58: Introduction to the 1978 film Scripted, narrated, recorded and edited by Newell Fisher, with script-assistance by John Ruths Origin of a film Martin Rosen bought the rights by 1975 and production started that year. He hired Terry Rawlings as editor. The music for the film hit a major crisis after Malcolm Williamson, a prestigious composer, left the country with hardly anything written. Angela Morley took over, reluctantly, and developed the score in 2 weeks , both from his initial sketches and her own original work. Rabbit Voices So who were the actors who portrayed our rabbit friends...and enemies? Hazel is probably best known as being voiced by John Hurt the year before an alien attached itself to his face in the film ‘Alien’(1979). Fiver is portrayed by British comedy actor Richard Briars, while Bigwig is played by Michael Graham Cox. Briars is best known for his role in the 70's British sit-com 'The Good Life'. Cox is probably easiest spotted playing Captain Cleminson in 'A Bridge too Far' (1977). Captain Holly is played by John Bennett, who plays Dr. Ehrlich in 'The Pianist' (2002). Sir Ralph Richardson plays the Chief Rabbit of Sandleford. He played the Supreme Being in 'Time Bandits' (1981) Simon Cadell, plays Blackberry. He is best known for his role as Jeffrey Fairbrother in the British Sitcom 'Hi-de-hi'. Terence Rigby plays Silver. He plays General Bukharin in the Bond film 'Tomorrow never Dies' (1997). Roy Kinnear plays Pipkin. He played Henry Salt, father of Veruca Salt, in Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971). Richard O'Callaghan plays Dandelion. He is Lewis Boggs, the son of the factory owner played by Kenneth Williams in 'Carry on at your Convenience' (1971). Denholm Elliot plays Cowslip. You will recognise him as Dr. Marcus Brody from the Indiana Jones movies. Stage actor Lynn Farleigh plays the cat. She was Mrs Bennet's sister, Mrs Phillips, in the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice. Marry Maddox plays Clover. She played Ms. Fossington-Gore in the UK TV adaptation of The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾ in 1985. Kehaar is played by Zero Mostel, the crazy haired Producer from Mel Brook's 'The Producers'(1967) Veteran film actor Harry Andrews plays Woundwort. The role I remember him best in is as Regimental Sergeant Major Wilson in 'The Hill' (1965) TV actor Hannah Gordon plays Hyzenthlay. She can be seen playing Ann Treves in 'The Elephant Man' (1980) Captain Campion is played by Nigel Hawthorn, who played the title role in 'The Madness of King George' in 1995. TV actor Clifton Jones plays Blackavar. His best known role is as David Kano in 'Space:1999'. He was one of two black actors in the cast. Vervain, and Chervil, are played by Derek Griffiths, the other black actor. He was mainly a UK comedy TV actor. You can spot him as Saladin in 'Up the Chastity Belt' (1971). Veteran Shakespearean actor Michael Hordern plays Frith and the narrator. Probably easiest seen as Sir George Hodge in 'Gandhi' (1982) Another veteran, Joss Ackland , plays The Black Rabbit...or is that El-ahrairah? He is the villain Chuck De Nomolos in 'Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey' (1991) Lucy, the human girl, is played by Michelle Price, who played a Girl pupil in 'Maria Marten', also known as 'The Girl in the Red Barn' (1980). Sights and Sounds Watership Down was produced in the time before computer animation, when making such a film involved a team of artists painting backgrounds, while another team drew then painted each frame of the characters' movements onto transparencies that were then photographed over the backgrounds. This is why animated films tended to be far shorter than live-action. WD Broke that rule at 90 minutes in length. The British Board of Film Classification seems to have assumed it was harmless, as it was an animation, without even watching it.