Warwick Davis on his first role as an Ewok in Star Wars

0:13Hello, I'm Lauren Laverne and this is Desert Island Discs Postcards, a collection of funny and horror-warming moments from some of our many castaways. Today's postcard comes from Harry Harry Potter actor Warwick Davis. In 2016, Warwick told Kirsty Young how he got his very first acting role in Star Wars Return of the Jedi when he was just 11. I've got radio to thank for my career. My grandmother was at home in her kitchen and she had the radio on as she always did. And an announcement came on from Lucasfilm, who makes Star Wars, and it said we're looking for short people to play Ewoks in the next instalment of Star Wars.

0:54She heard the word Star Wars and she heard the word short people. And she didn't immediately tell my mum about this because she was worried that she might offend her by saying they need short people. And I thought of Warwick. So she kind of held on to this information for a couple of days. And eventually she did call my mum, who immediately called the studios. And they said, well, we've got everyone we need. We were inundated with calls. I really, to this day, don't know what my mum said to them, but they agreed to meet me. And just a couple of weeks later, in the January of 1981, I found myself on the set of Return of the Jedi alongside my onscreen heroes.

1:32It was mind blowing for an 11 year old, honestly. You once said that you'd like the inscription on your gravestone to read an actor who just happened to be short. And I guess that's the sort of paradox of your career, because very often you've been cast because of your physical features. You're three foot six. And yet you are also cast, I would say, you know, much more in the sort of latter part of your career because you're a very good actor. Thank you. Every physical attribute of an actor is taken into consideration when they're cast. It might be we're going to cast her because she's got a big nose or we're going to cast him because he's got a wonderful jawline.

2:03But with you, it is always part of the casting. It's partly the jawline, but also being short is my USP. And that's early in my career, obviously, from getting the part in Return of the Jedi. That was the reason I got the part. Do you feel, though, at this stage in your career, you have transcended that? Do you feel now that you get television and film roles because people think, well, Warwick Davis will be able to bring that to us? He will be able to portray that? More and more so now. Yes, absolutely. The work that I'm offered now, scripts come through and there's no mention in the script of this character being short or any reason for him to be short.

2:38they are just interested in offering Warwick Davis, the actor, the part. Do you take a good degree of satisfaction in that? It's lovely to be thought of in that way. And I think it's also a testament to society now and the way things are changing that people see beyond somebody's physical appearance. Warwick Davis, who was awarded an OBE earlier this year. You can listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds. Just search for Warwick Davis, Desert Island Discs.

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