01 August 2013 (released)
12 August 2013
During the recent ‘Gothic Season’ launch at the BFI Southbank, actress Madeleine Smith was part of a panel that included ‘The Woman In Black’ director James Watkins, screenwriter and author Jane Goldman, as well as actor and comedian Reece Shearsmith.
Madeline Smith, a former model who retired from the film business in 1984, is best known to her fans for her roles in Hammer’s Taste The Blood Of Dracula (1970), The Vampire Lovers (1970), and Frankenstein And The Monster From Hell (1974). She also starred in a couple of Carry On films.
Film-News UK caught up with the sympathetic actress at the ‘Gothic Season’ tea party, and managed to pin her down for this interview.
Film-News:
Madeline, you started off as a model in the 1960’s. How did you come to be an actress?
Madeline Smith:
I messed up my studies and intended to take a ‘60s version of a Gap Year. Suddenly I was ‘spotted’ in the Kings road and Kensington where I was working at the Biba clothes shop. At about this time I answered a Film Audition ad and got the part, an agent and a lot of ‘cheek’.
Film-News:
You starred in three Hammer Horror films… ‘Taste The Blood Of Dracula’, ‘The Vampire Lovers’, and ‘Frankenstein And The Monster From Hell’. Which out of those three was/is your favourite, and for what reason?
M. Smith:
‘Frankenstein and the Monster from Hell’, in my opinion, is the best of the three. It required some genuine acting – and no nudity!
Film-News:
What was it like to work with Ingrid Pitt in ‘The Vampire Lovers’, and how do you feel about the nude scenes when you see the film today?
M. Smith:
Ingrid was a formidable lady, but was very solicitous to me, sensing my innocence and ignorance. I hated the nude scenes then and ever more so today. I was cajoled into removing my top and was reassured that it was only for the ‘Japanese’ market.
Film-News:
You also had a small part in ‘Theatre Of Blood’ – what memories do you have working with a cast that included Vincent Price, Dame Diana Rigg and Robert Morley?
M. Smith:
This was long before Diana became a Dame. I doubt that she would consider that part now. Unfortunately, my part shrank as time and the budget diminished. Tempers frayed among the elderly gentlemen from time to time, but Vincent Price never lost his good humour. Its cinema release was very limited but it has survived in a cult following.
Film-News:
You also starred in various 70’s comedy films, mainly with Frankie Howerd and Sid James. Did you prefer filming comedy to horror, or vice versa, or did you enjoy both genres in equal measures?
M. Smith:
I never worked with Sid James, but I spent a joyful half-day in ‘Carry On Matron’. Most of my career was in television and Theatre. However, I appeared twice with Frankie Howerd in the ‘Up’ films. I honestly much prefer to work in comedy.
Film-News:
You recently were invited to participate as part of a panel in connection with the BFI’s Gothic Season launch… How, in your opinion, do contemporary horror films differ from the vintage ones and cult classics?
M. Smith:
I can’t answer this question, as apart from ‘Woman in Black’ I have seen no contemporary horror films.
Film-News:
What is your favourite scary moment in a movie, and what is your favourite scary moment in literature/fiction?
M. Smith:
I have to go to the Continent and to the subtlety of Ingmar Bergman. ‘The Seventh Seal’ and ‘Wild Strawberries’. Any moment from either will do.
In literature, it’s ‘Whistle and I’ll Come to You’ by M. R. James.
Film-News:
You played Miss Caruso in the James Bond film ‘Live And Let Die’, in which 007 Roger Moore strips off your clothes via his magnetic watch. Bond films have often been accused of being rather sexist – do you think this has changed over the years?
M. Smith:
I will be hated for this reply. I prefer the ‘old’ Bonds: Connery, Moore and Brosnan, and think all the ‘ladies’ came out of it quite well. The more recent harsher, tougher women appear to reflect today’s society, which I don’t care for.
Film-News:
Your last role was in the 1984 short feature ‘The Passionate Pilgrim’… after that, you gave birth to a daughter and stopped working in the film industry. Did you ever regret that decision?
M. Smith:
I stopped working because my husband died, and I wanted to raise my daughter myself.
Film-News:
If you could turn back time, what, if anything, would you do differently?
M. Smith:
I would go to drama college in the hope of getting more varied parts, especially in the theatre. It would have been satisfying to play more characters outside my limited range.
Film-News:
Many thanks for your time and this interview, Madeline.
