I Don't Have a Fake Tan or Highlights... That's How I Got the Part ; He Thought Wilfrid Wasn't Worth Killing [Scot Region]

Summary

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With its scattering of stone and thatched cottages set around a green, and with a pub and church at its heart, Iddesleigh seems the archetypal English village. But although it is picturesque, it is often overlooked by the holidaymakers heading to the nearby craggy tors of Dartmoor and the sandy beaches of North Devon.

Apart from the handful of names proudly displayed on its war memorial, Iddesleigh seems untouched by the passing of time. But the memorial gives a clue to this small village's importance. This is where author Michael Morpurgo painstakingly collated the experiences that would go to make up his novel War Horse.

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I Don't Have a Fake Tan or Highlights... That's How I Got the Part ; He Thought Wilfrid Wasn't Worth Killing [Scot Region]

The book has since become an award-winning play and it has now been transformed into a Hollywood blockbuster by director Steven Spielberg. Released in the US last week to critical acclaim, the film arrives here early in the New Year.

But who were the people from this sleepy Devon village that inspired an entertainment juggernaut, the people whose stories have now been seen by more than a million theatregoers and will soon be seen by millions more on the big screen?

In the foreword to War Horse, first published in 1982, Morpurgo credits three men: 'Albert Weeks, the late Wilfrid Ellis and the late Captain Budgett - all three octagenarian...

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