I always wondered why Rupert got the giggles so badly today.

Just don’t mention Tom Bombadil …

The next morning – this is what we wake up to. Photographically, mist is good and has served us well a couple of times on this film and especially today at the Rollrights.

The first night away on a four week trip through Wales and Ireland sees us camped up in the car park by the Rollright Stones. By now we’ve learned not to finalise the script until we’re on site. No matter how much research we’ve done (note Cope’s ‘Modern Antiquarian’ present, as ever) the stones themselves are always more inspiring or surprising and
here, Rupert writes for tomorrow’s shoot.

I think I was about 10 years old when I first visited the Rollright Stones. I remember it was part of a day in which my parents were showing visiting relatives the countryside around where we lived. Why I should remember that visit and why it should have had such an impact on me, I don’t know. After all, what are the chances of a small clearing with a collection of grey and battered looking stones arranged in a circle registering on the consciousness of a boy of 10? I liked cars, planes, guns, Action Man. Perhaps it was the way it was presented to me, perhaps the tales of witchcraft brought it alive or maybe it was just my own imagination confronted with a real life enigma for the first time, but for some reason, the image held and 40 odd years later I found myself returned to those stones, in the privileged role of film maker, for the making of Standing with Stones.

At that stage, in October 2006, Rupert and I were beginning the third major stage of filming for the programme and before us lay a three week hard working journey through Wales and Ireland. The filming for the South of England was complete and now we were just beginning to hit our stride – the workflow of research, scriptwriting, planning, travel and shooting gradually evolving to account for weather, breakdowns, memory loss and the unexpected. Surprisingly, the unexpected is mostly accounted for by the Stones themselves.

By now we have learned that however much research we do and no matter how sure we are what Rupert is going to say to camera about the sites we visit, that being there – standing with the stones – is so often going to turn our preconceptions and our plans on their head. This has been a joy and a wonder. Even with our enthusiasm and the knowledge that it is shared with many others, we were conscious of the fact that making a film about stones presents challenges. Stones don’t move. They’re not that exciting to look at. They don’t talk. They’re not sexy. But we needn’t have worried. What has astounded us and what we hope will astound the viewers of Standing with Stones is the sheer variety and richness of landscape and story that they present to us.

This film has been more than two years in the making. Our little convoy of camper van and Land-Rover has zig-zagged its way up through England, Wales, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland, the Western Isles and eventually to Orkney. We have visited well over 100 sites and between us travelled at least 12,000 miles and we have laughed an awful lot. At last, after 8 months in the cutting room, we are finally able to share with you the fruits of our adventure and some of our thoughts and experiences from along the way.

For more about the DVD and to buy, please go to www.standingwithstones.com

Anyway, first thing to report is the wonderful success of Standing with Stones at its first public showing at the Chipping Norton Theatre in Oxfordshire – not a stones throw (forgive me!) from the Rollrights themselves. I’m happy to say that filling the theatre for the night proved not to be a problem and it really gives the lie to the notion that interest in megaliths and standing stones is a ‘niche’ subject. Most of the tickets – certainly the initial rush seemed to come from the newsletter of the theatre itself which certainly does not have a demographic bias towards stone freaks. Whatever the main source for getting the bums on seats on the actual night, it was gratifying that the theatre filled to its 213 seat capacity with very little effort on my part.

Bottom line is that everyone seemed to enjoy the evening immensely and most importantly, we raised the sum of £946.19 for the Rollrights Trust which I am sure they can put to very good use.

What was interesting from our point of view, seeing as there were many angles of view represented in the audience, from a proper, academic archaeologist (George Lambrick, chairman of the Rollrights Trust), through to megailithomaniac stone huggers, that everyone came away happy and smiling. We always aimed to be able to accommodate as much of a general audience as possible with SWS while at the same time delivering fascinating story, facts and ideas and it was gratifying to see that we seem to have achieved that.

So, thanks to everyone for coming and to the staff at the theatre – who were great – and thanks to everyone who supported and contributed to making the evening a success. I want to do more now …