Summer Wine On-line

Welcome to the official web site of the Summer Wine Appreciation Society, in partnership with Holmfirth Web. This is our tribute to the world's longest-running TV comedy series which is filmed in the Holme Valley, and surrounding villages.
 

Nora

 

Norman Clegg that Was …and very much is...Wallace!

Summer Wine Writer Gerald Hayne listens out for those distinctive, magical "Cleggy" tones in the latest Wallace and Gromit offering: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit!   

In addition to all his work in Last of the Summer Wine, Peter Sallis has, amongst many other roles, spent a considerable amount of time performing as the voice of one of Britain’s best loved animated characters, namely Wallace from the duo Wallace & Gromit. His distinctive voice is instantly recognizable as the cheese-loving one always accompanied by his loyal, if mute, dog Gromit. This eccentric couple have featured in comic short films but are now starring in a world-wide released full-length feature film Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit.

Created by the talented Nick Park, and co-directed by him together with Steve Box, the film is a spoof on werewolf movies but is not about flesh and blood, but vegetables! An enormous rabbit type of beast comes to town just when the annual vegetable show is about to happen – and the duo are summoned to rid the town of it. The production is from Aardman Animations “claymation” which means that the characters are made from, well plasticine actually – nearly 3 tons of it was required for the film!

Since Gromit doesn’t speak, Peter Sallis speaks the lead role and is supported, amongst others by Helena Bonham-Carter as Lady Tottington and Ralph Fiennes as Victor Quartermaine. The film is released on Friday October 14th in the UK and on different dates around the world – it has already been seen in the USA where it seems to have met with critical acclaim for works of its class. So we should clearly abandon our adult common sense and go see it if only for the sheer joy of hearing one of our Summer Wine leading actors – but we may well thoroughly enjoy it anyway.

Peter has voiced Wallace since his creation 16 years ago and, in the words of some who have seen the film, continues to strike just the right notes as the inventive nitwit; the same reviewer considers the film to be “charming and droll with the voices shrewdly chosen. There is even a moment when Wallace becomes besotted with Lady Tottington – but you must go and see it for yourself.

I know I have said this so many times before, but the talents of Peter Sallis are quite remarkable and he deserves many congratulations for his major contribution to this animated feature – surely now these talents will be recognized in a formal and tangible way?

In the meantime, of course, the latest episodes of Summer Wine are more or less completed and it will soon be time for the sounds of audience enjoyment to be added; maybe this year there will be some new fans of Peter Sallis proving once and for all that he entertains those of all ages. This new film may be a children’s comedy but it is high-spirited and subtle enough to entertain adults and certainly Summer Wine fans as well. Now, I wonder if Norman Clegg is supposed to be as keen on cheese as Wallace is – after all Wallace has on his bookshelves the tomes East of Edam and From Fromage to Eternity! Then again he has never been the same since he was stuck in a lift with Marina…………. Go and see this film – I shall!

Gerald

© 2000 Area5. The Summer Wine On-Line web site brought to you by Area5 Public Relations, Holmfirth. Thanks to everyone who has contributed material to this web site, including Colin Frost, of Side's Café, Holmfirth.