‘The Man Who Lost His Head’ was a two-hour comedy-drama, an ITV/South Pacific Pictures production directed by Terry Johnson. It was filmed here in New Zealand, set in the fictional coastal town of Otakataka. Windswept and rural, most of it was shot on the West Coast of the North Island, around Huia and Bethells Beach. The wild locations were stunning, as we well appreciate!
Martin Clunes (Men Behaving Badly, Doc Martin) stars as a fastidious English museum curator sent to New Zealand to return a sacred Māori carving. He’s met with suspicion, warmth, a generous helping of cultural confusion, and yes, a gently unfurling romance. I played Emma, married to Zac (played by Calvin Tuteao from Once Were Warriors), a passionate activist with very firm views. You’ll find me dotted through the film, likely to be peeling vegetables, crying, or dancing!
The production itself was a joy. Gorgeous scenery, a cracking cast and crew, and plenty of moments that didn’t feel like work…but for me, acting never does.
A little insider trivia for you: in scenes involving dancing, there’s often no music playing at all. It would be too noisy for dialogue, and a mess for editing. So, when you see folk shimmying away on the dance floor, they are actually dancing to their own imagined rhythms, desperately hoping it wouldn’t look like a choreographed disaster once the soundtrack was layered in. It’s an exercise in optimism, really!
The Man Who Lost His Head first screened on Sunday 26 August 2007 at 9pm on ITV1 in the UK, and shortly after in New Zealand on TV One.