Sean Connery: 'Ever to Excel' screenings to support Sir Sean Connery Scholarship Fund

Around the world in 48 hours

A world-wide weekend of simultaneous screenings of the University of St Andrews’ 600th Anniversary film ‘Ever to Excel’, narrated by Sir Sean Connery, will be launched in October with all proceeds to support a Sir Sean Connery Scholarship Fund.
Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of St Andrews Professor Louise Richardson is inviting alumni around the world to sign up to host their own film viewings over the weekend of Saturday and Sunday 19 and 20 October, 2013.
Following the film’s London premiere at BAFTA last week, attended by over 200 alumni and friends, the Principal is urging graduates to take the film to a greater audience, enabling anyone who couldn’t make it to one of the US or UK premieres the chance to share in the cinematic history of Scotland’s first University.
Read more at University of St Andrews


Exclusive interview: Sir Sean Connery talks to student newspaper The Saint here

Sean Connery: films at the Glasgow Film Festival, and 'Bond' update

From Finding Connery:

The Glasgow Film Festival 2013 programme was launched this week and I was delighted to see not only a great host of fab looking film fodder but also two Sean films! A late night Highlander screening on Fri 15 February 23.15 at GFT (Not the biggest Highlander fan but will be my first time seeing it on the big screen)
But what I’m REALLY excited about is seeing his foray out of retirement, Ever to Excel, Murray Grigor’s documentary about St Andrew’s. Yes I did have a rant about the mis-management of the film’s distribution last year here but I’m delighted it’s finally getting shown! 

Read more at Finding Connery

Bonds reunion at the Oscars
According to The Edinburgh Evening News, Sean Connery was ‘not asked’ to attend the James Bond reunion at Oscars. Read more here

Sean Connery to join the Bond line-up at the Oscars?

Photo courtesy of Entertainment.ie

OSCARS bosses want to pull off a showbiz coup by bringing all six James Bonds together on stage at the same time.

 

Sean Connery could make a comeback at this year’s Oscars – as bosses try to get all six Bond stars on stage.
Sir Sean, 82, is retired from acting but bosses hope he will appear with current 007 Daniel Craig in a four-minute tribute to the films.
Last week, the televised tribute was announced and the other former 007s – Sir Roger Moore, George Lazenby, Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan – were invited to take part.
Sir Sean has shunned Bond reunions after a four-decade feud with film bosses over his pay and treatment.
But associates of the Scot say the Oscars offer is a “different proposition”.

Sean Connery could make a comeback at the Oscars

 He may also be joined by Adele, who would be making her first public performance in almost a year by singing her Bond theme hit Skyfall live on February 24.An Oscars source said: “Sir Sean has been invited to take to the stage along with Daniel and the other 007s. As yet, we’ve not had a no from him. Normally he is quick to turn things down.
“Sean’s relationship with the Oscars is good and we’re hoping he’ll appear.
“His issues with the Bond producers are not our business and we hope he will overlook that as we pay tribute to what he has done.
“It would be magnificent to see him up there with the other actors – and quite a coup.”
He added: “We’re very close to getting Adele to talk to us about a performance too. Until she is officially nominated this week for the best film song Oscar, we can’t invite her.”
Sir Sean earned just £2million for the Bond films and his image was used to promote the franchise in the 70s and 80s without him earning a penny.
Source (including images): Daily Record

Also reported by London Evening Standard, Entertainment.ie, and many others.

Sean Connery

Two trailers for 'Sir Billi'

 

The movie has been made by Billi Productions Ltd. in Glasgow, directed by Sascha Hartmann, who wrote it with his wife Tessa. It was originally announced in 2010; then it was slated to première at the 15th annual Sonoma (Calif.) International Film Festival on April 11 – 15, 2012. It apparently did, according to a killer review, but it has not been seen since. Now no date is promised.

Read more at flayrah

Sean Connery for 'Expendables 3'?

