S T E P H A N I E E N G L I S H
N O O R D I N A R Y E X T R A
SUPERMANIA spins the world back to 1986 for yet another pictorial exclusive from the making of Superman IV: The Quest For Peace courtesy of actress Stephanie English. A tenured performer appearing in numerous productions of the 70’s and 80’s, Steph shares her experiences of being a background artiste in the quick chat below…
Stephanie, thanks so much for talking to SUPERMANIA – can we start by asking you how you came to be involved in so many memorable movies & shows back in the 80’s and what exactly was your contribution?
I started doing films/TV in the early 70’s from being a model it was really just a transgression from one to the other as I started getting small parts as a model and it went on from there.
Can you tell us what a typical day for you as an extra/stand in would entail? What was the most memorable show you spent time on and why – were there any jobs you look back on as the best of them all?
A typical day on a film would be an early start around 6 to 7am then time spent waiting to have your hair and make up done and getting into costume – you have no idea what time you will finish and often no idea what you will be required to do. My most memorable films I would say are Batman as the Gotham city set was amazing and Robin Hood as we spent many memorable weeks filming in the woods at Burnham Beeches.
And so to SUPERMAN IV – how and when were you approached by the production company and were you excited to be a part of it? Had you been a fan/seen all the SUPERMAN films up to that point?
I got the job on Superman IV through my agent – I had already worked on Superman II but the scene I did where we were being blown over by the super villains was cut out unfortunately.
How much time did you spend on the set and what were your specific scenes? From your pictures its evident you were in Milton Keynes for the two major sequences where Superman flies down into the Train Station. What was the atmosphere like and was seeing Christopher Reeve in flight as cool as it looked onscreen?
I worked one day Milton Keynes as far as I remember and I was an onlooker watching Superman flying in. It was interesting to see how they did it and how well they made the area look like Metropolis. I was in the crowd behind Superman when he walks to the podium to make his speech.
Speaking of Chris, you were also present for what would sadly be a cut scene at the London Hippodrome nightclub. That picture of you together (Top) must be special to you. Can you give us your impressions of working with him and how he came across as a person?
My memories of Christopher Reeve from the Hippodrome scene were that he was very nice – friendly and down to earth. I remember him saying his feet were hurting as the shoes they had given him were too small..!
Stephanie – Thank you very much..!!