Playwright and director Ray Cooney forecasts a bright future for Wimbledon Studios and British film.
Theatre legend Ray Cooney predicts a bright future for Wimbledon Studios, after praising the studio location used on his recent production.
The film director, who recently finished filming the screen adaptation of his classic play Run For Your Wife, praised the set-up and indicated it to be a reflection of a thriving British film industry.
Speaking to the South West Londoner, the veteran playwright expressed a desire to work there again in future if his schedule should allow.
Mr Cooney said: “Like many others involved in the film, this is the first time I’ve worked at Wimbledon Studios, and I have been very impressed.”
“I like to keep myself very busy, whether it be a film or mainly theatre,” he added.
“But if I get to do another film, then I would like it to be here.”
Shooting finished three weeks ago and the star-studded film – due for release in May 2012, as reported previously by the SW Londoner – is the latest twist in a career spanning 65 years.
At 79-years-old, the ever-youthful Cooney, who recently had a heart-bypass operation, credits a sustained appetite for variation as being behind his career longevity.
“I’m very lucky to still be doing something I love after all these years, and I’ve always mixed it up – my career is forever going off on tangents,” he said.
“I haven’t really worked on a movie for 30 years. But for sheer talent and creativity, the industry in Britain appears to be thriving currently, and long may that continue,” he added.
Next on the agenda for Cooney is a revival of the 1984 play, Two into One, starring Gyles Brandreth and Christopher Biggins.
It is due to appear on the London stage next spring.
