A Small Memory of Victoria Wood - Andrew Crofts









Towards the end of the seventies I received a call from a publicity lady at the ICA, a small, artsy theatre venue in the Mall.

“We’re putting on a play called ‘Talent’ by a young writer called Victoria Wood and we wondered if you would like to interview her. You may have seen her singing funny songs on ‘New Faces’ or ‘That’s Life’. She’s playing one of the lead roles as well. Believe me, she’s going to be a huge star.”

Publicists always tell you that people who aren’t yet stars are going to be very soon, that’s their job, but it was a free ticket and seemed like a good contact, so I happily went along.

Needless to say the play was a gentle revelation and although the young Miss Wood was painfully shy and modest she managed to be a joy to interview. Hearing or seeing someone who is genuinely honest and funny is always life-enhancing. 

Playing back the interview afterwards, and then reading through her words once I had typed them up into an article for a women’s magazine, I actually found myself laughing out loud again; a pretty fair indicator that the publicity lady’s predictions were going to come true.

If Victoria Wood was the only thing that ever came out of the hundreds of thousands of hours of talent show television that the world has endured, it would still all have been worthwhile. 

Comments

Wendy H. Jones said…
This is so true. Victoria Wood was a legend. I loved her work and she is a sad loss to show business.
JO said…
What a lovely memory. I don't think any of us can think of her and not smile!
Mari Biella said…
I admired the sharp, well-observed nature of her comedy - and the fact that, though she always picked up on the tics and oddities of human behaviour, she wasn't cruel. She wrote about and for everyday people, and they loved her for it. It's strange to think that someone so talented, and working in such a seemingly extrovert field as comedy, was apparently also very shy. 62 is such a young age to go.
Jan Needle said…
I never had the honour and pleasure of meeting her, but I was a diehard fan from the moment I first saw her on TV. Possibly one of the very greatest of comedians and writers we'll ever have produced. I did meet her mother, though - who did a year a Manchester University drama department where I was a full time student. She was a lovely person, too.
Lynne Garner said…
What a lovely memory to have. Thanks for sharing.
Enid Richemont said…
She was brilliant, and so funny. The world is a greyer place without her.
Lydia Bennet said…
A lovely tribute, better than the newspapers', some of which were mostly about her weight, with her baftas given a brief mention at the end.

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