Alice's Adventures In Wonderland

Film and TV productions across the years

Alice's Adventures In Wonderland starring Fiona Fullerton made in 1972

introduction	picnic and rabbit	the pool of tears	caterpillar to duchess	a mad tea party
a game of croquet	the lobster quadrille	the trials beginning	odds and ends	next film

ODDS AND ENDS:

The film, although made in English, was released in various dubbed versions for other countries. Here's the art work (right) for the Spanish release "Las Adventuras De Alicia" although, bewilderingly, the colours of Alices costume have been changed from blue/white/pink to red/yellow/green. Given that the film was in colour and all the promotional material that I've ever seen was in colour, I'm at a loss as to why this was done.

   In all films, there is always a lot of material which is scripted and shot, but which never makes it to the final print. Sometimes it just doesn't work out as it was envisioned, or the film is too long or too slow, and a considered snip or two of relatively non-essential action makes things 'just right'.

   Here's a production still of the Cheshire Cat outside the Duchess's house talking to Alice, just as Tenniel's drawings depict. Apparently the flick of the Cat's tail was powered by a gas cylinder, the tree is obviously well constructed and the scenery painted just right. It was a very well-set up sequence, so why don't we see it in the film?

   Clearly it was deleted for a reason, but I don't suppose we'll ever know why. Odd though, considering the fact that this is a pivotal moment which sets up both the following tea party scene and the later croquet game sequence.

SPECIAL EFFECTS:

   In the pre-computer-graphics era, size changing was a mixture of both physical and chroma-key photographic effects. Put an actress in set with miniature furniture and she looks like a giant. Put her among oversize props and she appears to be very small.

    Here's a picture which demonstrates the principle. On the left is Michael Crawford as the White Rabbit, walking along a corridor with oversize doors which make him appear small. On the right is Fiona Fullerton sitting on her "pool of tears" (made from a sheet of transparent perspex) in front of some smaller doors, which gives the opposite effect.

    A photographic split screen process then creates a giant Alice looking down on a diminutive Rabbit. This shot isn't the one which appears in the film though, because the floor tiles are mismatched and they seem to have forgotten the full size table.

And here's Fiona Fullerton again, this time in "small" mode, sitting in front of the large doors. She obviously finds the concept amusing!

Spike Milligan, seen here as the Gryphon, died in February 2002 at the age of 83 at his home in Sussex. The comic legend helped create modern broadcast comedy with a series of revolutionary radio and TV shows. A prolific writer, he produced semi-autobiographical novels, poetry and children's books. Spike was a self-styled "gentle anarchist" and passionate about ecological issues. He received an honary knighthood from the Prince of Wales in 2001.
Spike appeared in many films, including the 1972 film

of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland". Some films he wrote and starred in, but he was famous for show-stealing cameos. He was one of those people who could generate laughter with a look or a gesture. His gags were often totally unfunny if you simply saw them written down, but he could take the least promising material and produce gales of laughter in any audience.
He was an eccentric, unique, gentle, comedic genius, and we'll never see his like again.

RIP Spike Milligan 1919-2002.

THE END

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