Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
Welcome to Nikki And Helen. We hope you enjoy your visit.


You're currently viewing our forum as a guest. This means you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use. If you join our community, you'll be able to access member-only sections, and use many member-only features such as customizing your profile, sending personal messages, and voting in polls. Registration is simple, fast, and completely free.


Join our community!


If you're already a member please log in to your account to access all of our features:

Username:   Password:
Add Reply
BG: stunt actors
Topic Started: Apr 7 2007, 06:47 PM (1,712 Views)
ekny
No Avatar
In love with a prisoner
I feel a bit silly starting a new thread on this, but maybe there's some hidden interest. Someone sent me a website link for Vicky Alcock's stuntperson, and so naturally I'm thinking, um, Vicky Wha--? Like: she needed one, dancing with mops was hazardous?! The electronic-tagging scene when she returns, though--that makes sense.

If anyone has further thoughts on this... who knows, I suppose it's possible Mandana's stunt double has a site out there & we could still find some cool pictures or a piece or two of trivia...? I was kind of touched this woman went to the trouble of making this little page, anyway, that was cool of her. I mean I know it's self-promotion & all, but hey: it's still up there (maybe she's a fan). Just so people like us can find it. :) --ek


http://members.lycos.co.uk/curtis_rivers/Bad.html
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ekny
No Avatar
In love with a prisoner
Ok, I'm definitely not going to start yet another new thread for this, so... let's just say it falls under props. And hope no stunt actor ever peruses the board & takes mortal offense at being compared to a bus.

Yes, in case you wondered about your own failing sanity in relation to the time you spend on Bad Girls, fear no more: a friend (from this board, of course) sent me a link to an entire website devoted to "Buses on Screen".

Yuh huh, you heard right.

And item number 1? (alphabetical) ...reads, in its entirety:

Bad Girls (Granada TV serial)
A 2000 episode of this prison drama featured former London General Metrobus/MCW M176 (BYX176V). any more information?

http://www.busesonscreen.net/screen/screentvb.htm


So I guess we're the last people in the world to say, Isn't that... special! :D
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
I love MJNet
Member Avatar
The bosses slave!
ekny
Apr 7 2007, 06:47 PM
I feel a bit silly starting a new thread on this, but maybe there's some hidden interest. Someone sent me a website link for Vicky Alcock's stuntperson, and so naturally I'm thinking, um, Vicky Wha--? Like: she needed one, dancing with mops was hazardous?! The electronic-tagging scene when she returns, though--that makes sense.

If anyone has further thoughts on this... who knows, I suppose it's possible Mandana's stunt double has a site out there & we could still find some cool pictures or a piece or two of trivia...? I was kind of touched this woman went to the trouble of making this little page, anyway, that was cool of her. I mean I know it's self-promotion & all, but hey: it's still up there (maybe she's a fan). Just so people like us can find it. :) --ek


http://members.lycos.co.uk/curtis_rivers/Bad.html

Just wanted to give you another useless piece of Trivia, which ties into Vicky Alcock.

She subsequently married one of the Stuntmen from BG's. I can't think of his surname - I do know his first name is Nic and he was stuntman in particular to Neil Grayling (the main one being the explosion in the library). In fact, he looked so much like Neil, unusually they were able to do a face shot of him without having to change back to the actor.

So there you go - I'll hand this over to anyone else who might want to go digging a little further - or find the scan from OK magazine of the wedding :lol1
“In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this.”
Posted Image
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Lisa289
Member Avatar
Welsh Bad Girl
The Muppets!
ekny
Apr 7 2007, 06:47 PM

Hey, just to say a little something;

This website isn't actually Vicky's stuntperson - it's the officer who dives out of the way of the car :)

But still, amazing that this page actually exists. And that bus one, well that's just a bit odd!!
Posted Image

