Comic Relief - Red Nose Day

Comic Relief asked me to shoot Jedward.



With a camera...


Actually it was great fun, the boys were mad as a box of frogs, and the kids at the school loved them to bits and had a brilliant time. It was utter chaos, but great to photograph. The school had written to Comic Relief asking if it would be possible for Jedward to visit, a bit like 'Jim'll Fix It' if you're my age and remember that.

They burst into the school hall to a stunned audience who started screaming immediately, Jedward then proceeded to create complete anarchy, eventually the teachers regained some form of order and they had a space hopper race which was surprisingly competitive! (I think Jedward really wanted to win!!)

All for Red Nose Day which is today, so if you feel like donating go to their site at

https://www.rednoseday.com/donate

Matt Smith in 'Christopher and His Kind'

Last year I worked on the BBC drama 'Christopher And His Kind' about Christopher Isherwood, who's book 'Goodbye To Berlin' the film/stageshow 'Cabaret' is based on.

Shot here in Northern Ireland and starring Matt Smith as Christopher Isherwood it dramatizes his experiences in 1930's Berlin. It's being screened this Saturday (19th March) at 9.30pm on BBC2 and will be worth a watch!

This was a great project to work on, as the costumes and makeup were stunning, especially on Imogen Poots and we had some fabulous locations to recreate 30's Berlin. I love photographing period dramas!

I finally got my first cover of the Radio Times, and a fairly decent spread inside. It's quite ironic really as in the past I have twice nearly got a cover of the Radio Times only to be bumped on both occasions by 'Dr Who', which is of course played by Matt Smith!!

The cover was shot in my studio, and art directed by Jo O'Leary from the BBC. One of the hardest things about being a stills photographer on a film is getting access to the actors as time is always so tight. We decided to shoot the background in-situ on set and then Matt in the studio against a plain background as we would have more time to light it and ultimately more time with him.

Titanic - The Mission

Channel Four commissioned me to photograph a recent program they were producing called 'Titanic The Mission'.

It follows four volunteers as they try to reconstruct different details from the famous ship. They were filming all over the UK, but part of that was of course here in Belfast where they were reconstructing a scaled section of the bow.
We had to wait until the film crew had their lunch to get the portraits done as it was impossible during filming.

The guys were great, they reminded me of a pop group, and I think I shot them with that in mind. Loved the big props lying around like the sledge hammer and massive spanner!



I was very happy to get the cover of the DVD edition!