Kate Winslet delights young film fan with surprise call

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3 hours ago

Elaine MitchellSouth west reporter, BBC News NI

Getty Images A head and shoulders image of actress Kate Winslet. She has short blonde hair and is wearing a gold necklace.

Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet has delighted a young film fan with a surprise call after hearing her story of having to travel 140-miles to find an accessible cinema.

Fourteen-year-old Eryn, who has been blind since birth, made the three-hour round-trip for a screening of The Magic Faraway Tree, a film adapted from Enid Blyton's book series.

Eryn said the journey was necessary because the cinema was the only one her family could find offering audio description (AD) headsets.

Winslet, who voiced the audiobooks of The Magic Faraway Tree series, told the teenager she was "absolutely staggered" she had to travel so far.

NEAL STREET PRODUCTIONS The image is of a video call. There are 4 pictures in frame and each has a person on the call. The first is the top of a head with dark hair and a ponytail. The second is a smartly dressed woman with a wide smile, the next has a blonde woman with her hand gesticulating and in the last picture a man sits in a dark car wearing sunglasses. Each picture has a name they are Erynk, Pippa Harris, Kdub and Simon.

Eryn has loved the Magical Faraway Tree book series for years and was excited to experience the film adaptation.

The nearest suitable cinema involved a 140-mile round trip.

BBC News NI made several attempts to contact IMC Cinemas but it did not respond.

Winslet read Eryn's story and shared it with the film's producer Dame Pippa Harris and screenwriter Simon Farnaby.

They arranged a video call with Eryn in which Dame Pippa told her they hope to "create a bit of momentum and make sure that cinemas everywhere have got AD versions of all the movies so that everyone can see them and enjoy them".

'I recognised Kate's voice'

A close up image of a laptop screen. A video call is underway and the screen is filled with the picture of a woman talking. She is sitting in a car with her seatbelt on. She has white wired earphones in and has a big bright smile. Her hair is long and blonde and she is wearing a black top.

During the call, Eryn was introduced to a surprise guest - Winslet - and was almost left speechless.

"I recognised her voice from the outset but it was just such a shock," she said.

Winslet voiced the audiobooks, which Eryn said she had listened to many times.

The actress said she was "thrilled" to speak to Eryn and "absolutely staggered" at the fact she had to travel so far to see the film.

"We want to be able to support you as much as we can in doing that. So hopefully we can be a part of that and helping you make that change," Winslet told her.

"I think anything that makes these experiences inclusive as possible, that's why we all make films."

Calls for more audio description services

A girl sits in a cosy cafe, she is looking at a laptop which is open on the table in front of her. The laptop has an image of a woman on the screen in the middle of a video call. The girl is wearing a black and red uniform and has long dark hair pulled back in a ponytail.

And Winslet's humorous stories about her home life left Eryn surprised at how down to earth the Oscar winner is.

"I thought she would be in a mansion or something" she said laughing.

After the call Eryn shed tears of joy and hopes the support from the Hollywood star will help raise awareness of the need for audio description to be available in cinemas.

"Obviously, Kate Winslet is very famous so for her to back my campaign I'd like to hope that more people will take it seriously," she said.

"She can spread this further than we can if she gets it out to the right people and to the right circles, then I'd like to just hope that this message will spread and that the cinemas will take notice."

NEAL STREET PRODUCTIONS A still image from The Magical Faraway Tree film. It's a forest scene with a tree closest to us at one side. Standing on stairs to the tree is a woodland fairy. She is dressed in layers of green clothes with boots and a bag. Her arms are outstretched and she's smiling in a welcoming way. Behind her are trees and flowers with a beam of sunlight making everything glow.

Eryn said she loved the film, despite the travel, and was delighted to speak to the team behind it.

"They let me ask the questions and to learn more about the movie" said Eryn afterwards.

Ben Luxford, Director of UK Audiences at the British Film Institute, said: "We are passionate advocates of the need for cinemas to offer regular accessible screenings and we work with the film industry to create, promote and enhance the provision offered to audiences.

"Eryn's story is a powerful reminder of the reality many audiences face in finding suitable screenings that meet their need, and we hope that the cinema industry will respond appropriately."

'I'm writing a part for you'

A girl sits in a cafe. She is wearing a school PE uniform in black and red, with a school crest on the front. Her long dark hair is in a ponytail and she is smiling widely. Here eyes look glassy and her face is flushed. Behind her there are some chairs and a table and a green long leafed plant.

Bafta award-winning producer Dame Pippa told Eryn she was "so pleased that we were able to track you down and sort of apologise on behalf of the cinema industry".

"This might put more pressure on the cinemas to make sure that no other kid has to travel quite as far as you did to see a film because it's really terrible," she told Eryn.

That sentiment was echoed by the screenwriter Farnaby who also appeared in the film.