Back when Star Wars was brand new and nobody knew what it was, Mark Hamill had to go on the BBC’s iconic children’s show Blue Peter and explain it to the kids. And his explanation is just perfect.
As transcribed by the Radio Times, Hamill explains:
“It’s the stuff that fairytales are made of. We have a fairy princess, we have an innocent farm boy who yearns for adventure. Alec Guinness is a wise old wizard who teaches me a mystical Force, somewhat like Merlin would teach a young King Arthur. Harrison Ford plays Han Solo, a cynical space pirate who we hire to transport us through the galaxy.”
The whole interview is great, including the part where Hamill bemoans the fact that he had no scenes with Peter Cushing—so Hamill had to sneak onto the set during two days when Cushing was filming, just to watch him work. And Hamill had to get Cushing to sign some posters, because he’s a fan at heart. Awww.
And here’s more of the Star Wars stars on Blue Peter, for the Empire Strikes Back, in which R2D2 and C-3PO get compared to the Daleks:
And here’s C-3PO on the Noel Edmonds show Swap Shop:
These clips come via a new program(me), called Star Wars at the BBC, which you can watch in its entirety here.
Charlie Jane Anders is the author of All The Birds in the Sky, coming in January from Tor Books. Follow her on Twitter, and email her.