I'm Not Just Perfect - I'm Welsh
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ekny
No Avatar
In love with a prisoner
Hi Lisa289 and ILMJNet, thanks for the comments & correction! I didn't know that about VA marrying NG's stunt double, or that he looked *that* much like Grayling, how funny. Very unusual, not having to make someone over much with a double... and as for the bus thing, yeah, here's me all innocent, never a thought that there are people going around obsessed with... buses. Whew. But anyway, all very nice little factoids to add to the mix! :) --e
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ekny
No Avatar
In love with a prisoner
***EXTREME HARDCORE GEEK WARNING***

So in case there's ever been any doubt, I'm just fessing up right here: it's clear I need to admit myself to the Muppet Wing. Probably on a permanent basis. I know this, it's not a surprise. Because really... this is about as cracked as it gets, gang. So if anyone's thinking, gawd, does she have NO idea how silly this is?--fear not: I'm mightily embarrassed. Of course... I don't really care (because of the crazy an' all) but still, with the blushing.

Blushing alone in an empty room? So not a good sign.

So, I am putting this bit about Our Friend, the Routemaster (and golly do I wish I had that font, Ransom, where you could write letters backwards in kids'-style scrawl...?), into a thread on extras because--well, it's self-evident, innit? I mean, no sense starting an entire thread about a sodding bus now is there. And: does this help us Understand our show better--in any way? Nope. It's total nerdness, trivia for its own sake. So with that warning & without further ado... (and hey--if you read it... you know what that makes ya?! Yep. So don't blame me.)

Posted Image

The Bus: The bus featured in S2ep13 is a Routemaster, which have been phased out--although you can still see them around London, time to time--JAMBF sent me a lovely piccy jusssst a few weeks ago (so don't think I'm alone in this, Ohhhh no). Routemasters have an open back door & a sort of running board, which meant people could get on anywhere, even between stops if the bus wasn't moving too fast.

Now, according to Steve over at Buses on Screen, who was extremely kind in sharing loads of information (and updating his website to reflect this exchange with a bit of more pertinent Bad Girls'-related stuff), the bus is, in fact, M176, and has its correct registration. What that means is the bus doesn't have 'fake' registration that the filmmakers have decided to put onto it for whatever reason. (Steve wrote: "[In] 'Educating Rita', for example--they wanted Dublin to appear as an unspecified English city, so the bus or buses that appear(s) have or has fake plates on. [...] Unfortunately the type of 'decker used in filming is unique to Ireland, which is a bit of a giveaway.")


The History: Steve went on to give background on the bus's history: "So--yes, it's in London General colours and it's a standard London Buses Metrobus. London's buses are pretty well documented: traditionally London's buses have been built by AEC at Southall and bodied by Park Royal Vehicles in--erm--Park Royal. The best-known and final example of that local source was the AEC Routemaster. In the 1980s and 1990s London dual sourced their doubledeckers, either Leyland Titans or Birmingham-built MCW Metrobuses with the distinctive step-down windscreen. They tended to run Titans in South and East London and Metrobuses in North and West London. By the time this was filmed both were being phased out in favour of low floor designs, and M176 was owned by Actionbus, a company that specialises in supplying buses to film and TV."


Posted Image

Posted Image


The Ticket: (note how a certain character has been tastefully edited out so as not to bruise the eyes of our viewers) JAMBF, my accomplice in all things bussy (although she's in total denial), noted: "Nikki's bus-ticket has on it that it is valid from Stage 15, and the time on it is 20.50. The next scene after Nikki has hopped onto the bus cuts to Crystal's clock, and the time on that is 9pm. So that was pretty good attention to detail. I'm not sure where Stage 15 is though."

Naturally, we had to look into the Stage 15 thing. Wouldn't you? (Ok, best not answer that....) We also wondered about where they filmed the bus scene; there's that big stone wall near the shot which the camera pans down for a few ticks, but there's nothing like that in the area immediately around Oxford. And I tried to find out more details about the data on the ticket itself, but our British friend had to go away on holiday (no doubt to escape lunatics like myself), so I never found out more about that bit, unfortunately.


