Dame Barbara Windsor has died

[TJames03]

Oh yuck. The Carry On team were exploited: first by being treated like muck and paid peanuts by Peter Rogers; then being left with no kind of royalty for the numerous TV screenings, home media releases, clip shows, books and spin offs. But the one bit of power they had in the situation was a choice as to whether or not they appeared in those vehicles and spoke the lines on the page.

I find this holographic fad with dead actors a bit icky. Barbara may have liked it, who knows. But many of the team were very private people. I doubt Joan Sims would have cared for it. And Kenneth Williams would have hated the idea of his likeness being manipulated in this way*.

It's interesting that Brian Baker has made this statement now. A lot of what's in the article is old news and was floating around last year. The fact that the only name he's quoted as mentioning is Barbara's suggests that someone, somewhere sees her death as a timely piece of publicity for the new, improved, politically correct Carry Ons that are in the works.



*Mind you, he'd also have hated his extremely personal diaries and letters being published, and that hasn't stopped me buying and reading them, so perhaps I haven't much room to speak since I've done my bit to enable the exploitation.

I wonder how their contract allowed for holo use? That’s not exactly standard.

 

[TJames03]

Art imitating life......

 

[TJames03]

 

[TJames03]

How we all feel at the moment.....

 

[Spells & Karma]

Dame Barbara Windsor is laid to rest with 'Queen Peggy' tribute

The EastEnders and Carry On actress died in December, having had dementia.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[TJames03]

That’s sad, but sweet. EastEnders is a much emptier place without her (as well as many late past actresses, too). I’ve been watching past episodes of EE and Coronation Street and you will never duplicate those years again, ever.

 

[TJames03]

I would have had a flower wreath say “Get out of me funeral!!!”

 

[James from London]

A brief but sweet exchange about Barbara Windsor between Miriam Margolyes and Vanessa Redgrave in today's Guardian, which is part of a much bigger and really interesting conversation:

MM: I knew I was in the right business, seeing you in rehearsal. It was a tense, difficult time, but you transformed that rehearsal room. That’s when I saw really great acting.

VR: That’s awfully nice of you.

MM: You weren’t the only one that was good! There was Annie Ross and Barbara Windsor. I just adored Ba. I was her understudy. Ba loved you; she said: “I know she talks posh and all that, but she’s really nice!”

VR: We were a right old gang, weren’t we?

‘How many husbands have I had? Not enough!’ Vanessa Redgrave meets Miriam Margolyes

They have been friends for 50 years. With theatres closed, they reflect on the joy – and hidden drama – of a life in acting

www.theguardian.com