Hirsute, suited Harry H Corbett in the 1970s
In my last blog, I mentioned I had buggered my back.
Before that, I went to a one-off screening of Terry Gilliam’s 1977 movie Jabberwocky.
Before the screening, Terry Gilliam mentioned what it was like working with Harry H Corbett.
Corbett achieved fame in the BBC TV sitcom Steptoe and Son and played a small but memorable part in Jabberwocky. Terry Gilliam said:
Harry H Corbett (right) & Wilfred Brambell in Steptoe and Son
Harry H Corbett – Steptoe & Son – brilliant, absolutely brilliant. But there was a little problem on Jabberwocky.
My wife Maggie was head of the make-up department and she had to go see Harry and talk about his medieval haircut.
He was there with a nice full head of hair.
She said: “We can do it by cutting it like this…”
And he said: “Neuwaaagh….” and said he thought maybe a wig would be better.
Well OK…
So Maggie goes into her kit and pulls out a wig and starts putting it on him and she’s fiddling with his head and his hair is… Wait!… He is wearing a wig already!
And he was not going to have that trimmed in a medieval style. Clearly.
So, throughout the whole film, he is wearing a wig over a wig.
“When it came to lying under a bed and getting the bed squashed on him… He was happy with those things…”
Harry was brilliant. I wouldn’t say he was the easiest person to work with, but he was absolutely wonderful.
When it came to lying under a bed and getting the bed squashed on him… He was happy with those things.
It was just bizarre knowing this man was wearing two wigs.
SO IT GOES - John Fleming's blog 