Damian Lewis Spy Wars: Here Is All You Want To Know About Damian’s First Factual TV Program

“Spy craft is incredibly low-fi. There are exotic words like ‘dead drop’ and ‘brush pass’ but it literally means you waking into a supermarket with the same Sainsbury’s carrier bag as me and us leaving with each other’s bags – you’ve seen it in a thousand thriller movies.” – Damian Lewis

This post is long due. It has been months since we got word that Damian would set foot on the docu-drama territory with Damian Lewis: Spy Wars, a joint project between A+E Networks and Alaska TV. But then there was not much information except for a few promotion pictures and so it was not easy for me to put together a post to get you all in the mood. But now that the series is premiering on History Channel UK next month, A+E Networks and Royal Television Society (RTS) jointly held a special screening of Spy Wars followed by a Q&A with the brains behind the project and that a great friend attended the screening and recorded a good chunk of the Q & A for us, I am ready! Continue reading “Damian Lewis Spy Wars: Here Is All You Want To Know About Damian’s First Factual TV Program”

In the Footsteps of ‘Band of Brothers’: Linda Visits Filming Locations in Switzerland

Today’s blog post is coming from a very special lady. Linda has been running The Friends of Major Dick Winters Facebook Page for years and she is incredibly devoted to real-life WWII heroes. She regularly attends the reunions held on the anniversary of D-Day in Normandy with Band of Brothers actors and WWII veterans. Damian knows Linda well and appreciates her hard work honoring Major Dick Winters and all WWII veterans. You can read Linda’s wonderful story about how she became a Damian Lewis fan here!

Linda and Damian at Band of Brothers Reunion on the 70th Anniversary of D-Day in Normandy

In the summer of 2018, Linda had the pleasure of visiting some important Band of Brothers filming locations in Switzerland. I kindly asked her if she would consider writing about her trip for us and she said YES! And we are extremely thrilled that we are sharing Linda’s travels in the footsteps of Steven Spielberg filming Band of Brothers in our week-long BoB 18th Anniversary celebration!

Linda, we cannot thank you enough for your support and friendship, and for this very special contribution to Fan Fun. Currahee! Continue reading “In the Footsteps of ‘Band of Brothers’: Linda Visits Filming Locations in Switzerland”

Throwback Thursday to Damian Lewis at Band of Brothers Boot Camp

‘It’s very authentic, dripping in sincerity, there’s nothing sensational about it. It had a docu-drama feel to it which people responded to. –Damian Lewis on Band of Brothers

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We earlier blogged about how a 29-year old British actor Damian Lewis got cast to play all-American WWII hero Dick Winters as well as the deft and the charisma with which Damian Lewis came to immortalize Dick Winters on small screen. However, we still have a black box between the casting and the shoot: How did Damian Lewis TRANSFORM into Dick Winters?

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Well… Once he gets the part, the two Hollywood giants Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks leave the room and Tony To, the executive producer, asks: “Hey Damian, how’d you like to go to boot camp in March?”

Ha! The boot camp… It is, in fact, what FILLS the black box I’ve been talking about… The Transformation, quoting Damian himself, from “a rice pudding” to a “celery stalk” 🙂

Continue reading “Throwback Thursday to Damian Lewis at Band of Brothers Boot Camp”

Remembrance 2019

Band of Brothers is a masterful series that taps into every possible emotion that you can feel and it pulls absolutely no punches when trying to display and emphasise the horrors the men and woman fighting in World War II faced.

Band of Brothers sets out to remember those who served in World War II and show us what they had to endure. There is so much for each of us to take from the series, but my own impressions are that the intention was not to glorify war or to paint these men as superhuman.

There is a touching moment (among many) in the extras when Major Dick Winters quotes a passage from a letter he received from Sergeant Mike Ranney, “I cherish the memories of a question my grandson asked me the other day when he said, ‘Grandpa, were you a hero in the war?’ Grandpa said ‘No…but I served in a company of heroes’.” Continue reading “Remembrance 2019”

Band of Brothers at 18: How did Damian Lewis become Dick Winters?

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source: HBO

We talked about “American” Damian earlier here. From Dick Winters to Charlie Crews to Nicholas Brody to Bobby Axelrod, Damian Lewis has given us a wide portfolio of American characters all of whom we have fallen in love with. And given that Damian is probably more well-known for the American characters he has brought to life, one just wonders about how this all started!

The story begins in 1999 and, in Damian’s own words at “auditions in damp Soho basements.” Continue reading “Band of Brothers at 18: How did Damian Lewis become Dick Winters?”