THE BOB ANDERSON STORY
Did you know that Gosport was once home to a Hollywood stuntman responsible for some of the most iconic sword fights in film history? From 1953’s The Master of Ballantrae starring Errol Flynn to more modern epics like The Lord of the Rings and The Legend of Zorro, Gosport born and bred Bob Anderson played a key role in many blockbuster films offering his expertise as a sword master and fight arranger.
Anderson who was born in Gosport on 15th September 1922, began his career in the Royal Marines following in the footsteps of his father. Anderson began fencing whilst at school but it was in the marines where he began to hone his talent winning several services titles across all three modern fencing disciplines: épée, foil and sabre. His skill was so impressive that he was selected for the Olympic fencing team, representing Great Britain in the 1952 games in Helsinki, ultimately finishing in an impressive fifth place!
This it turned out was only the start of Anderson’s prolific career in the world of fencing as later that same year he was asked to work on the Errol Flynn film The Master of Ballantrae, which was filming in Pinewood studios, as a stuntman. While he was originally uncredited in this role, this first foray into the world of cinema was not to be his last as Bob went on to have a career spanning 50 years in this glitzy industry.
While Bob Anderson may not be a household name many of his performances certainly are. In a 1983 interview, Mark Hamill, of Luke Skywalker fame, revealed that it was in fact Anderson who was performing all the stunts of the iconic Star Wars villain Darth Vader. Throughout his epic career Bob often worked as a sword master, responsible for choreographing some of the most famous and gripping sword fights in cinematic history. From working with Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean to Viggo Mortensen in The Lord of the Rings had the privilege of teaching and directing some of the most famous actors in the art of fencing. He also worked on what is arguably the greatest and my personal favourite in the cult classic The Princess Bride, this epic fight between Inigo Montoya and the Dread Pirate Roberts plays out for several minutes with great skill and finesse before Inigo reveals “I am not left handed”, after several more strokes of the sword, Roberts counters “I’m not left handed either”, at which point both men impressively switch their sword hands.
We will have several events across GHODs to celebrate Bob Anderson’s life and career including a screening of The Princess Bride so you will be able to appreciate every jab and cut on the big screen! Booking opens at 9.30am on 20th August, make sure you grab a FREE spot to watch this classic film at Gosport’s The Ritz@St Vincent Cinema.
THE 2022 PROGRAMME IS OUT NOW AND BOOKING OPENS ON 20TH AUGUST 2022 AT 9.30AM.
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