Caroline Munro Interview

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One of my favourite publicity photos of Caroline as Margiana. She looks simply beautiful!

The Interview

On the 23rd November 2002 Caroline Munro and myself finally managed to get together during her signing session in Bury, Lancashire, to record a thirty minute interview for this website. I really hope you enjoy reading it just as much as I did recording it!

Margiana

On a gloomy November morning I made the short journey to nearby Bury where Bond Girl Caroline Munro was appearing at the Planes, Trains and Automobiles shop in the towns Millgate Shopping Centre to launch a new model of the helicopter her character flew in the classic 007 film The Spy Who Loved Me. Caroline must be just about the friendliest person I have ever met and she happily took time out from meeting the fans and signing autographs to take part in this interview based around her film The Golden Voyage of Sinbad.

Graham Groom : Thank-you very much for agreeing to do this interview Caroline; it's really great! How did you land the part of Margiana in Sinbad and what attracted you to the script?

Caroline Munro : I got the part - I had been signed by Hammer for one year for a contract out of which I did two films, one being Dracula AD72 and the second one being Captain Kronos, which kind of would come full circle to Sinbad. It was written and directed by Brian Clemens who wrote the screenplay for Sinbad, The Golden Voyage, so I was lucky enough to be chosen for Captain Kronos and they were searching for somebody to do Sinbad and they wanted Raquel Welch - they wanted a big name, somebody American or well known, but Brian said no. He kept lobbying Charles Schneer [producer] and Ray - Ray Harryhausen - saying "I think you should come and look at the rushes and see what you think because I think she's right." So they said no, no but eventually Brian persuaded them to do that and they saw the rushes and that was how I got the part. So it was lovely, like work out of work. I was very lucky to have done that.

GG : How much homework do you have to do before embarking on a role? Sinbad had a Middle Eastern historical context.

CM : We were lucky. We had wonderful sets. We actually had a dialectician so we had to go in and have voice lessons. There was Tom - Tom Baker - and myself and John Phillip [Law]; all the main characters had a dialectician who worked with you on your accent to try to get it right and hopefully they're as right as they can be.

GG : Where was the location filming done?

CM : All in Spain.

GG : The caves were very impressive.

CM : They were real caves in Arta in Majorca. The main bits were done in Madrid - Sevia Studios, Madrid, outside in the mountains and things and then we went to Majorca and we did the insides in the caves.

GG : They were very impressive!

CM : They were, weren't they? But we could only film at night because, of course, the caves were used as a tourist attraction and at the night time they had all these bats and things. It was quite extraordinary - we shared with the bats! It was wonderful.

GG : Your costumes were fantastic! Did you like them?

CM : Beautiful.

GG : Were they practical?

CM : They weren't very practical and not very comfortable but very beautiful. Very, very lovely.

GG : They were quite revealing as well. Did you think they were too revealing or would you not have worn them if they were too revealing?

CM : No. I did feel they were revealing and I think they were quite hard to sometimes work in, in the caves because there was some running around and stuff to do and it's very cold, actually freezing cold at night because we were shooting late so that was quite tricky. But I think they were absolutely right for the character. I mean the men in fact were lucky weren't they, they kept ... in fact Sinbad wore quite a ...

GG : Yes, he was quite revealing ... maybe the original medallion man with that ...

CM : Yes, absolutely, [puts on dramatic voice] "The Golden Amulet"! No, I think the costumes were beautiful. I believe she actually won some sort of award because they were wonderful but not very practical! But I felt they were right for the character; I do think they were right for her.

GG : Did you have any say in the script or how you thought Margiana should behave or act?

CM : Not ... I mean, you obviously put your own interpretation into it but it was all written, all the dialogue was written, so I didn't ever feel with this one that I had to change it at all to adapt because it was all there, all the script was written and again it was written by Brian. No, I felt it was right. The only thing I think I thought she was a very innocent young girl so I think I felt I had to portray her as very simple; she was instinctual, a very simple, instinctual girl.

GG : She was a slave girl, wasn't she, so she couldn't have any say ...

CM : ... she was a slave girl. She was quite put down upon before Sinbad so she didn't, it kind of took her by surprise his kindness towards her I think, so she was very ... what's the word, not put down upon ... but ... subservient ... I knew there was a word that had to describe her, so I had to play it that way. Different from Stella Star, that was a different kettle of fish.

GG : I love the Ray Harryhausen monsters. To me they're better than the Jurassic Park kind of monsters ...

CM : I agree. They're done with love, pure, pure love, aren't they, really?

GG : Presumably you acted opposite nothing and they were added later on?

CM : Absolutely right. All you had is Ray's great big stick ... he waves a great big stick around and says this is the height for your eye-line so you're looking up to the eye-line. Other than that he shows you his storyboard which is amazing; he's done an extraordinary big storyboard so that gives you some insight as to what you're meant to be looking at.

GG : Presumably the models were only a few inches tall?

CM : Tiny, tiny. There's a little tiny me ... I think I'm three inches big ... and there's a little tiny Raquel Welch in Ray's museum; he's got a museum in his house. He's a wizard; he's a wonderful man.

GG : As a Doctor Who fan I've heard lots of stories about working with Tom Baker. How did you find him?

CM : I like Tom! [she says with great glee!] I mean he's ...

GG : ... he's very witty ...

CM : ... very witty, very kind of unexpected.

GG : He says it all so seriously.

CM : Yes. Hello ...

[Here we pause for a few moments as some fans come across to chat to Caroline and she signs a few autographs. After a short while we resume ...]

Fond Memories

GG : Do you have fond memories of Sinbad or is it a film you'd rather forget?

CM : Oh, no, I loved it! I loved Sinbad. I've very, very fond memories.

GG : Is it one of your favourites?