The Route: This is a nice bit of trivia, actually; for as Steve points out, the route number, although a 'fudge', is accurate for the show. In other words, Shed's props people cared enough to get this level of detail right, even down to the ticket.

Steve commented: "The route number and blinds are a fudge--route 35 runs in South London, and Metrobuses never operated it. It was all-Titan until 1997. Never mind, Actionbus seem to like Metrobuses--I guess it's what they had available. Whereas only a couple of years ago there were stacks of Routemasters available for filming, they've beeen snapped up by collectors, so the standard bus for filming tends to be the Metrobus or Titan. When the Routemaster was in its heyday, it was its predecessor the RT that appeared everywhere in films (think Cliff Richard and 'Summer Holiday')--it was very unusual to see Routemasters in films or TV. Mind you I did hear a story about a preserved Routemaster owner who was thrown off a recent Bond film when he refused to wind up the 'wrong' destination on his bus for filming in London."

Hee. I love this. Of course, when I think "Summer Holiday" my mind doesn't go right to the buses used in filming, but different strokes, eh. Who am I to talk?

We tried to figure out more about the route thing. Steve wrote back: "I mentioned 35 was a South London service--actually it runs South to just of the centre North-East, although it is and was at the time this episode was filmed run from London General's Camberwell garage in South London, depot code Q. So here's another piece of trivia for you: [...] the depot code on M176 in the clip is AL, which is Merton garage in South West London. [...]

I can't pick out how genuine the destination blinds are, though, they're not quite clear enough. Currently Route 35 runs from Clapham Junction in the South via Brixton and Camberwell to London Bridge and Shoreditch. I couldn't identify stage 15 definitively (no, I can't believe I'm doing this, either.......)"

SEE?! It's catching!

"however in 1966 stage 15 was Lea Bridge or Chatsworth Road. At that time the service ran Clapham Common - Brixton - Camberwell - London Bridge - Shoreditch - Leyton - Chingford Hatch (way up East), and stage 15 was between Shoreditch and Leyton, so it bears no resemblance to the current route. http://www.busesatwork.co.uk/fare-charts/035.pdf shows the farechart."

I'll spare y'all the exchanges we had about bus routes in the 1960s, except to say 3 Mills Studios is close enough to Lea Bridge/Chatsworth Road that it's at least possible some props person dashed out to hop on a bus to get a ticket to fake up. Suffice it to say such conversations took place & I can't believe it either, all over again.

JAMBF went on to theorize: "Actually, if you look at the map, further to the west of the Lea Bridge area is Holloway! So if Nikki is getting on at Zone 15, then she's getting on in NE London, not extremely far from a prison in North London--and Larkhall is in South London! But of course they weren't expecting loonies like us to to peer at bus-tickets and bus-routes and squeeze innocent bus-spotters for info! :-D"

I expect it's just as likely they faked the bus-ticket up but did it right, because to be fair, most viewers won't look at a show and rise up in indignation crying WHAT! That's not the right bus at ALL for that route, this is pants, I thought this show was accurate about life in prison! That's it, I'm not watching any more!... but viewers might give a start if they see a bus-ticket that looks 'wrong'--as I expect to many, bus-tickets are as familiar as the back of their hand.

Posted Image

Extra-trivial Trivia: "The logo on the back of the bus is the London General logo, I think. The London General Omnibus company preceded London Transport (we're talking WWI sort of time here)--the modern London General came about when London Transport was split up and privatised--it's now part of the Go Ahead company.

I think that logo on the side of the bus says ISO 9002, which is a global standard for product and process quality. If your company is at all competent you try to achieve ISO 9002 accreditation then you make a fuss about it in your promotional literature. The British equivalent is BS 5750."

Contributions to further my mental instability may be sent in lieu of flowers. --ek


ps: We found the website for the company who provided the stunt-kittens (& probably cats), but curiously, haven't found the roach-wranglers yet. Huh.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Just Another Mad Bad Fan
No Avatar
G2 landing

You just HAD to share your shame didn't you?! :D
So much for honour among Steves!
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
abzug
Member Avatar
In love with a prisoner
e, you're scary. j, you're funny.

