Gun bandits in threat to shoot Joanna Lumley
JOANNA Lumley was threatened by armed bandits while filming a travel series in Haiti.
they ambushed the 73-yearold actress while she was driving through a mountain range with her camera crew.
the gun-wielding gang told Miss Lumley and her team that they would kill them if they did not hand over their cash.
But two of the Absolutely Fabulous star’s bodyguards stepped in and she escaped unscathed.
She said the incident had not deterred her from continuing to film the two-part documentary series, Hidden Caribbean: Havana to Haiti, which begins on ItV next Monday.
Miss Lumley said: ‘ Suddenly there was a blockage across the road. they’d put branches down. Luckily, we had two big bodyguards who got out and said: “Come on guys, clear this away”.
And they went: “No, we want your money or your life.” Sometimes they dig trenches, pour oil in and set fire to it, then come with guns and take your wallets.’
Miss Lumley added: ‘I’m not an afraid kind of person. If you look timid, people and animals pick it up very fast.
‘In Haiti, people are so poor, but if you say, “Bonjour,” and put your hand out, you’ve made friends immediately.’ the incident is not shown in the programme but Miss Lumley, who has filmed several travel documentaries, said that was not the only drama involved in the filming of the series.
She said the crew arrived in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince ‘on the day of a riot, so we had to have a police escort to the hotel’.
‘riots break out like wildfires across the country and if you’re in that place, you’re stuck. It’s a completely broken country. It’s totally lawless. you wouldn’t leave your hotel at night there.’
An ItV spokesman said: ‘A full risk assessment was carried out before filming in Haiti and Joanna was accompanied by the appropriate level of security.’
the series sees Miss Lumley travel across two of the most enigmatic countries in the Caribbean – Cuba and Haiti – to explore hidden gems. She kicks off the journey in a classic car in Havana, before embarking on the 1,500-mile trip which is shown in two 60-minute episodes.