PopHorror Let's Get Scared
My first interview to spring into March is with the elegant cult actress, Françoise Pascal. I’ve had the pleasure of getting up-close-and-personal with Françoise, chatting with her about her zest for life and her career path, as well as her devoted support in the charity organizations that she has been active in. Françoise is a talented actress and author. She’s most known for her roles in There’s A Girl In My Soup (1970), Mind Your Language (1977), La Rose de Fer (1973) AKA The Iron Rose, and, Burke & Hare (1972), to name but a few.
PopHorror: Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to do this interview with me. What inspired you to become an actress, and where did you get your inspiration from?
Françoise Pascal: I was 7 when I knew that I wanted to become an actress. I watched the film Sissi (1955) with Romy Schneider and fell in love with the history of the Hapsburgs and the Wittlesbachs, and I wanted to, one day, play these kind of roles. Romy Schneider was my inspiration, and when I saw her in Paris years later, when I was about 17. I was thrilled and told her so. She was so encouraging towards my career.
PopHorror: You’ve been extremely active in your role as an actress since 1968, and you’re well known for your roles in the series Mind Your Language and La Rose de Fer, which both achieved cult status, as well as There’s A Girl In My Soup with the much loved Peter Sellers. How did your acting career start? Did you participate in local projects before moving abroad?
Françoise Pascal: Actually, I started at the age of 17 dancing on Top of the Pops as one of the crowd. Producer Johnny Stewart saw me and put me on the forefront to dance. I met the awful Jimmy Saville, but thank goodness I was too old for him and more savvy than you would imagine on life. My father had died when I was 14, and I had to fend for myself. I was raped at 16, and so therefore, I was far more aware than those of my age.
I met many DJs, and most of them were lovely. Loving Feeling was filmed after my 18th birthday. There’s A Girl in My Soup was shot in 1969. It came out in 1970. I never participated in local talent shows; I was just very lucky, being in the right place at the right time. I started being noticed when I was runner up in Miss London – for the Evening News in 1966. After that my career took off with Loving Feeling and There’s A Girl in My Soup, and then La Rose de Fer and many more.
PopHorror: What has been your favorite project? How do you personally get into character?
Françoise Pascal: My favourite project was La Rose de Fer. It was my film. I was working with the Director Jean Rollin, who allowed me to give my input on the film, visiting asylums in the UK and watching people who suffer with depression. I felt so bad for these people that every night I prayed that they would get better and to forgive me for using their behaviour. I prepared myself that way to play the role of the girl. I am very proud of this film, although it is a film that many people feel that they cannot understand and are a bit confused by it, but it is a psychological film about a girl and a boy who sought adventure which ultimately turned sour in the end.
PopHorror: Has there ever been a role that you’d love to play that you haven’t had a chance to play yet?
Françoise Pascal: Yes, I would have loved to play Cleopatra when she was young when I was young, too. Not Anthony and Cleopatra but Caesar and Cleopatra by George Bernard Shaw. On film, Cleopatra was played by Vivien Leigh to Claude Raines’ Caesar. That would have been a role of a lifetime. Instead, I played on stage Gillian Holroyd (a part, may I add, played on film by Kim Novak with James Stewart) in Bell, Book and Candle, and it was a great role as a witch. A good witch, though. I loved that role, and I was absolutely thrilled to have played Gillian.
PopHorror: Apart from acting and producing, you’re also an author and radio presenter. Where did your inspiration come from while creating those projects? Do you aim to continue writing?
Françoise Pascal: I became an author through many friends asking me why I hadn’t written my autobiography, as I had so many great stories to tell. I did and I thoroughly regret it… I wish I had never done it. It has caused a lot of friction among my family, my son and many friends. Oh, well. Such is life. As for being a radio presenter, I became one because a friend of mine had asked me to do it, so I obliged and thoroughly enjoyed it… Until Radio Scarborough were not able to pay for my time to produce the show.
I was offered a spot with another Radio Station who were also unable to pay for my time. So I gave up being a radio presenter. I’m still hoping that, one day, there will be a station that will want me. I am writing, at the moment, a children’s book for my grand-children, grand-nephews and grand-nieces. However this has been put on hold as I continue producing my film, which is taking up a lot of my time.
PopHorror: For all of the Jean Rollin fans out there…. can you shed some light on his directing skills and guidance in regards to performance?
Françoise Pascal: What can I say about Jean Rollin that I have not already said? He was a man with vision and his vision was far ahead of his time. It was a pleasure to work with him. I liked him when first I met him. He liked me, but I was not his first choice. His hands were tied because Producer Sam Selski wanted me in the film and he was the man with the money. I was determined to show Jean that I was better than his first choice by working with him and taking a more active part in the film than being just an actress playing a role. I worked with him to understand the character by giving my opinion. I wanted to be good – no better, – than any of the films that I had done in the UK and make it my own.
