MONEY, THAT’S WHAT WE WANT

‘There was this epic struggle between the British and the American producers about money,’ recalls Valentine Edelmann. ‘The British studio told the American producers that they needed more to finish it. But the Americans refused to move from the budget. So director Charles Dunning and the animators stole the only copy, put it in Dunning’s bank vault, and told the Americans, “You can have it back – if you pay”. So they were given a bit more money.’ The final budget was £250,000.