Patsy wants to be ‘more famous than anyone’

Press, 23 July 1986, Page 14

Patsy wants to be ‘more famous than anyone’

JOHN SMALLWOOD, of DUO, meets a 17-year-old show biz veteran who is bringing a wealth of experience and ambition to her starring role in the new British film, “Absolute Beginners.”

Patsy Kensit is very forthright in stating her aims in life: “My ambition is to be more famous than anyone, ever,” she says. “I’m not in this for the money, I want recognition. I want people to want to write about me. I want to feel wanted. And if fame means that one day I might not be able to go down the high street to buy some knickers, then I won’t mind.” At only 17, she is well on the way to achieving her ambition. She is the mainspring of the up-and-coming pop group Eighth Wonder, and star of the film “Absolute Beginners.” In the film, an adaptation of the ColinMaclnnes cult novel, Patsy has the part of Crepe Suzette, a glorified prostitute who sleeps with lots of men but never asks for money. Patsy . was determined to grab the role when she heard that Suzette was described as Chelsea’s answer to Brigitte Bardot. Brigitte is Patsy’s heroine, and she herself has been labelled “sex kitten,” by the less inspired of her admirers. But it wasn’t plain sailing. Julien Temple, whizzkid director of "Absolute Beginners” had other ideas, and wouldn’t even give her an audition until, one night, he and Steve Woolley, the producer, chanced to drop in on a performance by Eighth Wonder. “They were really knocked out,” said Patsy. “They came backstage after the show and said, ‘We’d like you to be in our film. Would you be interested?’ They did not have to ask me twice! “And it couldn’t be better from my point of view. I’m singing and dancing as well as acting, and I see it as being the key move in my career.” Even before she started going to school, she was in front of cameras. She did her first T.V. commercial when she was four. That got her into acting. When she was eight she spent seven months in Russia playing the part of a peasant girl in the film “The Bluebird” starring Elizabeth Taylor. Patsy also played Mia Farrow’s daughter in "The Great Gatsby,” and Rod

Steiger’s little girl in “Hennessy.” More recently, she played Eppie in BBCTV’s adaptation of "Silas Marner.” But . life wasn’t all showbiz. She went to a convent school in London, and worked hard, ending up with nine passes in her final exams. She was leading a bit of a double life — outside school she was having an exciting time appearing on TV, but in school she kept quiet about it. "I never talked in school about what I did. I just tried to get on, keeping myself to myself, apart from half-a-dozen close friends. I kept my head down and worked hard. Actually I would have stayed on at school longer if the band hadn’t started happening.” Eighth Wonder was started by Patsy’s 20-year-old brother Jamie. He used to do the rounds of the clubs and when he saw Spandau Ballet start up he wanted to be in a group. He got himself a guitar, practised for hours every day, then decided the best thing to do was to start his own group. When they were seriously into rehearsals Patsy, in her fifth year at school, decided she wanted to join. The boys kept saying "No, we don’t want a girl,” but Patsy was a persistent sister, as Jamie should have known. She got into rehearsals one Sunday, and before anyone could stop her she started singing. She was in. The boy who had been doing vocals was out.

Eighth Wonder did the hard slog of gigs at universities? colleges, and down-market clubs before success came their way. Now they have a record contract with CBS, and the group’s first single “Stay With Me” a hit in the charts. It was written by Patsy. Nobody knows exactly what happens when Patsy gyrates on to a stage, but the boys in packed audiences shout and cheer as the girls used to scream and shout at their rock idols. “They try and pull my clothes off — it’s rather like being Tom Jones. I loved every minute, it was brilliant,” she says. You learn that the word “brilliant” competes with the word “wonderful” for pride of place in her talk. You learn also that the thought of having her clothes ripped off by frenzied fans is one thing, but taking them off in front of a camera on a film set is quite another. She says: “I’ve a big love scene near the end of ‘Absolute Beginners’ and they wanted me to be nude. I felt terrible about that, so in the end we both wore underwear, which is probably more erotic anyway.” After all the film and TV work she’s done, Patsy confesses that she doesn’t even like acting. “It’s just such hard work — really hard! What I do in the group is hard work, too, but it’s exciting with it. I did ‘Absolute Beginners’ because they picked me for the part which I really wanted to do." Whenever she gets the chance she loves going home to Hounslow, west London, where she lives with her mum, six cats, and a dog called Stuffy. “It’s great to know there’s someone to make sure you are eating properly and have clean clothes to wear," she says. The walls of her room are filled with posters of her heroes — Wham! Spandau Ballet and John Taylor — and her prize possession is a white

space-age television she bought with the money from “Absolute Beginners.” Patsy doesn’t have much spare time for her

hobbies these days: “I like kissing boys and practising snogging,” she giggles. “And I like swimming and ski-ing. "And I’m inspired to write lyrics when I’m falling in love. I haven’t had a serious boyfriend for a year — so that explains a lot! But I know there’s someone out there, and I’m definitely looking! “After all, I want to have six kids and be able to retire and enjoy family life when I’m 40.”