1998
SEE
HOW THEY RUN…Director…Graeme
Harper…Producer…Jo
Ward…
IT HAD TO HAPPEN
ONE DAY. I’M CAST AS
OLD MAN/BILL.
My thanks to Graeme and
Jo for using me on this
show..
MOTTO…It
doesn’t matter what
they call you in a show,
as long as they call
you..
ENTRAPMENT…Director…Jon
Amiel…
Cast Inc…Sean
Connery…Catherine
Zeta Jones…
Filming at The Borough
Market South London for a
week. (A very hot week)
Dressed up in winter
clothes as a stall holder
on the hottest days of
the year..
Fake snow all around us
and me wearing gloves, a
body warmer and scarf.
This is the last film I
worked on. (Bless)
I did a couple of
episodes of EASTENDERS
and that was it.
THE
PHONE STOPPED RINGING…
NOW
TO ANSWER MY
GRANDSON’S QUESTION
AT THE BEGINNING OF MY
WRITING.
I CAN SAY TO HIM
"I
WAS A PART OF IT"
I’d
like to thank all the
people I worked with for
the thirty two years I
was in the business and
tell them:
"IT
WAS F***ING
WONDERFUL!"
Love Aitch
Now
it's only the middle of
1998 and I'm running out
of money.The job centre
try sending me for jobs
that I know nothing
about. They ask me when
my last proper job was
and I tell them 1966... I
know the film game's
finished for me and I've
got to get indoor
money... It's another
seven years before I'm
due a pension.
Now
a funny thing
happened...I went to a
large DIY/GARDEN center
to buy a few plants at
Hemel Hempstead only ten
minutes from home. I got
talking to the garden
manager about the plants
and the nice display they
had. He said ''Do you
like gardening?'' I said
''I've always tried to
keep my garden neat and
tidy'' He said, '' Would
you like to work part
time (three days a week)
for us?''
It
wasn't a lot of money but
it would help with the
house bills. So I said
ok... After a
couple of weeks of
humping bags of
compost around a customer
asked me if I knew
anything about
timber..... (that's what
I did for eight years in
the 50s and 60s) I could
still answer all his
questions and he asked me
if I could cut him some
chipboard... We had a
huge cutting machine but
you had to be trained on
how to use it. So I took
him to one of the guys
that was trained...
Now
before the customer left
the store he told the
main manager, John, that
I'd been very helpful.
John spoke to me the next
day...... ''Aitch, I hear
you know about timber''
and I told him my story
about my years in the
timber trade and he
said.. ''Next week we'll
train you on the cutting
machine and see how you
get on.'' So for the next
six months I was off
gardening and onto the
timber dept.. I hadn't
done this kind of work
for over thirty years, so
it wasn't easy for me.
Back
in the 60s we never had
ten foot worktops that
had to be man-handled and
put on a cross cut
machine... Now the store
wanted me to work full
time (5 days a week) and
of course the money would
be better. There
had been no calls from
the film game so I took
the job and I settled in
and liked the work. Most
of the other staff were
good to work with but, of
course, you had one or
two dodgers.. (you get
that in all things you
work at). Now they train
me as a fork lift driver
supervisor and of course
with extra pay.
I
carried on with this job
until 2004 when in June I
had a bad pain in my gut
and John insisted I went
to my doctor... The
doctor sent me to
hospital and they told me
I had colon cancer...THE
BIG C... They operated a
couple of days later and
I was out after eight
days. My wife nursed me
for the next three months
and I put my wieght back
on.. From 9 stone back to
over 12... John made sure
I got my pay for the
three months and then I
wanted to go back. I went
to see John and he told
me my NEW job would be
Customer Greeter and I
would be at the front of
the store. That seemed ok
to me because I wouldn't
have to lift the heavy
boards....
In
2005 I reached the age of
65 and thought to retire
but John asked me.....
''Aitch could you do a
bit of part time for
us?'' Back to three days
a week!...
After
another couple of years I
found it tiring standing
at the front of store for
8 hours a day so decided
to call it a day and let
the young 'uns have
it......... My thanks to
John and some of the
nicer workers....
We'll
Meet again!
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