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Ian Holm's 'King Lear' becomes 'Masterpiece'

By Bonnie Churchill, Entertainment News Service

British star Ian Holm finds his private life as exciting as his professional. He recently was knighted by Queen Elizabeth, is currently starring in a quartet of films, and his much anticipated performance as King Lear airs on PBS' Mobil Masterpiece Theatre Oct. 11. "It's been quite a year," Holm said.

He set Brits on their ears when he starred in "King Lear" on the London stage in what proved to be a runaway hit. When Shakespeare wrote, "he tears off his clothes," Holm followed directions and did exactly that, "the full monty," in front of live audiences. He repeats the role and the total exposure for American audiences to view the classic on television. Both the stage and film versions were directed by Sir Richard Eyre.

"The camera angle and the shadows make it discreet," Holm explained with a smile. "I could have been wearing a leopard jock strap and no one would have seen it."

Holm's career currently is running in high gear with back-to-back film assignments. "It got to the place," he confided, "that my wife and I were communicating by leaving notes taped to the refrigerator door."

Holm is married to actress Penelope Wilton. While her husband was on location this year for film work, she was starring on the stage in a festival of Harold Pinter plays. "Her stage schedule necessitated that she worked at night and slept during the day. My films, when they weren't far from London, were mostly in the daytime, with my evenings at home."

Perhaps because he just hasn't the time, but Holm seemed calm about his knighthood. "It's a government award that stems from the Prime Minister, who then takes a list to Her Majesty for her say-so," the actor said. "You have the opportunity to accept or deny -- I understand through the years about three or four have refused."

Holm accepted, and officially received the honor at a ceremony at Buckingham Palace. So, rightfully, one should address him and his wife as Lord and Lady Holm. "Please," he admonished, "I'll always be Ian."

Actually, this is the second title Queen Elizabeth has bestowed on Holm. A few years ago he received the C.B.E, Commander of the British Empire, and recalls the ceremony vividly. During the ceremony, the Queen mentioned, "Doing more films now, aren't you?" Holm recalled. "And with that, she clasped my hand and gave me the royal push, which meant the conversation was over. Well, you can't blame her, that day she was giving out several hundred honors, so things had to be kept moving."

The Queen was correct, in recent years Holm has been concentrating on films -- "Big Night," "The Fifth Element," "Night Falls on Manhattan," "The Sweet Hereafter" -- which have made his face familiar around the world. His new films include "eXistenZ" with Jennifer Jason Leigh about virtual reality in the 21st century, "The Hunted," which he described as a kind of "Black Beauty" adventure, and a comedy in which he plays the title character in "Big Tam" ("Big Tam," he explained, "is a 6-foot-6-inch barkeeper who never comes out from behind the bar, and for very good reason: He's actually a midget.

"I just go from movie to movie, and from accent to accent -- Irish, American, British and Scottish." Again he smiled.

"I thought after our successful London run on the stage, 'King Lear' would be rather easy to film for television."

Last year, Holm's stage performance as the mad king electrified audiences. It became the hottest ticket in London. And it was a personal triumph for the actor, because 14 years ago Holm had "lost his nerve" on stage and, from that night on, avoided performing before a live audience.

When director Richard Eyre mentioned doing "King Lear," Holm didn't give him an answer. The two are great friends, and knowing the actor's fear of live performances, Eyre was glad Holm still accepted film and TV roles.

Finally, the actor agreed to try. The production turned out to be angst-free, and by opening night, he was "on his game" and absolutely brilliant. Critics hailed it as this generation's defining interpretation of the Shakespearean classic.

And that was good enough reason for Mobil Masterpiece Theatre to change its rule of no plays, only miniseries and movies. As Rebecca Eaton, executive producer of Masterpiece acknowledged, "This rule was meant to be broken. We've only done three other plays during my tenure."

Translating the play to film was difficult. As Holm explained, "We had three hours and 20 minutes to tell the story on the stage. We had to cut one hour for television."

The twinkle in Holm's merry blue eyes began to fade as he continued, "On the stage, the great storm was mostly sound effects, with the cast only feeling a fine mist from backstage. In the film, there's lighting, thunder and a gale blowing. Try to say Shakespeare into a windstorm."

Eyre knew that Holm was concerned that he'd have to bellow some of his greatest speeches against all the special effects, wind machines and rain. The actor actually rehearsed a key speech outside in a real rainstorm, to discern how loud he'd have to yell to be heard against the tempestuous weather.

It took two days to film the speech in which King Lear howls, "Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks. Rage, blow!" The actor recalled, "The drainage wasn't too good on the sound stage, and by the second day, we were ankle deep in water, and the whole thing felt like a sauna.

"Locations and weather made it impossible to film in sequence. We began with me dying, and worked backward. The last shot we filmed was actually the opening sequence. Richard finished filming with one hour to spare. We completed 60 minutes ahead of schedule."

An early screening for critics made it obvious that Ian Holm will have to make room for still more awards. He has paid his dues -- 45 years of acting, including national stage tours with such greats as Sir Laurence Olivier and Sir John Gielgud.

For all his training, he admitted, "I have an appalling memory for details. I could never write my autobiography, for I can never remember what's happened. I live entirely for today. I really mean it -- it's what's happening this instant that fascinates me. I just hope with all this film and television activity, audiences don't say, 'Not him again!'"

But Holm remains, in his words, firmly entrenched in "the minimalist school of acting. Someone once said the greatest lesson to learn in acting is to do nothing. As Dirk Bogarde maintained, 'The most important thing is the eyes; they do not lie, and the camera picks it up immediately if you're being false.'"

Sir Ian Holm added, "If Tom Cruise walked down the street, the fans would surround him. If I walk along, someone would ask, 'Aren't you that actor fellow?'

"Maybe they have it right," he conceded, "I'm an actor, I'm not a movie star. There's the difference."

Photo by Sven Arnstein/BBC Worldwide
Last year Ian Holm's London stage performance as the mad king electrified audiences; this year, American audiences can see him tackle the complex Shakespearean role: "King Lear" premieres on PBS' Masterpiece Theatre Oct. 11.