Articles/Interviews

Dressed casually in riding jodhpurs, an open necked white shirt and boots, a beer in his hand, Oliver Reed looked every inch the country squire. He had just got back from a ride over Wimbledon Common on his horse - horses are a passion he acquired when making The Hunting Party, his first Western, last year. We sat in the lounge of his Wimbledon home. Obviously a very masculine domain, it boasts a profusion of military and hunting prints, a splendid gun collection, an amply stocked bar, views to stun the visitor and the sort of material comfort one expects of an actor. "It's silly to pretend I don't like comfortable living because I do," Oliver explained.

Currently the film everyone is talking about is Oliver's latest release, The Devils. Having seen the film, I told him how deeply it had disturbed me.

"It was very disturbing to make," said Oliver, smiling. "I still haven't got over it."

I told Oliver that it had occurred to me that a sensualist such as Grandier (the character he plays in the film) seemed an unlikely choice for the priesthood. "I think he wanted to be a politician," Oliver said. "It was traditional at the time for the first son to be a politician, the second son was bought a commission into the Army and the third son joined the priesthood."

Many are saying that The Devils is the finest performance Oliver has ever given and he's understandably proud of the film, defensive about criticism that it 'goes too far' or is in 'bad taste'.

Said Oliver, "Where do you draw the line? This is the way it happened - those nuns were used for political ends, toted round France as a side show for a year. Do you ignore the actual historical accuracy and the fact that the Church, the politicians and the aristocracy were corrupt? I get so angry with the opinion makers who class it with the sex films. If we ignore history because it was unpleasant we're going to end up with nothing but nature films."

Oliver seems strangely drawn to directors who have the reputation of being difficult. Hen Russell is one (Oliver also did Women In Love for him as well as two television plays based on the lives of Rossetti and Debussy); the other is Michael Winner who Oliver thanks for changing his image way back in the days when he was associated with Hammer horror films. Winner saw Oliver and offered him parts in The System and The Jokers, two films Oliver regards as his professional turning point. "I regret those Hammer films, but I gained experience from them. I'm sorry about them because they keep cropping up on television and I can't avoid them!"

Would he like to work for Winner again? "I'd love to. We get on like a house on fire."

Now Oliver finds himself in the happy position of going from film to film in a manner many actors would like to be accustomed; he has three films awaiting release (The First Of January, The Lady In The Car With Glasses And A Gun, and The Hunting Party). A brief respite in June and July this year ("it's the first time I've been in the house for six consecutive weeks") but I was business as usual in August when he began Sitting Target.

Now Oliver is venturing into film production, hopefully early next year, with a film about the men who murdered Thomas Becket. Oliver co-authored the screenplay and will star in the film as well as produce. At the moment he is waiting for the front office go ahead. He feels, wisely, that "an actor should have more than one string to his bow" and having always had a yearning towards farm life, he is considering moving to Ireland. "I want a farm, a kind of guest house where everything is laid on - hunting, shooting, fishing, riding. I want to surround myself with things I like; I want to be as near England as possible, and maybe for the wrong reasons, I love Ireland and Irishmen. I know farms are expensive o upkeep unless they're very successful so I'd offset that by making films."

I suggested that he might find that he enjoys the country life so much that he wouldn't be able to force himself back for films. "Either that", he agreed, "or I'll be so bored that I'll sell up and be back within a year." But he does not contemplate this move for a year or two.

I asked Oliver why he tackled the Americans on their own ground - westerns - in The Hunting Party?

"I wanted to do a western, I wanted to work with Candice Bergen. It was like a pantomime, and I enjoyed it. It's about an outlaw who kidnaps a schoolteacher because he can't read or write and want to learn, and they fall in love. But I have heard that people think it's too violent. But it's not nearly as violent as pantomime - Hansel and Gretel for instance!"

In his private life, Oliver does not fraternise with his fellow actors, "I don't see many actors, but I occasionally mix with actresses." In fact he is more likely to be found pottering in his garden (a local tomato growing competition was a hot topic of conversation), riding, playing cricket (he was forced to stop playing rugby because insurance companies considered it an unnecessary risk), or downing a pint with the boys in the local.

After the pressures and dramas of the film set I imagine that it comes as a tremendous relief to Oliver to be treated quite normally by other Wimbledon residents. He accepts everyone; they accept him and although he never quite sinks into the background - I don't think he could, even if he tried - it's quite usual to discover him talking enthusiastically about cricket or soccer as though the happenings in the film world were a million miles away. It's this ability of Oliver's to change his personality and conversation to suit the company he's in which I found particularly intriguing.

A year ago Oliver was divorced from his wife of ten years. I asked him whether he found himself being more hotly pursued by the ladies following his divorce? "There was no difference," he said, "I have a girlfriend." But he is in no hurry to tread the marriage path again. "It would be silly, regardless of how one feels, to rush into marriage again so soon."

Oliver Reed, at 33, has achieved what many actors endlessly strive for; adulation from the fans, admiration from women, respect from other professionals. He has appeared in scores of successful films and shown himself to be both versatile and reliable - whether it's as Bill Sikes in Oliver! or as Grandier in The Devils.

He most enjoyed working with Orson Welles in the Michael Winner film, I'll Never Forget What's 'Is Name. "He's such a big actor - I don't mean just physically - that you can act up to him. It wasn't that he gave a lot, but there was so much you could take from him." There are still actors he would like to work with - Paul Newman, Steve McQueen and Lee Marvin were mentioned. But he was stumped when I asked him which directors he'd like to work with. Eventually he said, "Kazan, I suppose." His natural instinct is scepticism where 'God figures' in films are concerned, whether it's the director, producer or star who's calling the tune.

"It should be a team effort, although that's an awful word because it hints of communion and unions, both of which I disapprove."

The last few years have mellowed Oliver Reed. He's not as aggressive or moody as he used to be; he hasn't got to prove anything anymore. And he's established as a top actor. When he turns his hand to producing films I think we'll discover yet another facet to the character of the fascinating Oliver Reed.