Hello everyone. I have posted messages elsewhere on these boards and I should be grateful if you all would help to keep the grapevine going.
Firstly I should like to add my personal thoughts of the man who became my friend for such a brief but amazing time. I have never been particularly struck by celebrity,but my first trip to Alex house for a marvelous lunch was the most nerve wracking thing I have ever undertaken. Mr Henshaw is ( men like him do not die) quite simply one of the last men to rightly be called a true Englishman.
It took no more than 2 minutes for him to insist on my calling him Alex. "If we're to be friends and work together" he said " I can't have you calling me Mr Henshaw all the time". He is quite simply the most magical human being I have ever met. Right up until the end he was securing his legacy for the world. His new collaboration with his great pal Michael Turner and Francois Prins is going to be a wonderful thing to behold and he was with these two great men the day after he met with our exec team for what was to be the last time, to discuss our film.
I shall miss him dreadfully. However I am happy to know that he is reunited with his beautiful Barbara again and they're off flying, who knows where.
On a number of boards, People have been asking about the rumours they have heard about a movie.
I am (amidst the sadness of his passing), delighted to tell all of you that the rumours are true.
Alex had been collaborating and supporting my writing of a six part mini drama series on my home City Birmingham, during the war. At the second meeting we had with him, I boldly asked if I might have his commision to turn The Flight of The Mew Gull into a major feature film. He simply said "Oh yes get on with it". He then went on to tell me that it was actually Barbara's fondest wish that it be made into a film...she even had a star lined up to play her husband....sadly Edward Fox is a tad too old to play the younger Alex but you never know???
The film was moved from the back plate to the hot ring a few weeks ago. Alex and we recognised that commercially it makes a lot more sense to make the film first, for reasons I needn't bore you with here. With a worldwide success under our belts as the Mew Gull movie surely will be, we can then set about telling the story of Brum at war, which was the project that Alex and I first met to discuss and which he was so passionate about.
He was simply the most amazing, kind and generous man I have ever (and will ever) known. What a life. What an amazing life.
Over and out Alex, fly well my friend.
John Barton ( equity pro name Jon Carver)
www.carvery.zoomshare.com [email protected]
Please pass the word around, a sackful of supportive emails will help to ease apart the backers wallets
.
Jon