And I'll admit it, I found this post fascinating.
Visit the Bad Girls Annex!

Posted Image
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
microsofty
Member Avatar

The Muppets!
No, no, no, no, no. I should be working on my extremely important project, but here I am, *happily* reading away about... a bus! And I find myself wondering: does a bus qualify as a prop, a stunt vehicle (considering it was used as an escape vehicle), or an extra? :)
Make a HOTCH in the POTCH...
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Lisa289
Member Avatar
Welsh Bad Girl
The Muppets!
microsofty
Nov 21 2007, 02:11 PM
No, no, no, no, no. I should be working on my extremely important project, but here I am, *happily* reading away about... a bus!

Same here! I have Law work to do and and ICT project to work on. But I, embarrassingly, found this fascinating. :err


E, I think you need help. And so do the rest of us for reading it through thoroughly!
Posted Image

I'm Not Just Perfect - I'm Welsh
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ekny
No Avatar
In love with a prisoner
microsofty
Nov 21 2007, 10:11 AM
I find myself wondering: does a bus qualify as a prop, a stunt vehicle (considering it was used as an escape vehicle), or an extra:)

Well exactly!!! It's really a very complicated and Significant question, see.

...And of COURSE I need help, gang! That's why I shared this with... all of you. <bat. batbat> (Them's my eyelashes.)

Yeah, I know, I got a major giggle out of it--and my deep unwellness--the whole time too. And somehow I knew... there were... Others. Who would share.

Thanks for the feedback guys, made me feel good. Well--erm. In a mutually enabling kinda way.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Just Another Mad Bad Fan
No Avatar
G2 landing
abzug
Nov 21 2007, 01:08 PM
e, you're scary.


What abzug conveniently chooses to forget, is that she is not without sin on the subject of bus-spotting herself! I know for a fact that she owns a photograph of herself triumphantly posing alongside a bus adorned with a "Bad Girls The Musical" advertisement - a bus which she had travelled from New York to Leeds to hunt down. :lol:
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
abzug
Member Avatar
In love with a prisoner
Just Another Mad Bad Fan
Nov 21 2007, 02:46 PM
What abzug conveniently chooses to forget, is that she is not without sin on the subject of bus-spotting herself! I know for a fact that she owns a photograph of herself triumphantly posing alongside a bus adorned with a "Bad Girls The Musical" advertisement - a bus which she had travelled from New York to Leeds to hunt down. :lol:

Please, that's NOTHING compared to the photo of me standing excitedly in front of the red Peugot we picked up from Avis for our driving adventure out in the Yorkshire countryside.
Visit the Bad Girls Annex!

Posted Image
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
solitasolano
Member Avatar

The Muppets!
Oh yes, you all are so totally top deck aka over the top.
Of course I read and enjoyed every word of it.
A prop which is actually used in a production is called a "practical" ie. like curtains or a blind which have to be opened or handed. Props, however, usually refer to something which is handled, as opposed to driven. LOL. Stunt vehicle would be a vehicle used in a stunt, like the typical telephone pole exploding out of the bottom of a car to make it flip over routine. Think bad girl Nikki's bus trip was a little milder than that except what was going on in her head perhaps....Bus would be a movie vehicle or whatever King "The Bus Man" Steve wants to call it.
BTW ek, the more the merrier in the muppet wing. :silly
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ekny
No Avatar
In love with a prisoner
solitasolano
Nov 21 2007, 07:35 PM
BTW ek, the more the merrier in the muppet wing.  :silly

Well you never know what people will post back--I thought all those things about how to distinguish between different kinds of 'props' etc were very interesting, thank you.

I'm puttin' on me fuzzy slippers now & shuffling off for me night meds... la, la la.... :D
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ZetaBoards - Free Forum Hosting
Enjoy forums? Start your own community for free.
Go to Next Page
« Previous Topic · The Comfy Sofa · Next Topic »
Add Reply