CM : Yes, it would be. It was ... it was hard, I mean they're all hard work. It was hard work and we were there for quite a long time and the night shoots were quite difficult really because you're awake all night and you're meant to sleep in the day and get ready, but I can't sleep in the day so I got quite tired. I mean it is quite a tiring thing. But happy memories of working with John.

GG : A great cast wasn't it?

CM : Fantastic cast! Very easy to work with and Ray of course was there. No, it was brilliant, a lovely film to do. Lovely locations.

GG : What did you think of the film when you first saw it complete?

CM : Oh, I loved it! I went to a children's - they had a special children's charity premier and I absolutely loved it, I did. It was magic to see it with all the children. I mean obviously I didn't have my children then but it was very touching; very special.

GG : Are you self critical about your performances in your films?

CM : [nods] Mmh. Very. If I had the, I was going to say opportunity, if I see them, and I tend not to like to see them because I always want to go and do it again, and you never really know, even when you're doing it you can feel good but you never really know how the camera angles are or how the director's perceived it. You never know what the end result's going to be really, and then in the editing room they cut it out and they sometimes take it out of context, so it's not what you think it's going to be because you can sometimes feel it's a really nice performance and yet on the cutting room floor they can cut out a lot of the things.

GG : How much publicity did you have to do for the film?

CM : For Sinbad? Gosh, it's a long time ago now! [laughs] I think, yes, we did a lot around Europe, I did a lot of stuff around Europe. So quite a lot, as far as I can remember. It did well in Europe. It opened well in Europe, it did. It opened well over here [UK] but I didn't seem to do anything in America whereas I did with the Bond. They didn't ask me, maybe John Phillip did it over there, or whatever, I don't know but I did all Europe, I remember doing that. It's funny, I do remember one thing because it was on the, you could phone up a special number and I'd recorded a message and you could hear it over the telephone and whatever I said - they asked me to say a couple of things which I did - and you just phone up a certain number, which is very strange, isn't it? It was their idea. I think it was quite a good idea, wasn't it? It's so long ago though.

GG : Did you keep anything from the film? Costumes or props?

CM : No, I didn't, what a pity. That would have been so nice or even the things from Bond, but I didn't keep anything. It would have been great wouldn't it, with hindsight?

GG : I've heard that people do these days.

CM : I bet they do now! I didn't like to take anything. I did when I did a television show - "3-2-1" - for some of the clothes were very nice. I got to keep some but I bought them, for a very good price.

GG : Another Sinbad film followed a few years later - The Eye of the Tiger - with Patrick Wayne. Were you asked to be in it ...

CM : ... No.

GG : If you were would you have done it?

CM : Yes, I would have loved to have done it. It was with Jane Seymour, wasn't it?

GG : That's right, and Tyrone Power's daughter, Taryn.

CM : Yes. No, I wasn't asked but I think once you've done one ...

[Here Caroline again stops to say hello and sign more autographs for the fans]

GG : There were several Sinbad films made ...

CM : ... Yes, I believe so.

GG : Are there such things as Sinbad conventions and get togethers like there are for Bond?

CM : Not that I know of. Well, having said that I've been asked to go to America, to Los Angeles I think, in June and that's with Ray so maybe that and I did one in Chicago a couple of years ago and that was John Phillip, Ray and myself but if they got Tom as well - Tom doesn't fly well, he doesn't like flying.

GG : I believe he refused to go to New Zealand for the Lord of the Rings film.

CM : Yes, he wouldn't go, he doesn't like flying. I mean, he gets days where if it feels right then he'll do it. A lot of people want him to go to America to Chiller.

GG : Do you get much fan mail or asked a lot about Sinbad or is it more often than not about James Bond?

CM : A lot of times it's James Bond but I do get a lot of fan mail from Europe - Germany I get a lot about Sinbad. James Bond, Maniac got a lot and Stella Star I think.

GG : Maniac's just come out on video and DVD.

CM : Yes. I did a Nicky Campbell show for that a month or two ago.

GG : During your acting and modelling careers, how did you keep yourself looking so fit and beautiful? You still look fantastic now!

CM : Thank-you very much! I don't know, a lot of hard work I think. I mean it was the working that kept me going.

GG : Did you go to the gym?

CM : No, nothing like that. No, I don't have any fitness regimes I just use simple creams such as Nivea. I think it's all an attitude of mind I do, really I do. I love walking. I love walking on the beach and in the Lake District, somewhere I can get out into the fresh air. That's when I'm at my happiest really, walking on the beach, picking up stones; I do that with my girls. We love it, nothing better. And even if there's a big storm it's great.

GG : It blows the cobwebs out!

CM : Yes, it does!

GG : You were at the James Bond premier the other night ...

CM : We were! [answers with glee!] We were at the BAFTA's the night before - they had a Bond BAFTA's. It was all Bond people and it was really like a family. We were all in the make-up room together, there. It was amazing because I went in there and there was Ursula [Andress], there was Roger Moore, there was Samantha Bond and Christopher Lee came round and we were all there natter, natter, natter and it was great because we hadn't seen each other for so long. It was very nice.

GG : Do these get togethers with other actors make you wish you were still acting?

CM : Yes - well, I am but I know what you mean, it would do yes. I feel there's something unfulfilled in me; I'm not quite sure what, whether it is to do with a charity channel or something. I do want to do soaps, maybe an Emmerdale or a Bad Girls or something quite gutsy. Bad Girls - wouldn't that be good? It would be great to play one of those terrible inmates, wouldn't it?

GG : Many thanks indeed Caroline. It's been a great pleasure for me to chat with you. I hope it's not too soon to wish you a happy Christmas!

This interview copyright belongs to Graham Groom. If you wish to use any of it please e-mail me first. Thanks!