his mind! ( I sympathize with him, I always remove how old I am!) Anyhow, my husband got married at 25 and had his first child at 26 … with me, of course. So, if he is 25 at least in his mind, it is not that early… what does he need? To find the right woman. Let’s see…

- His dream woman should be a bit naughty and should love eating. Just that? Why hasn’t he found one yet? It shouldn’t be so difficult … naughty and loving food…. The world must be full of women like that. But of course, he was joking. I'm sure he must want much more.

- His love life is nil. He’s not in a relationship any longer – He’s working too much – but he would like to settle down at some point. That’s probably why he’s going to LA soon... What does that mean? The naughty, food loving lucky, very lucky girl must be American and from LA? ( I found this answer to the question “ how’s your love life?” rather awkward). Did I get it wrong? Well, I’m Italian, that is, English is a foreign language to me, after all.

- Then we learn about his being addicted to skiing , his being very proud of his grey 2-year-old  BMW, his being able to plumb and sand floors and not fearing to remain unemployed if his phone stops ringing, his nostalgic dragging out his cello from the loft recently.

- He started the interview drinking water (good!)   but ended up with a glass of white wine ( better!) , he is a gent and helped the journalist to see  SB screening (she had forgotten the tickets!)

So what? Well… I feel that the more one reads/listens to his interviews the more one must admit he is so incredibly... human. Not an alien from the stardom planet.  He's just very … Can you help me? Which is the right adjective to you? ( Have I already told you my favourite among his performances are ... his interviews? Yes, in Richard being Richard )

COMING SOON ... RICHARD AT BAFTA 2010

Sunday June 6th

(Fingers crossed for Spooks!)