Chas and Slade decided to make a movie "Slade in Flame" in 1974. They had been offered several scripts but liked Andrew Birkin's the best. The movie was directed by Richard Longcraine.

I was aware from Susie Ching that concert scenes were being filmed for "Slade In Flame" in London in the Summer school holidays of '74. I was disappointed that the sessions, filmed at the Hammersmith Palais and the Rainbow in Finsbury Park, clashed with my family holidays in Devon. I couldn't go! Lots of the known fans appeared in the concert scenes. A big fan was a girl from Watford called Sue. She really liked Don (and was known to his parents - as she visited them all the time). JJ (Slade roadie) at the time told me that she tried numerous times to get on stage and make it to Don. However, each time they managed to pull her back. In a final cut Richard Longcraine said "let her go" so that she was allowed to reach the stage and make a camera shot that could be used for the film. (You will see Sue wearing a red bomber jacket in the film - and actually being carried away by JJ).

( To see the original Fan Club invites to attend the filming at The Rainbow click here. Also, click here to see the invite to attend the second round of filming (that was subequently cancelled) and my invite to the Premiere.)

The film crew gave away lots of Flame T-shirts and banners etc. My freind John Berry still has one of the Flame flags to this day.

My disappointment in missing the filming was eased when I got a letter from "Di" at the Fan Club saying that they were going to film more scenes at the Rainbow. This was because much of the filming of the crowd was very dark - and they wanted a better quality cut for the film. However, despite sending out the invites, the filming was eventually cancelled - due to budget constraints. So I was disappointed once more!

When the film was actually released Slade arranged two premieres.

The first Premiere was held in the North - in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Why - I don't know? All I can presume is that the band decided to try the film out on a Northern audience first. As Manager, Chas Chandler, and Assistant Manager, John Steel, both came from Newcastle - maybe that's the reason why they chose this location.

The second Premiere was held in London. The band thought this high profile event at the Metropole Cinema in Victoria would be made better if fans were allowed to attend too. The Premiere was to be held on 13th February 1975. As soon as I found out I was straight round to see Susie in Slade's office to get some free tickets. She gave me a pile and I took some mates from school along. We got to the cinema early - on the hunt for the band.

As we came out of Victoria Underground Station you couldn't miss the Metropole. Chas had hired two army trucks with enormous spotlights (like the ones used in the war to search out German bombers). The sky was light up with enormous beams - the general public were all milling around to see what was going on. 

Chas's organisation of the event was carefully planned. Fans were invited early and seated quickly, downstairs in the Stalls, and then were locked in. (Don't think you'd be able to do this nowadays with all the health and safety issues).

All we could do is look through the windows in the door as we then saw the VIPs arrive. Mud, Sweet, Suzi Quatro, Lynsey De Paul, The Arrows and even "Miss Diane" from Crossroads all turned up. Followed of course by Slade and the other cast members who sat on the balcony.

Dave Hill told me later that PR had been arranged so that Slade would turn up at the event, after the fans had been seated, on the back of a vintage fire engine. They had been waiting around the corner to the cinema - in the freezing cold (it was February after all). As they waited, Sweet swept past in their Roller. The Sweet were never big friends of Slade. Steve Priest wound down his window and sneered "Bet you're bleeding cold"!

I also I remember chatting for the first time to Fran Tucker, another die-hard fan, who took her seat alongside me. I became friendly with Fran years later - and she reminded me that we had talked at the premiere.

The funniest thing I recall was seeing at the event was Alan Lake and Diana Dors (Lake's wife) edge their way across the front of the balcony. A guy shouted "Alan, Alan!" to get his attention. As soon as he acknowledged the guy shouted "Do you know what?". And Alan responded "What?". Then the guy responded with "You're wife ain't half got big tits!".

It brought the house down - and you could see Lake chuckling too.

I remember that at the end of the movie the fans initially sat there in stony silence. It is quite a shock how the film just closes with the shadow shot of Ron Harding (Johnny Shannon) taking off his glasses - as Stoker tells him it's all over. It was me who started the clapping and cheering (although I always used to be really shy). Once again, the fans were held back, with the Stall doors locked, until Slade and the VIPs had left.

Outside the Metropole I spoke to Les Gray and Dave Mount (both from Mud, and both now deceased). They were both really enthusiastic about the film. I remember Dave Mount asking me how I felt about the film - keen to know what fans made of it. Of course I thought it was brill. I asked him about the film that Mud had just completed "Never Too Young To Rock" (with the Glitter Band and the Rubettes). Dave was dismissive of their efforts - saying it was just a muck around and nothing like the Slade film. Slade's was a "proper" film. After the Premiere I went to several showings of the film.

I went to both my local cinemas (the Kilburn State Cinema and the Swiss Cottage Odeon). At both venues I would go to the lunchtime showing, but would sit in all day, so that I also saw the late afternoon and evening showings too. I used to take plenty of food with me! No wonder I soon knew the movie word-for-word. Slade actually turned up at one of the showings in Kilburn (which at the time had the highest number of seats of any cinema in Europe) to be presented with a Gold Disc for the "Flame" album by the cinema manager.

Years later, in 1979, before the film was released on VHS or DVD I arranged a private showing at The Everyman cinema in Wardour Street. I promised the manager that I would spread the word with Slade fans - and that he would get a full house. I'm pleased to say he did! I actually took Don along with me - and he paid to go in to his own film. The cinema manager arranged several other showings in the following year beacuse it had proved so popular.

I still watch the DVD of "Flame" to this day and still rate it as a very good film. Nod and Don both came across as naturals in front of the camera. The casting of Nina Thomas who played the role of Paul's wife Julie was excellent. I knew Jim's wife Louise in real life and her voice and mannerisms were so like the real thing! Also, I loved the mention in the film to Barry (Dave Hill) having his 21st birthday. In one scene Charlie's (i.e. Don's) old boss Harold says "You what? Barry 21 again?". This was a fun poke at Slade themselves who had had their birth years amended by Chas so that they were all younger than they really were. He gave Nod and Don birth years of 1950 (instead of the reality of 1946), Dave 1952 (instead of 1946) and Jim 1952 (instead of 1949). Most fans knew that these dates were made up - I mean Jim would have been only 13 when he joined the N Betweens in 1966!

My one big bug is that the movie book (based on the film) was even more graphic than the finished film. This would have made an ever better movie - but probably would have been too adult for Slade's young audience.

Final note - the sequence in the movie whereby Flame are being filmed at a Fire Station didn't quite make sense. Russell the roadie in the movie approaches Dave Hill ("Barry") and is sent away saying "it's the wrong colour". The scene was trying to show was that "Barry" had sent out for the roadie to get him some glitter (like Dave would have worn in real life) - but the viewers couldn't see what Russell was offering Barry. The scene made no sense to me at all until I realised years later!

(FYI - By 1983 The Metropole cinema, used for the film premiere, had been converted into a rock venue, called....The Venue. I went with Don to see Chas do a special press concert with The Animals. They were announcing their comeback tour - and earned big money particularly for the large arenas they played in the US).

 

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