Merlin: Secrets & Magic (2009) s01e03 Episode Script
Casting The Magic
Coming up on Merlin Myths and Magic, we go down to the woods to meet the Druid chief.
The name's Salmon, Colin Salmon.
How do you do? On a break from Bond, he's set up camp in Camelot and loving it.
It's an honour to do some Merlin.
Magic isn't a dark art that must be shrouded in secrecy.
He's made friends with Morgana, but what will that mean for the future? He's the ticking time bomb of the show.
SHE SCREAMS Merlin's decision not to tell Morgana about his powers is huge.
She can walk the walk and talk the talk, and after tonight, all eyes are on the magical Morgana.
On the location of BBC drama series Merlin, there's a storm brewing, but it's not the weather that's concerning Camelot.
New checks, please.
For the filming of this latest mythical adventure, the rain may have cleared, but there's still magic in the air.
Action! Here we are in Puzzlewood filming Druid scenes for act three.
Running around somewhat just back and forth with a lot of dogs.
Uh, where are the dogs? I don't know where the dogs have gone.
Anyway there's the camp.
We're just setting up a shot.
There's Dalesetting up well.
I don't know if we're causing a bit of a distraction, actually.
I was trying to do it, sort of, subtly.
We're about ready, Bradley, when you've finished.
Uh, oh, OK.
I'll probably see you in a bit.
The search is on and, for Morgana, that means a long-awaited magical mystery tour.
These forests are dangerous.
What brings you so far from Camelot? I was searching for answers.
When you first meet Morgana in series one, she is she's a spoiled princess.
She knows she's the femme fatale.
She knows she's the first lady of Camelot.
She's quite manipulative of men.
She knows what she needs to do in order to get what it is that she wants.
God have mercy! And she has no shame in doing that.
The Morgana of our first series was a fiery, rebellious, but ultimately very good person.
What have these people done to you? Why are you so full of hate? It's like that classic father, who just doesn't get it.
The child is rebelling against the father, but the father wants to protect, and he gets it wrong on every level.
Let this serve as a lesson to all - this man is judged guilty of conspiring to use enchantments and magic.
I, Uther Pendragon, have decreed that such practices are banned on penalty of death.
And, of course, she is a sorceress, which would be a bit of a problem when he finds out.
As the season goes on, you start to see her magical powers coming out, and with that, comes the fear of them, because A, she can't control them, B, she doesn't know what they are and C, magic in Camelot means death.
And she suspects she's magical.
You can't tell Uther about your dream.
If Uther thinks you've got the seer's power, he'll charge you with witchcraft.
I don't have a choice.
She was troubled particularly by the sort of dreams and nightmares that she kept having which are an indication of her magical power.
Arthur.
If you've any lingering questions about Morgana in series one, they're answered in series two.
Let him go.
All the seeds that were sown in the first season, suddenly grow into major storylines and character points in season two.
And in the new series, coming to terms with her powers promises to be a real nightmare.
Episode three is the first time you really see Morgana having an active power.
Before, her powers have been confined to seeing the future in dreams, and now it's moved from inside her head to outside and she starts still not being able to control them, so it's quite a violent manifestation of her powers as opposed to Merlin's which are very calm and controllable.
He knows Morgana has magic.
He knows that she doesn't know about him and Merlin desperately, desperately would love to confide in her.
You can trust me, Morgana.
You know you can.
Merlin feels that she needs guidance.
She needs a hand.
Merlin very much views Morgana as being a friend and being close.
He wants to look after her and he wants to make sure she's gonna be OK.
You think it was magic! I'm not saying that.
But it could be, couldn't it? I really wouldn't know, but there are people who do.
Who? What about the Druids? They help people like you.
Merlin slyly tells her the way to go is to seek out the Druids.
They help people who are magical so she does.
But, as they say, if you go down to the woods today, you're sure of a big surprise.
I got to do my first CGI, actually.
I get attacked by giant scorpions and baby scorpions.
Anybody's who's afraid of bugs shouldn't probably watch that episode.
It's not as exciting as it looks when you're actually doing it.
