A similar robot dance turned Peter Crouch into a household name
Picture the scene: a school playground a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away… a group of friends, all aged eight or nine, are role-playing the amazing new Hollywood film recently released. They are brandishing rulers and making ‘swoosh’ noises, while one of them attempts to look menacing by walking slowly around the playground – in among those kids who inexplicably preferred kiss chase to destroying the evil Empire – and muttering ‘I find your lack of faith disturbing’.
OK, it was my school playground, the galaxy wasn’t that far away – I lived in east Devon - and the rulers were our makeshift light sabres. My ‘menacing’ mate was mimicking Darth Vader, and in truth sounded and looked ridiculous.
We all looked ridiculous. It was a school playground, after all.
It was a ‘long time ago’, though; the last few months of 1977. Forty-two years ago. The sands of time seem to run that little bit quicker the older you get.
Armed with my bendy plastic ruler, I was Luke Skywalker. The cool kids always wanted to be Han Solo. There was no political correctness in school playgrounds in the late 1970s, so the smallest kid was told he had to be a Jawa. If memory serves me right, Jeff complained to our teacher about it. We got our own back, though – we shoved him down the Death Star rubbish shute.
My mate Scott did a fairly good version of C3PO long before a similar ‘robot’ dance turned Peter Crouch into a household name.
All these years on, Star Wars remains my favourite film of all time. I’m not a film buff – I’ve never seen Dirty Dancing, Forrest Gump, Schindler’s List or The Shawshank Redemption.
I have, though, seen the first Star Wars movie more than 30 times and I’ve seen the seven other films the franchise has released since Alderaan was obliterated.
That is why I am as excited about seeing the new Rise of Skywalker production as I was when I ‘swooshed’ my way around the playground.
For a few hours, it will be 1977 again. I will be eight again. And if I close my eyes, I will see Jeff screaming ‘sir, sir, now they want me to be R2D2...’
A similar ‘robot’ dance turned Peter Crouch into a household name