The Expendables 2 director Simon West would love to make a sequel with James Bond star Sir Sean Connery.

The film, written by Sylvester Stallone, unites some of the greatest stars of action cinema on screen, including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Dolph Lundgren, Bruce Willis, Jet Li and Chuck Norris.

Simon is keen to make a sequel and bring the 81-year-old original 007 out of retirement.

He said: "I don't know who's left. Sean Connery would be great to bring back from retirement. I don't know if he wants to do it, but I'd love to have Sean Connery."

The director admitted it was hard getting all the action heroes to work together as a team in the film, when they are used to being the star.

Simon said: "That was very interesting because they're not used to having shots quite so wide, because I had to fit in all these big stars and I wanted to shoot them all together instead of just lots of single shots.

"They weren't used to sharing the screen with so many other big stars, so that was tough for them sometimes.

"Also they're firing guns and having fights - they have to be careful of each other because they're not dealing with stunt men, they're dealing with other movie stars."

Source: TheUK Press Association

Also reported by Entertainment Wise 

Hot Scots exhibition closes on 3 June

The Hot Scots exhibition, which includes photographic portraits of David Tennant, Karen Gillan, James McAvoy, Gerard Butler, Sean Connery, opened on 1 December 2011 and is scheduled to close on 3 June.

For more information, and to see some of the photos, visit National Galleries

Sir Sean Connery to narrate 600 years of university history in film

Sir Sean Connery is lending his support to St Andrews University by narrating a film about its history.

The film Ever to Excel is the first cinematic account of the foundation and development of the institution and will be premièred on Wednesday in New York.

Sir Sean, film director Murray Grigor OBE, and principal and vice-chancellor of the University of St Andrews professor Louise Richardson will be in New York for the première.

The university is currently celebrating its 600th anniversary spanning three years from 2011 to 2013.

Sir Sean said: “When Louise Richardson invited me to collaborate on a film to mark our 600 years, as a key part of the scholarship endowment campaign, I readily agreed.

“As our film Ever to Excel began to take shape, I soon came to realise how central St Andrews is to Scotland. And how, in a very real sense, it is to America too.

“I’m proud to be an honorary graduate of a place where good is never good enough. Happy Birthday St Andrews.”

Talented graduates who star in the film also include, Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond, novelist Fay Weldon, poet Jay Parini, psychiatrist Kay Redfield Jamison, the writer Alastair Reid, as well as executive director at The Foundation for Tomorrow Meghann Gunderman, and businessman Oliver Sarkozy.

Together with Sir Sean’s narrative their memories and recollections help to tell the remarkable story of how a university came to be founded on the East coast of Scotland in the 15th century and of those who have since left St Andrews to change the world.

The film also includes revealing interviews with staff who taught Prince William of Wales, who is a graduate of the university, as is his wife, the Duchess of Cambridge Catherine Middleton. Both attended the official launch of the university’s 600th Anniversary Campaign of which Prince William is patron.

Source (with preview): STV 

Also reported (with 9 minute trailer) by St Andrews Radio 

Sir Billi premieres at Sonoma International Film Festival

The first international screening of Sir Billi, a CGI-animated film produced entirely in Scotland by husband and wife duo Sascha and Tessa Hartmann, took place on Friday 13 April at the Sebastiani Theatre as part of the 15th Anniversary celebrations for the Sonoma International Film Festival.

It stars Sir Sean Connery as the voice of Sir Billi, a skateboarding grandfather on a quest to save the last remaining beaver in Scotland. Academy Award®-nominated Scottish composer Patrick Doyle (“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” “Sense and Sensibility”) created the film’s music score and also lends his voice as a key character in the film.

The film’s title track, “Guardian of the Highlands,” is sung by British singing legend Dame Shirley Bassey, who reunited with Connery for the first time since she sang the title song for Goldfinger back in the Bond days. 

Read more at CisionWire. 

Sean Connery to appear in 'Derek'

Ricky Gervais' new sitcom pilot will air next month on Channel 4.

