The TGS exterior on Monday night was quick and painless. Some of the crew had gone straight to Campions to set up lights for Van Beuren’s last scene so we could get it done fast because Richard needed to get the 8pm train back to London. After shooting at TGS me, John Galloway and Richard had to hang around for about half an hour due to a miscommunication before Edd came and picked us up to go to Campions. There we found that Alie and Colin hadn’t got very far with the lighting set-up because there was a homeless person sleeping under the bridge and they were scared, Edd marched under the bridge with a torch, revealing the “scary homeless person” to be a bundle of clothes. We set up the lights then found ourselves waiting around for the other actors to come over from make-up. Once everyone was finally there we were all ready to shoot when we realised Edd had gone off with the keys to the Mustang. Eventually we got the shot, quickly changed set-up for Richard’s last angle and finished with him just in time for him to get the last train.

We were able to take more time with the scene’s remaining angles, and finished at a record 8:20pm. Edd, who had gone off to get coffees, was highly surprised to get a phone call saying we’d wrapped. It was another two hours before we got home though, as we had to push the Mustang onto the flatbed which picked it up (the battery was dead), then we had to push it into the car park at the Green Dragon. Then we had to go back to Campions and wait for a second flatbed which was picking the generator up.

Last night we were back at Westons. The scene was a fight which was to take place in the rain. David Abbott had built us some rain bars, but I had been worried over the last few days that they weren’t going to do the job. Edd, Tom and Colin spent the day buying extra bits and pieces so we could extend or modify the bars. Secretly I was hoping for real rain, because I feared nothing we could do was going to produce a convincing downpour.

When we got to location we were, to say the least, a little pissed off to find that the apple pit we were supposed to be filming in, and which we had been assured many times would be emptied in time for filming, was very much still full of apples. After spouting various obscenities, I hurried around the site to find another location. This done, and a water supply secured, we hooked up the rain bars and switched them on. The effect was good, but not realistic. It was too much of a fine spray. I decided to try taking the bars off and pointing the hose up in the air. Thanks to the wonders of industrial pressure water supplies, a 50ft geyser errupted into the air and fell back to earth in a very cool Hollywood-style mini-monsoon.

We set up the gear and started shooting. Edd donned a bin liner poncho and rubber gloves in his role as rain maker, whilst Colin was on hand to wipe the rain-soaked camera lens after every take. Jonny, Ray and Simon were all absolute stars, never complaining once about fighting and jumping around on slippery concrete in the cold and the rain and the mud. It was Jonnny I felt most sorry for as he was fast asleep at 2am when Simon woke him up to swap costumes with him, and he had to put on his manky, cold, wet costume and come out and shoot his close-ups. He was shaking from the cold. I felt so evil. Maximum respect to you, guys.

David Dukes’ props took a beating. Watching the rushes this morning was very funny, After every take Simon and Ray would go to a nearby wall and hurriedly bend their scythes back into shape for the next take. But man, the rain looked good.