To Worzel, kindness is a superpower...
Mackenzie Crook is back as the loveable scarecrow Worzel Gummidge this Christmas. GEORGIA HUMPHREYS finds out more
MACKENZIE CROOK admits he finds it odd telling people what to do, as “that’s not really in my personality”. But when it comes to BBC’s Worzel Gummidge dramas, Mackenzie, 49, is most certainly the man in charge.
The Maidstone-born actor is not only responsible for writing the special episodes, which are inspired by a series of books by English novelist Barbara Euphan Todd, but he also directs them and plays the titular role.
Last Christmas, we saw two one-off films follow Worzel’s madcap adventures, and now there’s a new film, Saucy Nancy, which promises to be another family favourite this festive period.
Here, father-of-two Mackenzie – known for The Office, Pirates Of The Caribbean and The Detectorists – tells us about his love for the role, and shares what we could all learn from the turnip-headed scarecrow.
What can people expect from Saucy Nancy?
IT’S kind of a road trip episode, really – they leave Scatterbrook Farm. Susan (India Brown) and John (Thierry Wickens) and Worzel go to the local salvage yard and they find an old ship’s figurehead – Worzel’s old mate, Saucy Nancy (Shirley Henderson). She’s been languishing in this salvage yard for years, and she wants to see the sea again, so they decide to take her to the seaside for a day trip.
What was it like to get such a brilliant response to the films last Christmas?
IT WAS lovely, and it was quite a relief. Because I hadn’t watched it (the ITV series of Worzel Gummidge, starring Jon Pertwee), I wasn’t really aware of just how close people held it to their hearts.
I knew I was pleased with what we’d done, but the reaction it got, especially from children, is just so wonderful.
The whole idea is that I wanted children to love Worzel and to find him hilarious and I’ve had kids, and parents of kids, telling me that their children are repeating the funny lines and the little catchphrases he uses.
Saying ‘mumble grumble’ under your breath when you’re in a bad mood – that seems to have taken off.
Is it liberating to be able to put your own spin on these classic characters?
YEAH, it is. The original stories, they’re kind of difficult to bring up to date, they’re very of their time, in the 1930s.
Not much of what they’re talking about is relevant, but the characters and the feel of it is still relevant, and so I’ve got this luxury of picking out the bits I like from the books and weaving my own stories around them which sometimes feels like a liberty.
But I’m sure Barbara Euphan Todd would have appreciated what we’re doing with it.
Bringing it up to date in a kind and caring and environmentally-friendly way.
After a difficult year with Covid-19, it’s lovely to see a story of friendship and belonging... YEAH, I think it will be particularly poignant. The theme is taking Nancy back to where she belongs, looking for a place where she belongs. And the overriding theme is kindness – kindness to nature and the environment and to each other.
And, I dunno, kindness feels a bit whimsical when you talk about it like that, but to Worzel it’s a superpower, and if you can be genuinely kind and caring to other people and to nature, then that’s the way forward. Hopefully that’s what comes across.