Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory at the BFI

On a cold and bright Sunday at the end of January I finally saw a childhood favourite on the big screen. Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is one of those films that has continued to grow in popularity since its original release. It was my first trip to the big screen since New Year’s Day 2020 so it was well overdue. Now, I have to be honest that one reason alone encouraged me to go to the BFI last Sunday. As well as the film, the lovely Julie Dawn Cole was doing a Q&A after the film, and she was a childhood crush of mine, of which more later!

My first memory of Willy Wonka was on the small screen as a clip on the Screen Test programme. Thanks to the magic of the Radio Times Archive (with which I am becoming obsessed for its ability to take me back to my childhood days) I have pinpointed it to an episode that aired in 1972.

I remember that even in black and white, the world of Willy Wonka looked absolutely amazing. Then I saw another episode in December of that year with (I’m sure, although memory does play tricks on you!) an interview with Julie Dawn Cole and some behind the scenes clips.

Now, remember that the film itself was released in 1971 and it was 1972 before it left the cinemas. Once that happened, TV stations had to wait five years before showing it. BBC1 picked it up for showing at what was almost certainly the first opportunity as you can see below. That meant that it was 1977 before I saw the film in its entirety, but by that time colour television had arrived in my household and I was able to enjoy the film as it was originally intended.

By this time, Julie Dawn Cole had become one of my early heart throbs and I nursed (pun intended) a huge crush on her when she appeared as Jo Longhurst in the hospital drama, Angels, which started in 1975. Julie’s were the first pictures I had up on my wall and when I watched Angels, any part of the story that didn’t include Jo saw my attention wandering!

When I saw Julie as Veruca Salt, I was captivated anew by her younger self, closer in age to me at that time, and my crush on her intensified. It was a very odd experience watching the film, because, not knowing the story very well, I wanted Veruca to win the Chocolate Factory even if she was a bad egg! I remember being very disappointed when she disappeared down that chute!

So, how did the film appear to my adult self. Well, first of all, the relative novelty of the big screen made it a far more immersive experience than the biggest of home TVs, so it was easy to lose myself in the story. I liked the way that Charlie Bucket and his family’s poverty was portrayed in a surprisingly direct and honest manner. Yes, it was exaggerated, but at its heart was a clear eyed portrayal of his life that was rare in children’s films at the time. The songs by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley were fun with Pure Imagination and I Want it Now the obvious standouts as indeed they were when I first watched. This time, though, I also appreciated the melancholy Cheer Up, Charlie sung by Diana Sowle as Charlie’s mother. The pacing of the film was very good, with the search for the golden tickets and the introduction of the main protagonists being handled well. This is due to the excellence of the uncredited screenwriter – more later in the Q&A section! The reveal of the Chocolate Factory itself was just as impressive to my adult eyes, as I soaked up all the details and marvelled at the amount of pure imagination that went into creating it. As with all Roald Dahl’s work, there was a streak of nastiness running through it, albeit for unpleasant characters, but the screenplay did soft pedal it and play it for laughs somewhat more. Suffice to say, the 1 hour 40 minutes went by very quickly as Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory proved that it is a film for all ages as it held the full attention of three generations.

Not the best picture but a lovely half hour in Julie Dawn Cole’s presence

The Q&A was the third time I saw Julie Dawn Cole on Sunday. First of all, I saw her walk through the foyer to meet the staff at the BFI who were organising the showing. She looked very youthful given the time that had passed between the filming and this showing, and I was aware that a combination of my younger self and older self were absolutely overjoyed to finally see her close up! Then she helped present some prizes to children who had done some drawings before the film, and gave us a couple of moments to look out for in the film that we might otherwise have missed. When the film ended, she came out for the Q&A and spoke with real affection for the film, her co-stars and the whole team behind the scenes. There were three snippets of behind the scenes information that I was really fascinated by.

Firstly, she fibbed about her acting experience when attending the final audition as she realised that her inexperience was costing her roles that she was otherwise a great fit for. She invented her film history, in the days before an IMDB search would have revealed the truth, and secured the part. Well, it’s what Veruca herself would have done isn’t it? Secondly, a large part of the screenplay was written by David Seltzer, who also wrote The Omen. However, he had to agree to be uncredited because the studio were under the impression that Roald Dahl was still attached to the production. Thirdly, Julie was the only child on set not to be accompanied by a family member so Gene Wilder asked all the older members of the crew to keep a special look out for her. It was a warm and lovely half hour with the most delightful of actresses.

I did actually see Julie walking out, and I toyed with the idea of saying hello, but my younger self , which seemed to take the reins, was too shy to do so! It was probably for the best, and it gives me a reason to go to her next signing when, I trust, I won’t be tongue tied! They say you should never meet your heroes, but you should definitely go to see your childhood crush!