So the TV movie screened Tuesday, May 14, 1996, over in the US. Now, being the obsessive fanboy that I am, I got some US contacts (in fact, one US, one Canadian [it screened two days earlier!]) to tape this and send it to me. One week later... it arrived!
I get home from Uni (I lived with my parents), saw the tape, and instantly in front of the TV. We don't tend to eat dinner in front of the TV, nor miss the news, but they recognised there weren't no way I was moving ("This is NEW Doctor Who!"). I don't have any proof, but I am certain I was the first person in New Zealand to see the movie.
We, being the Victoria University Science Fiction Club, wanted to screen the movie, which we did, as a double billing with something else. I wasn't sure what, but on hearing about a certain terrible event, I grabbed The Pertwee Years as we showed that as a fitting tribute. So, we were the first group of people to see the movie.
But the tale doesn't end there, prepare for intrigue and tenseness! We wanted to make some profit off the tape, and so wanted to sell copies. And advertise said offer in TSV. However, Paul turned us down, wanting to keep on side with Roadshow, as they were giving TSV free review tapes. This is a perfectly sensible move on his part, but it pissed me off. (That's the most appropriate word I can pick.)
And then, when, through Kelly (Buchanan), we were asked for a copy of the movie for the Auckland crowd, I knew what my response would be...
However, rationality prevailed, and there was no reason to take this out on all the Aucklanders, so we gave Justin a copy, and they got it just in time for their screening. But they did only give thanks to Kelly, so that didn't engender any more warm feelings.
Still, that was over ten years ago, and nowadays you'd be hardpressed not to find many people who could get you a copy of the latest episodes (within a week, if not the next day). But these are obviously memories that stuck with me(*).
(*) Emotion is a good memory enhancer, and I was feeling the emotion...
Wednesday 11 July 2007
Me and the TV Movie
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
Most of this post is news to me!
I can totally appreciate your annoyance over not getting due credit but I can assure you that I only ever dealt with Justin/Kelly in getting a copy of the tape to screen for the Auckland Chapter, and I was never aware, to the best of my recollection, of its provenance. I assumed that Justin had been sent the tape from overseas.
So let me express my much belated gratitude to you. If it wasn't for the copy of your tape we would have had a gathering of 60 Auckland fans and no TV Movie to screen.
As for turning you down for an advert in TSV to sell copies of the tape, I don't recall this now - but that's exactly what my response would have been. TSV has had a policy for years (long predating our relationship with Roadshow), of not printing adverts for non-official recordings of Doctor Who episodes. We were protecting the sellers as much as ourselves, as this could have easily resulted in prosecution, and you'd now have an even more upsetting memory of that time! :)
Such are blogs that one exposes one's deep personal secrets. It was important at the time. Now, it's a blog entry. :)
It might have been the case that Kelly(*) was getting an overseas copy and used ours as back-up. Can't remember entirely now how that played, just what I think I remember.
(*)Can't also remember when Justin became Kelly, so just used the "currently known as" name...
I remember that screening. That was the first time I saw the TV Movie as well, and, as I recall, reactions were mixed amongst the audience. :)
Of the Pertwee Years as well, as I recall...
Post a Comment