"The Ballad of Wallis Island" remains unchanged as it appears to be a title in English. The quietly building stealth success of the upcoming British movie. that has finally made its debut in UK cinemas after gathering word-of-mouth praise Since its debut at the Sundance Film Festival in January.
It’s written by comedy duo Tim Key and Tom Basden as an extended version of a Bafta-nominated 2007 short film.
The duo has already garnered a cult following due to their more than twenty years of collaboration. across stage , screen and radio waves.
You'll have encountered them either individually or collectively through platforms such as BBC Radio 4. Alan Partridge (Key is sidekick Simon ), Plebs (Basden co-created it and portrayed Aurelius), BBC sitcom Here We Go, and Ricky Gervais’ After Life – Plus Key will be featured in the forthcoming spin-off of the American adaptation of The Office, titled The Paper.
There are also appearances in Inside No. 9, Peep Show, Taskmaster, Ghosts, The Armstrong & Miller Show... essentially, Key and Basden’s contributions can be spotted across almost every aspect of the UK comedy landscape.
The Ballad of Wallis Island is set to win over an entirely new batch of enthusiasts.
However, to guide briefly "The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island" reaching its complete length feature film status after 18 years — for which they once again collaborated with the original director, James Griffiths — the group added more star power to the event by including an Oscar nominee. Carey Mulligan .
In the movie, she portrays alt-folk artist Nell Mortimer, who forms part of the musical pair McGwyer-Mortimer alongside her former partner, Herb McGwyer (played by Basden). The peculiar millionaire Charles Heath (portrayed by Key) lures both of them to his isolated island with the intention of bringing their relationship back together for an exclusive performance.
Mulligan, following his recent performance, Her third Oscar nomination was for her role as Maestro. Unlike Bradley Cooper, he readily agreed immediately after hearing about the 'excellent' screenplay and getting a clear idea of what they aimed to achieve with the initial short film.
'It was an incredibly simple decision driven by intuition, something I believe should be the standard—I always aim to work this way. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The entire script captivated me; I adored the storyline and my character’s role within it. Plus, collaborating with those individuals seemed fantastic,' she shares. Axofa during a shared interview with her co-actors and the director.
'Given how far along you were with your pregnancy at that time, you likely weren’t thinking clearly,' interjects Basden, aiming to downplay the praise.
Although Mulligan, who is 40 years old, acknowledged that 'being hormonal' might have supported their argument—and the movie ultimately filmed in Wales to enable the actor’s family to assist with childcare for the mother of three—there was an additional factor as well.
"My husband was a huge fan of these guys, so he kept saying, 'You have to do it,' even before I had a chance to read it. Before I realized what was going on, I ended up signing up!" she exclaimed. Mulligan's spouse is naturally Marcus Mumford. of Mumford & Sons, who also ended up assisting with his wife’s musical contributions in the movie.
It comes as no shock that Mulligan was quickly attracted to the screenplay for "The Ballad of Wallis Island," thanks to its skillful blend of emotion and comedy, along with its constant barrage of wordplay and jokes.
Key, who is 48 years old, and Basden, aged 44, penned the screenplay in segments independently, addressing various characters through their extensive and successful collaboration.
'Tim and I have been acquainted and collaborated for more than two decades, and during this period, we've penned numerous pieces for one another. On his radio program, he crafts all my dialogue, whereas in television series where I serve as the writer and Tim takes center stage, I compose every line for him. Our understanding of each other's timing and our comparable comedic sensibilities make these characters from "Wallis Island" shine,' Basden elaborates succinctly.
'It feels entirely instinctive to pen each other’s lines when we're working on those parts of the movie.'
Certainly, considering their backgrounds, even though they ensure they shoot the script "precisely" as written, there’s still room to experiment and explore different rhythms, discover additional jokes, and uncover new elements within the scenes.
Mulligan entered the scene as an outsider joining a longstanding and fruitful collaboration among Key, Basden, and Griffiths for the movie. She mentioned feeling more eager to join them rather than being daunted by it.
"When you team up with someone who has a tight-knit partner or folks who have worked together extensively, I believe there's an inherent hesitation because you might miss out on the humor. I had to push my way into all their insider jokes," she says with a smile.
'I thought, "Clarify this for me. Can you tell me why he’s called that? When exactly did this begin?" After around a week, I realized, "Got it, I understand; I was present too, we attended uni together." It turned out okay—but sure enough, initially, you naturally wish to fit into the group. However, they were so nice, and I quite quickly felt so.'
'Clearly, from our perspective, there’s significant anxiety about collaborating with an authentic Hollywood celebrity, rather than among ourselves,' notes Basden. 'We’re intimately familiar with this setting. Then having Carey join us, and feeling the pressure to really deliver something impressive...'
For Key, finally reaching the night before filming, after so many years since the project first began, felt 'a bit like Christmas Eve'.
'I was enthusiastic about taking part, but simultaneously terrified, with a hint of uncertainty about whether we should proceed. There might have been a small voice suggesting we shouldn't return, but by then, our excitement overshadowed those reservations.'
Basden expressed his gratitude towards the team, particularly Director Griffiths, who were consistently available leading up to the production period. This enabled them to have 'a platform where we truly developed a comprehensive strategy covering all aspects'.
He mentions that they refrained from getting emotionally involved with the project until they reached Sundance and saw others watching it.
'Then we were all simply really Overflowing with emotions, he exclaims, “I simply can’t fathom that we managed to pull this off!” He then chuckles.
There was a time when I felt incredibly thankful for being part of it all, appreciating that we made it happen, and recognizing those who backed us along the way—like Focus, Bankside, and Baby Cow—who brought us to this starting point," says Griffiths. "Afterward, it comes down to concentrating on the initial scene of the day—and how daunting that can be in itself!
Key cherishes the opening sequence of the movie most fondly because it helped him realize swiftly that they ought to create a full-length version of their short film instead.
'You're back into the swing of things, chatting with Tom as your character, under Griff’s direction, with everyone else on set — and you can't help but feel excited about how well everything is going. Of course, there's immense pressure; after all, you wouldn’t want to mess up during these coming 18 days!'
The cast and crew all lived together in hillside cabins while on the tight shoot, which Griffiths describes as ‘pretty idyllic’.
'I mean, it required a lot of effort, with the team doing numerous things to make everything happen,' he goes on. 'Those instances were quite remarkable when you saw folks carrying suitcases and everyone picking up lens boxes to trek up hills for the shots.'
Basden was equally thrilled about all the outdoor shooting locations because he felt 'such immense happiness going to work knowing it looks like that, you know?'."
'It’s strange, even though it was just 18 days and I only filmed for 10,' recalls Mulligan. 'Yet, it felt much longer. I have this recollection of us being there throughout the entire summer, which isn’t true, but I believe we truly savored every moment of how wonderful it all was.'
And she concludes with what might be the greatest praise an actor could give to a film set.
'There are very few roles where each individual scene makes you think, "Wow, I love This! There are days in most jobs when you feel a bit irritated, or things aren’t going as planned, or some issues persist. But with this, each day was remarkably pleasant."
"The Ballad of Wallis Island" is currently showing in theaters.
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