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Slapstick 2008 Slapstick Gala Event Paul Merton's Silent Comedy Classics Friday 18th January Paul Merton hosted this special event at Colston Hall in Bristol. Chris Serle started the evening off, then Paul Merton introduced the films, starting with Buster Keaton's 'One Week', followed by the Laurel and Hardy classic 'Leave Em Laughing'. Both of these films had a three piece musical accompaniment by Neil Brand, Gunter Buchwald and Frank Bockius. Paul then took to the stage, along with the 15-piece Emerald Ensemble, to sing "Eternally" and then "Smile", two Charlie Chaplin songs, arranged by Neil Brand. Paul sang beautifully. He has such an amazing voice it makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand on edge. The only disappointment was that the microphone didn't work, so it was very quiet until a second microphone slid across the stage! The second part of the evening consisted of Paul Merton chatting with Christoper Chaplin, Charlie Chaplin's son. They then introduced 'The Gold Rush', a Charlie Chaplin film from 1925. This featured the world premiere of Timothy Brock's reorchestration of Charlie Chaplin's original score for the film, commissioned by Paul Merton. The film was hugely enjoyable and, other than Paul's singing, the highlight of the evening. It was incredibly well received by the audience and watching a film of such magnitude with a huge crowd of like-minded people was a great experience. Silent Comedy and the Great War with Paul McGann and Matthew Sweet Sunday 20th January This event took place on the Sunday morning of the festival and was very enjoyable. Paul and Matthew Sweet introduced clips from films including 'The Better Ole' (1926) and a complete screening of Chaplin's mini-masterpiece 'Shoulder Arms' (1918). The films were enjoyable but the conversation was even more so. Both Paul and Matthew are highly knowledgeable about the subject of Silent Film and their enthusiasm shone through. They talked at length about Charlie's brother, Syd, and the relationship between the brothers. (Syd played The Kaiser, as well as Charlie's comrade, in this film.) as well as discussing the impact these films and others had at the time and the way in which they were used to boost morale. This event was very informal and relaxed and a lot of the audience were very knowledgeable about the subject and asked various questions. For me, it was a further introduction to a hitherto unknown genre, but one into which I find myself increasingly drawn. I shall be attending next year's event without a doubt! |
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Pandora's Box Hosted by Paul McGann |
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On September 15th 2007, at Bristol's Colston Hall, The World Premiere of a new score by Paul Lewis for 'Pandora's Box' took place. This event was in celebration of Watershed's 25th Anniversary and was presented by Watershed and Bristol Silents. Paul Lewis conducted the Royal Ballet Sinfonia orchestra whilst we sat and watched this 1928 silent film. What an experience. There was a short introduction by Mark Cosgrove, head of programmes for Watershed. Chris Daniels from Bristol Silents then spoke briefly before Paul McGann, as guest speaker, took to the stage. Paul spoke about Louise Brooks for a few moments - about how she was a dancer who'd been selected after over 2000 german girls had been seen and that she wasn't an actress but turned out to be a natural on screen. He talked about the controversy that surrounded the film when it was released due to the explicit nature of some of the scenes. The film was panned by the critics, due to the severe editing it had undertaken, and was then lost due to the advent of 'talkies', along with many other films of that year. We then watched the film, accompanied by the live orchestra. I'll be honest, I'd gone to this event to see what it was about Louise Brooks that Paul is so fascinated by ~ watching her on screen gave me my answer, even before I'd spoken to him about her! She is a truly mesmerising actress with such a natural ability as a performer that I was immersed in this film from the outset, not what I had been expecting. The Guardian published an article by Paul about Louise Brooks which is worth a read, you can find it on http://arts.guardian.co.uk/filmandmusic/story/0,,2163371,00.html I spoke to Paul at length during the interval and afterwards about Louise and her career and he talked about her with such passion and enthusiasm. He said that he was envious of me seeing her on screen for the first time and I understand what he meant. The privilege was all mine though. To attend such a unique event, see Pandora's Box for the first time accompanied by a live orchestra, to see Louise Brooks for the first time and to have someone as knowledgeable as Paul to discuss her with afterwards ~ a truly remarkable evening. |
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 | | Paul and The Matinee Idles..... |
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Paul (far right) and the Matinee Idles just having a blast onstage. |
On 11th June 2006 Paul appeared at The Rex Cinema, Berkhamsted, for a fantastic evening's entertainment. This was a Gala Silent Cinema/Live Music Event, with The Matinee Idles and the Shrine Synchrosystem. The show opened with Paul and the Matinee Idles - ex Darts members Den Hegarty, Griff Fender and Pikey Butler plus Debbie Charles from The Mint Julips. They opened with 'This is the Night for Love' and sang three songs before leaving the stage - although not before asssuring us they would be back! We were then treated to Laurel and Hardy's 'Big Business' (1929), with live piano accompaniment. The Matinee Idles returned with the haunting 'So Hard to Laugh'. This was sung with 'Silent Clowns' being shown, a short film of many silent movie stars who are no longer with us. They then continued with 'Rhythm and Blues', 'My Love is lifting me Higher', 'Ruby' (on which Paul took the lead vocal) and finished with 'Sunday Kind of Love'. After a short interval, there was an introduction to the main film 'Nanook of the North'. Filmed in 1922, it is a simple account of the life of Nanook (an inuit living east of Hudson Bay) and his family. This was accompanied by a live, semi-improvised score from The Shrine Synchrosystem - which, we were assured, was a world first! It was an incredibly entertaining evening in a wonderful venue - if you've never been to The Rex before, then make it a priority! For fans of Paul though, seeing him perform was a treat in itself - he enjoyed himself immensely and the rapport between the group on stage was wonderful. Let's hope we see them back in action soon! For more information on The Rex go to www.therexcinema.com For information on the Bristol Silents (of which Paul is a Patron) go to |
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Paul taking the lead on 'Ruby Baby' | | |
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