Lily
James, Winston Churchill’s PA
in
Darkest Hour, took her
typing lessons with
Pitman Training
We
were thrilled to hear our very own Liz Davis get a mention from Lily
James on BBC Radio 2.
You can listen to the interview here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05tdscc
Lily James who plays Winston Churchill’s wartime PA in Darkest Hour has
confessed to having typing lessons for the part and referred to her
brilliantly eccentric tutor. The question on Steve Wright’s interview is
‘Was it Pitman?’ We can confirm definitely ‘Yes, it was!’
Liz Davis, our IT and keyboard skills tutor at Pitman Training, London
EC2 was the ‘eccentric’ but her training is anything but. The acting
task was not just to sit at the keyboard but to authentically work on a
period typewriter, touch typing without looking at the keyboard. This is
so totally different and a much more physical skill than we see today.
Lily and the girls in the Typing Pool needed to sit correctly – in those
days posture was everything but, whereas now we sit with both feet
together, they sat with one foot in front of the other! This was partly
because typing was a manual skill – you had to really bash the keys, hit
the Carriage Release lever and the Tab key, with a fair degree of force
and with even pressure on all the keys. And the positioning of their
feet kept typists stable and from falling off the chair!
Hard work at the time. The Darkest Hour actors had to do all this while
learning lines and staying in character. Churchill’s PA Elizabeth
Layton, and Lily, had to perform another miracle – typing while
Churchill, in the film played by the BAFTA nominated Gary Oldman, walked
around the room barking dictation and conversing!
Liz Davis, Pitman Training says, “What Lily did was incredibly
impressive, it was really hard work, learning to touch type with all the
nuances in between learning lines. It was done on location and I coached
in our normal Pitman Training way but it was challenging between
rehearsals and customising for the film. I sometimes enjoyed playing
Winston myself and barking the speeches at her so she could practise as
authentically as possible!”
You too can be a star ‘Lily’ style, by doing the Pitman Training Learn
to Type in 2 Days lessons with Liz Davis or enrolling on our Typaz
Online course. Contact 020 7256 6668 or email courses@pitmanlondon.co.uk
Why not call
us now on 020 7256 6668
Focus
and believe in yourself, work hard, never give up
Gowrie
- Pitman Administration Diploma
