Geri's Diary
Geri, the unofficial journalist for the Spice Girls, decided to let the whole world see what she wrote in her diary during the making of SPICEWORLD, the movie. Are you nosy enough to read Geri's own diary? Of course you are, and so am I! So here it is:
MONDAY 9 JUNE CALL TIME 7:45am
It's the first day of shooting. There is a subtle feeling of nerves and anticipation about what the day ahead will bring. We are shooting the Poirot scene with Emma, who was a little anxious about going first. But she'll be fine. The rest of us shared our feelings about the day ahead. It's good to know you're not alone.
Well, the first day is over. After we'd had our make-up and hair done and got into costume, we had a little rehearsal and began shooting. It's a relief that those early nerves have disapeared.
Richard E Grant was fab, funny, professional and very inspiring as an actor. He immediately rushed over with a warm hello! He was taking snaps and shooting film footie for his eight-year-old daughter. Clare Rushbrook, who plays Deborah (our real-life PA Camilla) was very sweet. It was quite mad - she'd got the part to a T.
Poor Emma had a real early start, as she was the first on set filming her Poirot scene with Hugh Laurie, who is an awfully nice chap. And she wasn't happy at the thought of another early start - she was picked up at 5am today and is scheduled to do so again tomorrow.
Our first collective scene was around the dinner table at the mansion, where Clifford reveals his personal life. We all really got into it, like ducks to water. It was highly enjoyable. We had to be shot from many angles and I was particularly proud of my sad face when Clifford was telling his tale of woe. Hey! We're darling luvvie actors now!
EMMA: "I hated the early mornings on the film. I'm the kind of person who likes getting up late and going to bed late. Still, it was really exciting to be doing something so different."
MEL B: "Richard E Grant was fantastic to work with. He's very flirtatious and charming, and he's got a huge vocabulary. He's very precise with the way he uses words and he's an amazing man to watch - it's like he's alway on show when he's with you, as though he's in the film all the time. When you have a chat with him, he'll suddenly start interviewing you and joking around. He's quite hyperactive, really."
MEL C: "I was very nervous at the start of the film because the only acting I'd ever done before was in school plays. I was a bit anxious about doing it professionally, especially with so many fantastic actors, so the first day was really daunting. But it was great. Richard E Grant was really, really sweet. He was incredibly helpful and made us feel really at ease. He was good fun, too. He makes us laugh. The crew made it easy, too, so once we'd started, it was fine and we just had a laugh. It's the same with everything - because there are five of us all together, we're all in the same position and we've got each other for support."
EMMA: "We've got loads of in-jokes from the film that come out here and there. One of them is: 'Whippet!' That's from 'You've got to do it like a whippet', which is something Richard E Grant had a habit of standing up and saying really loudly for a laugh."
VICTORIA: "We did quite a lot of messing around when Richard E Grant was on set. He's so funny that you just can't help having a laugh with him."
MEL B: "The first scene we filmed was round the table at Clifford's mansion. I wasn't so much nervous as excited. It was like, 'We're actually doing it now!' We knew our lines but we worked in some spontaneity, which was good because it allowed us to feel a little bit more relaxed about it all. It was exciting when we heard the director say 'Lights! Camera! Action!' for the first time. We felt like little kids - it was funny. It was good fun mixing with so many actors and it was nice to know that at the end of the day, they're all quite normal as well, although there are a lot more luvvies in the acting world than in music."
VICTORIA: "I didn't really prepare for the film because I was playing myself. To be quite honest, I'm a real fretter and if I start thinking too much about something I'll start worrying about it and then I'll make myselft ill. So I tried not to think about it too much in advance. Obviously I had to learn my lines, but often I didn't do that until the day we were shooting that scene."
TUESDAY, 10 JUNE
Once again we're shooting at the big manor house in Guildford. (I'd love to live there.)
We're being plagued by the press. Some of them were so desperate to get a scoop that they disguised themselves as a panto horse. They even tried to fake a story by getting a security guard in a scuffle.
It's quite funny how we're driven such a short distance from our winnibago to the set, so that the paparazzi hiding in the bushes don't snap us!
