Hello Magazine – Thursday 18th August, 2005

The city of Edinburgh gave a hearty Scottish welcome to an Irish heart-throb and a quintessentially English gentleman when Gabriel Byrne and his friend Richard E Grant jetted into town this week. Both men were clearly delighted by the reception they received as they arrived, along with a heavily pregnant Emily Watson, to open the city’s annual film festival.

Loud cheers from a throng of movie fans greeted the trio as they took to the red carpet for the premiere of their new film Wah-Wah. And Richard, who is making his directorial debut with the movie, could barely contain his emotion upon seeing the excited crowd. “I’m just so glad everybody is here and that the film happened and that when people see it they laugh and they are moved,” he said.

The Withnail And I star also wrote the flick, which is a semi-autobiographical tale about a boy who sees his family disintegrate just as British rule in Swaziland comes to an end. Wednesday night was an especially significant moment for the actor, who grew up in the African country, as he has spent the last six years working on bringing the story to the big screen.

And he wasn’t the only one feeling enthusiastic. The production’s handsome leading man on equally effusive form. “It was the best experience I’ve ever had, either in the theatre or in the movies,” declared the Usual Suspects star. “For some reason, because of some strange chemistry that nobody could predict, this group of people bonded in a way that I have never experienced before and the film was truly the most enjoyable and satisfying experience I’ve ever had.”