Paul Welsh was awarded the MBE by the Queen for his services helping to save the world-famous Elstree Studios from closure and redevelopment in the late 1990s. He has been closely allied with the studios since the 1960s and as a film historian and writer he got to know many of the staff, production crew and actors who worked at Elstree.
Paul got to know Peter Cushing and they corresponded until Peter passed away. So Paul was a natural choice to be one of the contributors for our documentary PETER CUSHING: In His Own Words. He spoke at length about Peter’s association with the studio with Hammer Films, who moved there in 1966 and many of the other productions that Peter was associated with, including George Lucas’ Star Wars.
Later, Paul also recorded a special interview that many of the iconic productions that were made at the studios, including insights into some of the iconic producers and performers who created them. He also spoke about his long involvement with the studios and the campaign that he led to save them from demolition in the late 1990s.
This edition of our PRODUCTION DIARY includes the first part of this interview and focuses on the campaign to save the studios. Look out for more on the people and productions that form the back bone of the studios illustrious history in a later edition.