Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
I’ll drink to my old pal Emma to mark her 60th birthday
TONY says he will be raising a glass to his old pal Emma Thompson, who turns 60 tomorrow.
He said: “I’m proud to have been a tiny part of knowing Emma all those years ago.
“My first memory of her was in Stephen Fry’s room at Cambridge. I remember being struck by how beautiful she was – and always funny. She was utterly lovely, charming and gracious.”
He says Emma had “a neon sign above her head” that said she was going to be a star.
He added: “My god, she was good – I could see the star quality in her even then. It was the charm, the stillness, the concentration.
“She was really kind to other people. And she always stole the scene.” The comic remembers Emma as bright and very intelligent, but added: “She never put anyone else down, even though she was way above everyone else.
“She could hold her own with Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie – she could match any one of us. One reason she is successful is she is kind, smart… and good at her job.”
The pair worked together again in 1992 on the film Peter’s Friends – alongside Fry, Hugh Laurie and Kenneth Branagh. Ironically, it tells of six friends who get together and reminisce about good times now long gone.
Tony recalled: “Emma told me off on set. I was messing about and she said, ‘Tony this is a film set, not a playground.’
“Again, with kindness. She put me in my place without malice. It stopped me being a fool. She was like her character Nanny McPhee, even then. It would be really nice to get the old crowd back together.”
In a message to his old pal, made a Dame last year, he added poignantly: “Emma, I don’t know if you remember who I am, but happy birthday to you.
“I have fun memories of when we were students together. We had a laugh.”
KIND