A FILMMAKER who directed the King will be talking about his experiences at a fundraising event at Gulworthy.

Drummond Challis is showing the film, starring the then Prince Charles going behind the scenes of the Royal Opera House (ROH), at Gulworthy Hall on Friday, September 8 at 7pm. The Prince Charles film was made to raise funds funds for the ageing ROH and it will be again helping raise funds 44 years later — this time for Gulworthy Church. To book call 01822 616435.

Drummond’s most famous film was The Riddle of the Sands starring Jenny Agutter, and he also directed World Cup films for FIFA in 1982 (Spain), 1986 (Mexico) and 1990 (Italy) for worldwide audiences. He also got to know the Argentinian genius footballer Maradona through filming Hero Maradona, getting exclusive access to him celebrating with the World Cup trophy after his infamous ‘hand of god’ goal against England.

Drummond is full of praise for the King’s ability to ad-lib, crucial to early ‘fly-on’the-wall’ filming, showing him chatting to the people who made the ROH tick. The film was a catalyst in long-term fundraising to secure the building’s future

Drummond, of Tavistock and formerly of Gulworthy, said: “Charles as a prince was a natural in front of the camera and made my life a lot easier because of it. He was very knowledgeable and obviously interested in the Royal Opera House, so we worked without a script. He just ad-libbed and spoke off-the-cuff, acording to what he knew and where the answers took him. The last thing I wanted to do was interrupt any of this unscripted conversation, so I was able to keep filming until natural breaks in the sequence.” Drummond was also able to film the whole project in three days because he was using a newly available mobile camera, replacing the large heavy cameras on rails.

Drummond Challis directs the King
Drummond Challis directs the King. (Drummond Challis)

“The mobile camera was a revolution in filmmaking because it allowed me to work much faster and film the cramped backstage and go among the performers and out again without disrupting their rehearsing. This also suited the flow of the conversations the Prince was having. You can see this ability in his walkabouts today, chatting to anyone he meets and jokes with.”