When you see the finished project, you think, "That looks amazing," but it's just you out in the forest with a green cut-out scorpion tail, which then they take away and you just have to imagine it.
But there was nothing imaginary about being rescued by MI5 Chief of Staff Sorry, by being rescued by Druid elder, Aglain.
I'm not going to hurt you.
Aah.
You've hurt your leg.
Merlin fans, let me introduce you to Colin Salmon.
How do you do? Of Robinson of James Bond fame? Charles Robinson, Chief of Staff.
Yes.
Charles Robinson.
I won't lie.
I'm a bit of a Bond fan.
A Bond man, are you? I think we all are.
It's a real honour to do some Merlin.
Thank you for saying that.
That's good as well.
You may notice, folks, that the angle of the camera is having to point upwards.
I'm quite a tall lad.
Colin is quite a tall chap.
He's a good Six foot four.
Again, another stunning costume.
Have you enjoyed your time in the Druid camp? Yeah.
It reminds me of Swampy and his boys.
Glastonbury circa 1984.
I trust you slept well.
Better than I've done in days.
Here.
This might make you feel more at home.
Colin Salmon came on set and he had done all this research about Druids.
He had done all this stuff about the religion and the language and their traditions.
He was telling us and explaining He's a lovely man.
I'd never thought about that period of the history and that wealth of knowledge and legends and things like that that exist in the Druids, so it was really, really interesting and it was inspiring in a bizarre kind of way.
She learns for the first time, what she's always suspected, which is that magic is not good or bad.
Magic can be a force for good and it does not always mean that you are evil.
It goes against everything Uther has taught her.
And it's the beginning of Morgana seeing what she is and what she can be.
And you also get to see the lovely Asa Butterfield who plays Mordred.
He comes back and how that relationship is going to shape Morgana as a character.
'Hello, Morgana.
' Did you hear that? How did you do that? We don't always need words to speak to one another.
It's very important.
It's a great episode.
It's very quick and dynamic and it was exhausting, but fantastic to film.
Morgana may be the one who's casting the magic now, but way back before filming had even begun, that job fell to the show's producers.
Casting a high concept show is always very difficult.
You're looking for actors that can act in a fantasy world and make it feel real.
When you set out in a fantasy world, as an actor, you're not playing something you have seen before that is a real thing.
You've got to stand in front of a big screen and pretend to talk to a 60-foot dragon.
I need your help.
I remember reading the whole legend and everything like that and the basic outline and I remember going to my mum going, "If I'm going to play anyone in the whole legend, "I'm Morgana Le Fay.
She's the bad girl.
" Morgana's dark side is something I look forward to.
I'm really intrigued to see how far they push it and how much they take out of it, because by the end of this season, you know she's coming back bad.
You know.
You speak of the witch, the Lady Morgana.
She's not a witch.
She's my friend.
She cannot be trusted.
What makes you say that? It would be better if the witch Stop calling her that.
It would be better if the witch never knew the true extent of her powers.
I want Morgana to be bad, to be evil, to have a pointy hat and a cauldron.
SHE LAUGHS No Yes.
Personally, I can't wait till she is evil, because that's when she's going to start to come in to her own.
SHE SCREAMS I want to see one big magical battle on the battlements of Camelot Castle between her and Merlin and I want her to win.
So, for the filming of this magical Merlin adventure, it seems we've all reached the end of the line.
Hello, Merlin fans.
We've just finished filming in the Forest Of Dean No.
In Puzzlewood in Gloucestershire and it's Friday, so we get to go home for the weekend.
And I have been dropped off at Abergavenny train station and I am the only one here.
This is the only time I've ever been in a train station and that's been the case.
I'll just show you the deserted state.
The only slightly distressing thing is this could be the setting for some horror film where something horrible happens.
The toilets are locked.
Not the most useful.
So hopefully my train turns up.
And yeah, not a great deal to do at Abergavenny train station, but very nice all the same.
As I'm slightly bored, I thought I'd try out the remote control setting for my camera.
This is where I get really clever.
Or not.
There we go.
