‘Tiger Bay changed my life completely’
MOST Cardiffians, I believe, will associate film actress Hayley Mills – daughter of film star John Mills – with her first film Tiger Bay.
And if you want to know more about her and the films she appeared in then get hold of a copy of Gary Wharton’s Hayley Mills in Profile which lists all her film, theatre and television appearances.
Recalling the film, Hayley – who made front page news in the Echo in May 2019 when she returned to Cardiff after 60 years – said: “It was real. You believed in those characters.”
Some 21 years earlier, in November 1998, an anniversary screening of Tiger Bay took place in Cardiff. According to the Western Mail’s Eric Cross, “Hayley’s performance was fantastic”, while Hayley told the Echo’s Jenny Longhurst: “That film has a very special place in my heart.”
In 2003 Hayley returned to Cardiff on tour with Humble Boy which played at the New Theatre.
Fast forward to 2019 and Hayley was back in Cardiff again followed by an ITV Wales film crew, revisiting the former Tiger Bay area.
She said: “Tiger Bay started everything for me. It changed my life completely. The film set me on my own path as an actor. It’s a very special movie and I love it very much. Very much.”
As Cardiff author Gary Wharton says: “For some, Hayley Mills will always be remembered as the Disney darling across 1960s film gems Pollyanna, Summer Magic, The Parent Trap and others. But she was a lot more than that.” ■ This 270 page well-illustrated book, which costs £20 including postage, is a must for her film fans and can be obtained by emailing misshayleybook@ yahoo.com