Transcript by KAY                                                                                                 Screenshots by CHAR

(RI:SE is a British breakfast TV program, and the two presenters here were Richard Blackwood who is also a well known black comedian, and a woman called Edith )

Edith:         It’s T minus 17 days until Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets goes on general release, and to get you reaching for your wands we are joined by one of the most evil characters yet. Do you like that tag?

Jason:        It’s alright, yes. It’s fine. It keeps me in work.

Edith:        Jason Isaacs plays the man who puts the “sly” into Slytherin. (She pronounces it “Sly”therin ) The nasty Lucius…

Jason:        Slytherin (pronouncing it correctly!)
 You can tell she’s a big Harry Potter fan, can't you?      

Edith:        Sorry. I watched the first one

Jason:        It does say “Sly”therin so fair enough

Edith:        Exactly. So thanks for coming in this morning    

Jason:        Thanks for having me

Edith:        Now, do you enjoy scaring the living daylights out of children?

Jason:        Well, if they deserve it yeah…if they’re horrible little gits they deserve whatever they get, yeah

Edith:        For those of you who can’t wait, here’s a little sneaky peek of the evil Lucius in action

                                                                 (Shows HP clip)

Edith:        Good mullet! (long hairstyle, popular in the 70’s!)

Rich:        His voice has broken

Jason:        His or mine?

Rich:        Well your voice has definitely broken, but his voice has broken

Jason:        Yeah, he’s growing up
Well he’s meant to grow up. Some of the press are going “Harry Potter’s growing up!” He’s meant to get a year older every year, so if he was still that big (holds hand out) it would be different strokes wouldn’t it.

Rich:        Yeah, exactly.

Edith:        Nice hair

Jason:        Thanks very much

Edith:        Tell us about the character

Jason:        Well it’s all about the hair really. I modeled it on early Vanessa Feltz. I thought that’s always scared children.
        He believes that the world should be kept full of pure wizard blood and that it’s polluted by mudbloods and muggles, which is a contemporary theme. He’s a horrible dad, you know, he bullies his son, and that’s why his son turns into a horrible bully at school, and it’s as over the top and hammy a performance as I was allowed to give. Unfortunately the director reined me in a lot.
        But I watched it with children who love me, I think, the other day, all my godchildren, and they were booing hissing and spitting at me and they were thrilled when I fell on my bum at the end, so it’s just fantastic!

                 

Edith:        How did you feel watching it? Were you pleased with it when you saw it?

Jason:        Well, it’s embarrassing to say this on television because it’s my job to say that it’s good, but I thought it was bloody brilliant! I was very excited. I thought it would be fine, and I mean, I don’t go to that many children’s films and me and all my grown up mates were ducking under seats and screaming and roaring with laughter and sweating when the action happened. I think it’s…um…I can’t say it’s the best film I’ve ever been in, because all my other mates will kill me…

Rich:        No, say it!

Jason:        Well it’s one of the best. I’ve only seen it once and I’m dying to see it again and that’s not just    because I’m meant to be saying that.

Rich:        Now…Daniel Radcliffe, the person who plays Harry Potter. I hear he gets a lot of naked stalkers, is that true?

Jason:        I don’t know about a lot of naked stalkers, but certainly I chased him in the dressing room, yeah.
(laughter)
Rich:        I was going to ask is that the reason you play the bad guy- so that you wouldn’t get one?

Jason:        No, no that’s fine. You haven’t seen the naked stalker.

Rich:        Now I want to ask, what kind of riders do the kids ask for? Fizzy pop? Things like that?

Jason:        Actually these kids are the most normal…I’ve worked with some American famous children and they are difficult to say the least…you know…they’re like fifty year old lawyers trapped inside eight year old bodies. But (these kids) their parents are on set and they are the most normal, humble kids, and although they’re the most famous children in the world, somebody comes to visit and they go- (great kids voice!) “Oh! I recognize you! You were in an episode of The Bill!” and they go over and ask for autographs and I don’t think they quite get who they are.

Rich:        I was going to ask you, have they changed since the first film came out?

Jason:        Well, the only thing that’s different…I wasn’t in the first one, I arrived for the second one. I arrived just after Valentine’s day and this year was the first year they started sending each other cards, and I’m noting who got the most Valentine cards.

(Edith and Rich “Awwww”)

Edith:        Who did?

Jason:        It’s not for me to say but I can tell you this,

the boy who plays my son is a bit of a heartthrob off  screen.

Edith:        Awww

Rich:        Excuse me?

Edith:        It must be weird for Daniel though, because after the first film, when he knew he was a wizard…

Jason:        He’s not really a wizard, you know that don’t you?…Sorry.

Edith:        Don’t shatter my illusions. Children must go “Oh my god, it’s Harry Potter!” I mean he must get that all the time now.

Jason:        (laughs) I brought two of my god-daughters to see…I brought kids to the set every time I was working, every day, just a whole big sharabang of kids every day.
And these two kids…I introduced them and said “Do you want to meet Harry? This is Daniel” and they went (brilliant kids voice again!) “Where’s your glasses? Put your glasses on!” and he said (excellent impression of Daniel!) “I don’t actually wear glasses.”
(E and R laugh)

       
and they went “Yes you do, you do wear glasses! You don’t talk like that…do your voice!”
So I’m not sure that everybody does recognize him in the street because he doesn’t actually look like Harry Potter. He’s not often on a broomstick.

Rich:        Your character has a slave, a little slave called Dobby right?

Jason:        I do, Dobby my house elf.

Rich:        If you had a real life slave, what would you make it do?

Jason:        I’d probably get him to get out of bed at the crack of dawn and come and do interviews like this one, and I’d be sitting somewhere with a bacon sandwich.

Edith:        Have you signed up to do any more of the films?

Jason:        I have. I’m in book four. I’m not in book three, which is lucky because I’m off doing Peter Pan.

Rich:        Ah…you quickly threw that in there.

Edith:        You’re filming Peter Pan in Australia at the moment.

Jason:        I am. Well, not right now obviously…but I will be. As soon as I leave here, virtually, I’m going to the airport back to Australia.

Edith:        And who are you playing?

Jason:        I’m playing Mr. Darling and Captain Hook.

Edith:        Both?

Jason:        Well that’s originally what J.M. Barrie specified.

Rich:        So do you get double pay?

Jason:        I don’t, tragically, but I do work twice as hard.

Rich:        That’s terrible man! You need to speak to my agency.

Jason:        Right! (laughs) I am with your agency! And if you’re watching, thanks for all your hard work!

 

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