Two people have just turned up and seen me rolling around on the station floor.
Little bit embarrassing.
The name's Salmon, Colin Salmon.
How do you do? On a break from Bond, he's set up camp in Camelot and loving it.
It's an honour to do some Merlin.
Magic isn't a dark art that must be shrouded in secrecy.
He's made friends with Morgana, but what will that mean for the future? He's the ticking time bomb of the show.
SHE SCREAMS Merlin's decision not to tell Morgana about his powers is huge.
She can walk the walk and talk the talk, and after tonight, all eyes are on the magical Morgana.
On the location of BBC drama series Merlin, there's a storm brewing, but it's not the weather that's concerning Camelot.
New checks, please.
For the filming of this latest mythical adventure, the rain may have cleared, but there's still magic in the air.
Action! Here we are in Puzzlewood filming Druid scenes for act three.
Running around somewhat just back and forth with a lot of dogs.
Uh, where are the dogs? I don't know where the dogs have gone.
Anyway there's the camp.
We're just setting up a shot.
There's Dalesetting up well.
I don't know if we're causing a bit of a distraction, actually.
I was trying to do it, sort of, subtly.
We're about ready, Bradley, when you've finished.
Uh, oh, OK.
I'll probably see you in a bit.
The search is on and, for Morgana, that means a long-awaited magical mystery tour.
These forests are dangerous.
What brings you so far from Camelot? I was searching for answers.
When you first meet Morgana in series one, she is she's a spoiled princess.
She knows she's the femme fatale.
She knows she's the first lady of Camelot.
She's quite manipulative of men.
She knows what she needs to do in order to get what it is that she wants.
God have mercy! And she has no shame in doing that.
The Morgana of our first series was a fiery, rebellious, but ultimately very good person.
What have these people done to you? Why are you so full of hate? It's like that classic father, who just doesn't get it.
The child is rebelling against the father, but the father wants to protect, and he gets it wrong on every level.
Let this serve as a lesson to all - this man is judged guilty of conspiring to use enchantments and magic.
I, Uther Pendragon, have decreed that such practices are banned on penalty of death.
And, of course, she is a sorceress, which would be a bit of a problem when he finds out.
As the season goes on, you start to see her magical powers coming out, and with that, comes the fear of them, because A, she can't control them, B, she doesn't know what they are and C, magic in Camelot means death.
And she suspects she's magical.
You can't tell Uther about your dream.
If Uther thinks you've got the seer's power, he'll charge you with witchcraft.
I don't have a choice.
She was troubled particularly by the sort of dreams and nightmares that she kept having which are an indication of her magical power.
Arthur.
If you've any lingering questions about Morgana in series one, they're answered in series two.
Let him go.
All the seeds that were sown in the first season, suddenly grow into major storylines and character points in season two.
And in the new series, coming to terms with her powers promises to be a real nightmare.
Episode three is the first time you really see Morgana having an active power.
Before, her powers have been confined to seeing the future in dreams, and now it's moved from inside her head to outside and she starts still not being able to control them, so it's quite a violent manifestation of her powers as opposed to Merlin's which are very calm and controllable.
He knows Morgana has magic.
He knows that she doesn't know about him and Merlin desperately, desperately would love to confide in her.
You can trust me, Morgana.
You know you can.
Merlin feels that she needs guidance.
She needs a hand.
Merlin very much views Morgana as being a friend and being close.
He wants to look after her and he wants to make sure she's gonna be OK.
You think it was magic! I'm not saying that.
But it could be, couldn't it? I really wouldn't know, but there are people who do.
Who? What about the Druids? They help people like you.
Merlin slyly tells her the way to go is to seek out the Druids.
They help people who are magical so she does.
But, as they say, if you go down to the woods today, you're sure of a big surprise.
I got to do my first CGI, actually.
I get attacked by giant scorpions and baby scorpions.
Anybody's who's afraid of bugs shouldn't probably watch that episode.
It's not as exciting as it looks when you're actually doing it.