That was the first time that I realised that I could carry a character and a role in a film, showing what I could do as an actress. My experience working with Jean Rollin was phenomenal. He was patient with me and was a good director and man. I just adored him. I was in awe of Jean Rollin and still am. When I later learned that he had also mortgaged his house (apart from Selski’s money) to make La Rose de Fer, I was mortified.
At the time the film came out, his fans booed the film because they could not fathom that Rollin had done a straight film instead of his usual erotic vampire films. They were money making films and La Rose de Fer was too artistically done for their comprehension. Although through the years, it did became a cult film.
PopHorror: Apart from acting, you’ve performed in Top of the Pops as a dancer in the ’60s. What other training have you had (voice, stage etc.)?
Françoise Pascal: I had training in dancing, acting and singing. Voice was included in the acting.
PopHorror: Have you experienced any real life actress’s nightmares, such as forgetting your lines, or a prop, or choreography during a performance?
Françoise Pascal: Oh, yes! I have, and it was very funny. I was doing a show in Oxford, and it was called City Delight with Dennis Lawson. It was a revue and I had two or three songs to sing. We were dressed as pigeons or some kind of bird doing one song. I was to start the song on stage, and then the others were to come and join me. Well… I got on stage waiting for the intro to start and, lo and behold, I forgot the first line of the song. All I could do was chirp… or was I hooting? It was the sound of a bird, anyhow. Dennis Lawson came to my rescue and started singing. I did get flack by the director and was badly seen for forgetting my lines. Grrr!
PopHorror: Have you had the opportunity to be on the other side of the table at an audition or been involved as a casting producer. What did you learn from that experience? What advice do you have for those wanting to pursue this position?
Françoise Pascal: I have not had that opportunity yet, as I have not started casting the current film yet. I know who I would like to be in it, but to answer your question. No I have not been on the other side of the table for casting. I would say to anyone pursuing this position that they should be careful, because it is extremely stressful.
PopHorror: Have you ever experienced anything embarrassing or unexpected in your career as an actress?
Françoise Pascal: Yes. I will not say which film, but the actor I was working with had terribly bad breath, and it was embarrassing. I had to be careful not to offend him. Another time, I did a film when the director asked me to be at the window with my clothes off, and no one would really identify me. “Why me?” I asked. “Because you are a trooper,” he replied. Oh, yes, it was embarrassing and annoying…
PopHorror: What are the negative and positive parts of being an actress – especially for those starting out?
Françoise Pascal: Rejections! You will often be rejected, and if you have the stomach for it, you will keep trying. Never give up if you are really serious at becoming an actress.
PopHorror: Do you have any advice for those aspiring to become actresses or performers and those wanting to get involved in the media as a profession?
Françoise Pascal: Yes. If you wish to become an actor. Take the time to learn your craft. If you are serious, then you will endure all the hardships that come with it, The rewards can be tremendous. Never attempt to become a celebrity, they are usually forgotten in a few years. If you are in it for the money, you will be disappointed. Be strong and, when you go for a casting, learn your lines and show the casting director that you are the best for the role. always be positive in your life..
PopHorror: You’re very active in 8 charity organisations, which is highly respected. You’ve made personal effort to go the extra mile with these organisations. Could you tell us a bit more about the charities you support?
Françoise Pascal: Yes, I have been busy with various charities. I worked with Help the Aged, which has become Age Concern. who were busy doing commercials. I knew that the money raised through the help of celebrities with Help the Aged would go to care homes, giving older folks a Christmas that they would never forget. I left when they became Age Concern.
I support The British Heart Foundation because my brother and my late partner, both died of heart attacks. Barnardos, because Barry Evans my co-star in Mind your Lang was a Barnardos child and I support them 100%. Brain Tumours and Cancer – Charlie Charges On because of a young boy named Charlie aged 9 years, who died of a brain tumour. SARC because I had been raped in my youth.
PopHorror: Being a radio presenter, what challenges do you face? Do you personally get involved in the media, apart from Twitter?
Françoise Pascal: I am not overly fond of social media. It was fun at first, but then it started to become unnecessarily nasty and political. I am not a political animal. It was turning me into an aggressive person, which I did not like as I am extremely passionate about the things I believe in. I quite like Twitter. I find I can manage Twitter and Instagram platforms better.
PopHorror: What was it like to work back in the day when England had a thriving cinematic industry?
Françoise Pascal: Oh my goodness. You had to have been there to experience it. I am not happy with today’s comedians and pseudo celebrities who look at the ’70s and then go, “Ooh, aah! … I would never be able to watch these pathetic programmes. The 70s, was a very different era.” It was a fabulous time and we were carefree and happy. We lived for the day, we worked hard, and we played hard. It was terrific. People were a bit sceptical but hey, show me an era that isn’t or wasn’t. I had a great time, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I don’t regret anything. NON JE NE REGRETTE RIEN!
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Autographs by Françoise Pascal