The new show Derek will see Gervais play retirement home worker Derek Noakes, opposite longtime collaborator Karl Pilkington. But although the show had been tipped as a series, a BAFTA screening for set for March 27 lists it as a "one off comedy drama".

However, Channel 4 have commented: "Channel 4 is very excited to be working with Ricky Gervais on this new project and it's wrong to say we have rejected a series. The pilot will be on TV in April and then there'll be further discussions about the potential for a full series."

The BAFTA listing describes Noakes as "a tender, innocent man whose love for his job and the people he cares for shines through. He's 49 years old and loves animals, Rolf Harris, Jesus, Deal Or No Deal, Million Pound Drop and Britain's Got Talent - but his main hobby is autograph hunting.”

Pikington will play Noakes' employer Dougie, in what will be his first acting role, with Sean Connery reported to appear in the first episode. Gervais' character first appeared in a short at the 2001 Edinburgh Festival, when he was an aspiring stand-up living with his grandmother.

Source: NME

Scots animated film starring Sir Sean Connery receives international premiere

An animated movie starring the voice of Sir Sean Connery is to premiere at a US film festival next month.

The former James Bond star came out of retirement to play a kilted, skateboarding pensioner in Billi the Vet.

Sir Sean, 81, is also an executive producer on the movie – his first voiceover role – which will debut at the Sonoma International Film Festival near San Francisco.

He plays a retired Highland vet racing to save the last beaver in Scotland.

Sir Billi has been more than six years in the making, starting out as a 20-minute short but now a full-length feature. The film is the brainchild of entrepreneur Tessa Hartmann, who wrote the screenplay, and her husband Sascha, who directed it.

Sir Sean said: “I’m excited to be a part of this incredible film.

“Sir Billi is truly a first-class film, with an exceptional cast and is sure to delight audiences of all ages.

“There’s an incredible amount of work that goes into animated productions and I am delighted that Sascha and his team have completed what has been a labour of love.

“I am thrilled with the final cut.”

Sascha said: “Sir Sean has been incredible. From day one, we knew he was perfect for the role of Sir Billi – being a true Scottish hero and also a grandfather himself.

“No matter how many times I hear his legendary voice on the film, it still gives me a thrill.”

Other stars lending their voices to the film include Alan Cumming, Alex Norton, Ford Kiernan, Greg Hemphill and Ruby Wax.

Welsh singer Dame Shirley Bassey performs the film’s title track Guardian of the Highlands.

The film will be shown at Sonoma on April 13. 

After the red carpet event, there will be VIP dinner with salmon, haggis, Tunnock’s tea cakes, Walkers shortbread and whisky.

Watch an interview and trailer at Daily Record

Update on 'Sir Billi'

Release date: Coming Soon
Genre: Animation
Studio: Glasgow Animation

Plot outline:
When tragedy strikes in the Highlands, there can be only one man for the job - Sir William Sedgewick, aka Sir Billi (Sir Sean Connery)!

This is an adventure story about an inimitable Highland hero - a grandpa. As active senior skateboarding veterinarian he goes above and beyond the call of duty fighting villainous policemen and powerful lairds in a battle to save an illegal fugitive - Bessie Boo

Starring:
Sir Sean Connery, Alan Cumming, Alex Norton, Miriam Margolyes, Ruby Wax, Ford Kieran, Greg Hempil, John Amabile, Chris Jai Alex, Jamie Still, Larry Sullivan, Amy Sacco



More information and pictures on the official Facebook page.

Other sources:
http://www.sirbilli.com/
http://www.billiproductions.com/home.php
https://twitter.com/#!/sirbilli

Hot Scots to light up National Portrait Gallery

New portraits of some of Scotland’s most famous faces are to be unveiled at the refurbished Scottish National Portrait Gallery, when it re-opens next month.
Photographs of Scots including actors Sir Sean Connery, David Tennant and Karen Gillan and singer Paolo Nutini are among the images to be displayed in the gallery when it opens to the public on December 1.