When you see the finished project, you think, "That looks amazing," but it's just you out in the forest with a green cut-out scorpion tail, which then they take away and you just have to imagine it.
But there was nothing imaginary about being rescued by MI5 Chief of Staff Sorry, by being rescued by Druid elder, Aglain.
I'm not going to hurt you.
Aah.
You've hurt your leg.
Merlin fans, let me introduce you to Colin Salmon.
How do you do? Of Robinson of James Bond fame? Charles Robinson, Chief of Staff.
Yes.
Charles Robinson.
I won't lie.
I'm a bit of a Bond fan.
A Bond man, are you? I think we all are.
It's a real honour to do some Merlin.
Thank you for saying that.
That's good as well.
You may notice, folks, that the angle of the camera is having to point upwards.
I'm quite a tall lad.
Colin is quite a tall chap.
He's a good Six foot four.
Again, another stunning costume.
Have you enjoyed your time in the Druid camp? Yeah.
It reminds me of Swampy and his boys.
Glastonbury circa 1984.
I trust you slept well.
Better than I've done in days.
Here.
This might make you feel more at home.
Colin Salmon came on set and he had done all this research about Druids.
He had done all this stuff about the religion and the language and their traditions.
He was telling us and explaining He's a lovely man.
I'd never thought about that period of the history and that wealth of knowledge and legends and things like that that exist in the Druids, so it was really, really interesting and it was inspiring in a bizarre kind of way.
She learns for the first time, what she's always suspected, which is that magic is not good or bad.
Magic can be a force for good and it does not always mean that you are evil.
It goes against everything Uther has taught her.
And it's the beginning of Morgana seeing what she is and what she can be.
And you also get to see the lovely Asa Butterfield who plays Mordred.
He comes back and how that relationship is going to shape Morgana as a character.
'Hello, Morgana.
' Did you hear that? How did you do that? We don't always need words to speak to one another.
It's very important.
It's a great episode.
It's very quick and dynamic and it was exhausting, but fantastic to film.
Morgana may be the one who's casting the magic now, but way back before filming had even begun, that job fell to the show's producers.
Casting a high concept show is always very difficult.
You're looking for actors that can act in a fantasy world and make it feel real.
When you set out in a fantasy world, as an actor, you're not playing something you have seen before that is a real thing.
You've got to stand in front of a big screen and pretend to talk to a 60-foot dragon.
I need your help.
I remember reading the whole legend and everything like that and the basic outline and I remember going to my mum going, "If I'm going to play anyone in the whole legend, "I'm Morgana Le Fay.
She's the bad girl.
" Morgana's dark side is something I look forward to.
I'm really intrigued to see how far they push it and how much they take out of it, because by the end of this season, you know she's coming back bad.
You know.
You speak of the witch, the Lady Morgana.
She's not a witch.
She's my friend.
She cannot be trusted.
What makes you say that? It would be better if the witch Stop calling her that.
It would be better if the witch never knew the true extent of her powers.
I want Morgana to be bad, to be evil, to have a pointy hat and a cauldron.
SHE LAUGHS No Yes.
Personally, I can't wait till she is evil, because that's when she's going to start to come in to her own.
SHE SCREAMS I want to see one big magical battle on the battlements of Camelot Castle between her and Merlin and I want her to win.
So, for the filming of this magical Merlin adventure, it seems we've all reached the end of the line.
Hello, Merlin fans.
We've just finished filming in the Forest Of Dean No.
In Puzzlewood in Gloucestershire and it's Friday, so we get to go home for the weekend.
And I have been dropped off at Abergavenny train station and I am the only one here.
This is the only time I've ever been in a train station and that's been the case.
I'll just show you the deserted state.
The only slightly distressing thing is this could be the setting for some horror film where something horrible happens.
The toilets are locked.
Not the most useful.
So hopefully my train turns up.
And yeah, not a great deal to do at Abergavenny train station, but very nice all the same.
As I'm slightly bored, I thought I'd try out the remote control setting for my camera.
This is where I get really clever.
Or not.
There we go.
Two people have just turned up and seen me rolling around on the station floor.
Little bit embarrassing.