Quotes

[on the death of Jack Wild] Jack really was cheated out of a great career. He was easy to work with and made you feel good. He was a professional; his performance was incredible and the film will remain a classic. We were talking about getting together and going to see each other. We were more like Laurel and Hardy. We used to call ourselves Fagin and Dodger. We had that kind of bond between us. He had a talent that should have developed into even more talent as he grew older. Pressure makes people react in different ways. Some people plunge in and others take the way out. Jack also had bad luck, with the fact that he got so ill. The talent was still there but it didn't work out for him. I never thought he would ever give up. I thought he'd fought it. It's very sad. He was a fighter.

After Oliver! (1968), my career didn't develop. I was offered Fagin-type roles but I wanted to do new things. I could have worked in America, but there was a recession in the British film industry and I wanted to work in England. I've no regrets. You take responsibility for your actions. You don't kvetch. Playing Fagin in the play and film was a small miracle.

If I had stayed in America afterwards, then things would probably have been much better and I would have had lots of film work, which I wanted. But the day after the Oscars I flew back to London to film a television play for Anglia. It was a big mistake because you never really get acknowledged for wanting to work in England, as I did. I just think now that you are a bloody fool if you do that. You should take the money when you can.