The collection, called Hot Scots, a display of 18 works recently acquired for the national collection, will feature well-known Scottish names from TV, film and music including Hollywood stars James McAvoy and Gerard Butler.

Among the other new portraits are images of the writer Armando Iannucci, Michelin star chef Tom Kitchin and artist and playwright John Byrne.

The portraits have been taken by a series of noted photographers including Eva Vermandel and Albert Watson.

The Scottish National Portrait Gallery has been redeveloped in a £17.5 million project.

Hot Scots will be shown in the new Contemporary Gallery on the ground floor.
Source: Herald Scotland

National Gallery website

Also covered by the Inverness Courier

Happy birthday Sean Connery

Sir Sean Connery turns 80 today. The Guardian has a retrospective on his life and career for his birthday.

New exclusive interview with Tony Curran

Tony Curran did an interview over at ReelScotland before his appearance on Doctor Who aired in the UK last Saturday. He talked about his career, including working on Doctor Who, Ondine (which opened in the US last Friday), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen with Sean Connery, and upcoming roles in Tintin and Big Momma’s House 3. You can read the full interview over at ReelScotland. Thanks to Ross for sharing the interview.

We’ve all read about the rumblings on the set of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Sean Connery is quoted as threatening to punch director Stephen Norrington. How did you get on with Sir Sean as the two Scots on set? What do you remember of your time on the shoot?

I definitely got on with Sean, we had a good laugh. I don’t know of any Scottish actor, or any actor as a whole, getting the opportunity to work with Big Tam who wouldn’t be inspired. It would be a joy for most people. I mean, if they got on with him.

Me and Jason Flemyng became good friends on that film and Sean’s assistant said to us one day, “I must give you a piece of advice. There’s two things you must never do in front of Sean.” We said, “what’s that?” She said, “the first thing is you must never do ‘the voice’. The second thing is NEVER do ‘the voice’.” So, at the first read-through me and Flemyng just couldn’t help ourselves and we were like [adopts faux-Sean Connery voice], “how you doin’ big fella? Nice to see you, eh!” Sean was like [Connery voice], “shut the fuck up!” Anyway, we got on very well and had a good laugh. He was quite wonderfully sarcastic and good fun. If he was dishing out patter, he certainly liked it when people dished it back to him. I think he preferred it when people would riff with him and have a good laugh.

He was dancing with my mother one night and he said [Connery voice], “Mary, you’re the spitting image of your boy,” and my mum said, “yeah, Sean, thank you, I get that a lot – apart from the beard!” Apparently Sean said, “well that’s only a matter of time!” – which is very naughty, but very funny at the same time.

...What can you tell us, if anything, about Tintin? Do you have a big role? Who did you work with?

I’ve got not a bad role in it. I was there for about a week and Steven Spielberg’s obviously directing it, and Peter Jackson was directing it as well. It was a really fun experience with the old motion capture suit on, where you’re basically looking like a speed skater! Andy Serkis said that in black spandex, you look like you should be in the Russian gymnastics team or something!

Yeah, that was a lot of fun that show, but I think I spoke to some newspaper about that once and then it was out. The next day I got a phonecall from the studio saying, “hey, don’t talk about this! Don’t say anything about it!”

There was a bunch of people in that: Andy Serkis, Daniel Craig was in it, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Jamie Bell. I was only on it for a week but it was a fun gig. Motion capture’s a strange way of working but once you forget about people that have got all those dots on their face and a Madonna-type mic, which is actually a camera and a helmet attached to their head, you try to get into the character and the part you’re playing. Then you actually look at yourself on a screen that’s behind where you’re acting and you can see your animated image of your physical self, which is quite cool. You’re like, ‘wow, that’s what I’m going to look like.’ It was a fun job. [Ross Maclean]

Sean Connery and Shirley Bassey together again

Sean Connery has signed on to CGI animated movie Sir Billi while Shirley Bassey will sing the film's theme song Guardian of the Highlands. Bassey sang the theme songs for Bond films Goldfinger and Diamonds are Forever.

