Did Sean and Daragh eat and take breaks with all of you?

BK ~ As far as I can remember, yes we all ate together: cast, crew, and extras.

Any particular stories about Sean and Daragh during filming?

BK ~ Sean and Daragh were excellent throughout; and with new extras at each location, there were always new people who wanted to chat, get autographs etc.

All the cast and continuity extras were going to be paid at the end of filming, I was a one day at a time extra, so got paid each day, and hence had the money for cigarettes so Geoff Harvey very luckily had my camera to hand when Sean came over to ask for a smoke.

Were you one of the fortunate ones not stuck in the muck and the mire?

BK ~ Well one of the days while the others were shooting the muddy scene, it was just before lunch back at base. I had gathered some chairs for those I knew  when a chap came over and asked if it was all right to sit down. He went through some papers and chatted on his mobile a bit, and after he had finished he asked what I thought of the whole thing.  I told him briefly the good things I have also said to yourselves, then enquired as to whether he was part of the crew or had a relative on set - he said a bit of both and introduced himself - Malcolm Craddock. Boy was I glad I had said good things.

And Michael Cochrane (Col. Henry  Simmerson) is not the nasty piece of work he has always portrayed in character. He is a really good laugh.

What a joy to hear he's not the nasty piece of work Simmerson is!

BK ~ You remember when I said I may occasionally take the 5th - this is one of them times. Suffice to say, he did a number of wind ups, and has been our Unit, the 50th’s, Honourary Colonel since then.

What about some of the other cast members?

BK ~ Norman Rossington (Sgt. Horatio Havercamp) has a great personality, he has been around the TV and film industry for a long time. He proved very popular after the really muddy scene, when he handed out very special tee shirts with Havercamps Heroes on them, to those who had just done that particular scene. No doubt they are treasured items by those who possess them.

In fact all those portraying the soldiers were just some of the lads off screen The one that gave Harper such a bad time about being Irish (Robert Patterson as Sgt. Lynch) --he was quite convincing he was a real bastard. The sergeants and corporals were either actors or experienced re-enactors who know their stuff.

BK ~ And the Magazine Military Illustrated ran a Sharpe series, including some pictures up at Tilbury Fort.  I missed the magazine photographers as I was wandering around taking pictures of my own at the time.

There is the incident which I can now confess about, to all those I asked to sign Lee's Fowkes 18th Birthday surprise card.

Lee was a mate who I got to go for a role, and got more days than me. If you have the video, he's the curly haired one on the back. It was not a surprise, he asked me to get particular people from the cast and crew to sign it. while they were signing his card I got them to sign my copy of the novel at the same time

Well Lee has a cousin, who always got the new novel or video first out of the two of them and would rub Lee's nose in it, so I was happy when Lee was finally able to get his own back, and say that’s nothing I’m in the next one. That was Sharpe's Justice, and soooo good -- and being on the back cover left his cousin in no doubt .

BK ~ As you may well know Richard Rutherford Moore has appeared in many of the episodes, and not always as a 95th , indeed he has also played a French soldier I am led to believe. (Sharpe’s Waterloo.)

Once through the scenery, we form up nice and smart and moved forward, clearing the “actors playing actors” off the stage.

You mean towards the end of the episode?

BK ~ Yes, the filming order is different to how it shows up at the end. Right at this bit we follow Sean’s lead; he lowers the Eagle , Ray Skinner and myself lower the colours and the squad fire a volley to honour the Prince of Wales. And that was when I got told off by - I believe Muir Sutherland - though I may be mistaken.

Sean lowers the Eagle , our indication to lower the colours - only he didn't and it was just as the order was given to fire I moved the colour down and I got told off for risking it. I of course blamed Sean, and Muir or whoever it was went back and checked the footage just taken, returned and apologised to me.

But Sean if you read this - it was still your fault!  (Brian smiles) How to make friends and influence people!

Where do your Colours come in?

BK ~ If you watch the episode, there is just a little jump, where that bit cuts out. It goes from the volley, to the eagle finishing being lowered so they jump from being virtually upright to being almost on the ground.

It was a wonderful group. You would have to be aware of it, or have been in a colour party before.  It’s usually very ceremonial but the experience has been of much use in re-enactments especially in Spain and Portugal, where the Union flag is raised.

After the night shoot, we went on to an earlier scene with the raw recruits marching into the camp on the island.

So you were a raw recruit as well?

BK ~ A tail ender, the majority of the raw recruit footage had already been filmed by then.

Was larking about encouraged or discouraged?

BK ~ I think it was tolerated smirkingly by all concerned. Everyone has a laugh at work when they can, filming is no exception. It takes time to get your composure back after a laugh, and that’s valuable filming time.

The one thing missing from the early DVDs is the outtakes, which are in the first India set.  It was of course during filming Regiment that Sean not only got caught by a horses hoof but managed to cut his finger on a flint, which the British press did pick up on, entitling the article Sliced Bean!  The horses hoof incident was during the hunt through the marshes. The edge of the bank gave way, just as the hoof left it, catching Sean a glancing blow.

Can you tell us a little about working with Will Whitlam, the Armourer, as well as working with some of the others in the crew. Any names we may be familiar with?

BK ~ It was really just one of those 15 minute encounters, he asked what I knew about guns in general, and muskets in particular. Colonel Girdwood’s batman - is actually Sam Craddock.  A batman is one of the serving rank and file soldiers whose duties also include making sure the Officer is turned out well presented and Simmerson’s man servant was the sound man.

What was the funniest thing that happened on the set? What did you do when not actually filming, when waiting around?

BK ~ Various things went on of course, the food breaks were excellent, and we all queued up together, The catering department’s “Set Meals " were superb, especially for the likes of me who is a tea addict.

Between takes, the wardrobe and makeup departments were constantly busy; repairing make up and re-fashioning our queues and we did take advantage and tease them once or twice - Sorry girls. Some of the lads had stick on sideburns that needed re-gluing down every now and again, and a few of us had real ones, but we would still ask for them to be stuck back down.