According to THR, "the movie centers on a retired, skateboarding veterinarian who lives in a remote Scottish village and who spearheads the rescue of an illegal fugitive who also happens to be a beaver." Connery is also an executive producer on the film. After five years of development, husband-and-wife team Sascha and Tessa Hartmann will bring the independent film to the big screen in 2010. Scottish actor Alan Cumming also lends his voice to the film.

Source
Source
Source

David Tennant news roundup: Graham Norton Show preview, 'Burke and Hare' promo art, and more

Check out a preview of David Tennant on The Graham Norton Show below. The show airs in the US on November 14 at 10pm Eastern on BBC America.





You can watch David Tennant's climate change Oxfam appeal below. Thanks to mcfangirl for sharing the video.



New promo art and story details for Burke and Hare are now up:




David and Sean Connery are among the five People's Choice candidates added to the list for the Greatest Scot award:

THE TV search gets under way next week for The Greatest Scot - and today we name the five People's Choice candidates to join the existing list of 30.

A panel of experts has already chosen the 30 names, who will be featured during a week-long STV series, which will be screened on five consecutive nights starting at 9pm on Monday.

The programmes will also feature a different People's Choice candidate every evening chosen by Record readers and STV viewers.

And from Monday you will have the chance to vote for the Greatest Scot.

The overall winner will be revealed on a St Andrew's Day results show on November 30 when STV's Stephen Jardine will count down the top five nominees and unveil the people's all-time Greatest Scot.

The winner will be marked with a permanent piece of art by a Scottish artist which will be donated to the nation. [The Daily Record]

And finally, David's upcoming film, St. Trinian's II: The Legend of Fritton's Gold is scheduled to premiere on December 9 at the Empire cinema in Leicester Square.

Source
Source
Source
Source
Source
Source

Happy birthday Sean Connery!

Today is Sir Sean Connery's 79th birthday.

Sir Sean Connery to come out of retirement?

Sean Connery will narrate a film about war veteran, Ken McGinley's fight against the military. McGinley won a landmark case when he was allowed to "sue the British Ministry of Defence on behalf of thousands of servicemen who were exposed to nuclear testing on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean."

Over 1,000 soldiers claimed that they and their children were affected by cancer and other ailments, because of exposure to radiation in tests that took place over 50 years ago.

Connery even wrote a letter highlighting his interest in bringing the story, told by McGinley in his book 'No Risk Involved: The Ken McGinley Story: Survivor of a Nuclear Experiment', to the big screen.

He wrote: "It is a shocking history of events. I have already made my opinion regarding the possibility of filming the book written by Mr. McGinley.

"I am more than interested to see the end result and would be prepared to do the narration." [CelebEdge]

Source
Source

Friday links

I know I've been doing this infrequently, so I decided to start again. Here are links to any stories I might have missed this week:

John Barrowman
John Barrowman's Celine delight
Barrowman 'cheats' on the Doctor

Sean Connery
Sir Sean is backing campus arts festival
Sir Sean Connery's restored Bond films
VisitScotland defends Homecoming ad costs

Alan Cumming
GLAAD unveils all-new “Be an Ally & a Friend” public education campaign

James McAvoy
'Pooh' writer tapped for 'Wanted' sequel

Kevin McKidd
Kevin McKidd on the set of Grey's
German interview with Grey's Anatomy cast

Dougray Scott
'A Nice Touch' - a short film coming summer 2009

Scottish News

Here's the news from this week I may have missed:

John Barrowman
Irene so thrilled to meet star John

Sean Connery
Connery, Lawson Have Sexiest Voices

Ewan McGregor
Hollywood Banks on a Lucrative 2009

David Tennant
Tennant back on stage as Hamlet