Today we shot the bedroom scene. It was quite hilarious pretending to be really scared. Creeping down the corridor and bumping into one another was very funny. I was tripping over my Babs Windsor nightie and trying not to laugh at Mel B - oh, and trying not to stare straight into camera! A good day and not too long.
WEDNESDAY, 11 JUNE
BATTERSEA PARK SET-UP
Our first scene was a flash-forward to our futures - as mothers - which was absolutely hilarious. We all looked wicked. Mel B was dressed up like an African mama, Emma looked the perfect wife - butter wouldn't melt in her mouth, Victoria was a drunken Joan Collins, Mel C was Waynetta in a fat suit and I was just a glamorous Hilda. The Dream Boys came down with their fake tans - ugh! - and there were paparazzi waiting in the trees.
EMMA: "I looked just like my mother in this scene! That's probably what she looked like when she was preggers with me. I thought I looked quite young, like a teenage mum. The scene looks forward to the day when we're mums and mums-to-be. It was so funny. Vicky's actually going to be like that when she's older - all drunk and frowsy. She says, 'Thank god for boarding school - I only see mine once a month.' 'I'm heavily pregnant and suffering from a really bad back.' Mel B says, 'I don't know why you're having another one - you've already had six,' and I say, 'Is it six?' Then I say something like, 'They're so cute when they're younger, and then they grow up to be right little bleeders.' I'm one of those mums who has kids because they're so sweet was babies."
WEDNESDAY, 11 JUNE cont'd
Then we did the evening scene in the park, which was quite moving. It's the scene where we're reminiscing and talking about whether the band is going to last. It was kind of coincidental when a boat went down the river behind us playing 'Get Into The Groove', which was a big hit from DESPERATELY SEEKING SUSAN. Could this film be a smash hit like that? We are getting better and better. A real laugh.
SUNDAY, 15 JUNE
Hideous morning start. Picked up at 6:30am! It was quite bizarre seeing clubbers going home just as I was going to work. Those were the days, eh?
Everyone felt totally exhausted. We were filming the boat scene at Docklands. Loads of kids and media frenzy. It's been quite laborious shooting the same sequence over and over again, getting on and off a bus and boat. The real drama is in not falling in the river, as apparently you can catch 'Wills disease', which is not a pretty sight - flesh falling off and convulsions. Nice.
We amused ourselves with Mark, one of our bodyguards, who does a great Grant Mitchell. I'm in a charming little sailor's outfit - I always go overboard with my outfits! Filming was cut short due to weather conditions.
We also met the actor Alan Cumming, who plays a quirky news guy accompanied by a fat sound man and a hunky documentary camera man. They follow us in the slow long boat, looking like the Three Stooges. Cumming keeps on doing '2 Become 1' impressions.
MONDAY, 16 JUNE
Another gruesome early start. None of us come alive until late afternoon. It's now pouring down with rain. We are all vegging in the winnibago and have been over-indulging on the catering. Double helpings of Banoffee Pie. Victoria has fruit poisoning. The hanging around leaves us with no obstacle to our unhealthy obsession with dates. We spent waiting in an ambulance with two little kids, wearing our lifejackets. (Billy from EastEnders looks like a mini Mel B.) Fans are hanging out everywhere. "Will you kiss my baby?" says one mum. This seems a very attractive idea - the kid has a nice green bogey hanging out of its nose and I don't think he even knows who we are!
MEL B: "I didn't have to prepare much for the film. I didn't find the acting difficult because I did drama at college. I found I just went on set and did it. I never got too worked up about it - I just did it to the best of my ability. I enjoyed myself - I always think you do things better when you're having a laugh at the same time. It's not good to put loads of pressure on yourself and start panicking. I went with the flow."
TUESDAY, 17 JUNE
STUNT DAY
After two days of loads of waiting around, this was fun. We whipped up and down the docks in a very flashy speed boat in a scene where we're thrown left and right at high speed. Take one: I land in Mel B's crotch - a very enviable position!! (Although I did crack my neck.) Take two: I land on Emma's recently broken wrist. Take three: I almost fly overboard. Oh no! Wills disease!! But I am saved.
There were lots of spectators round the docks, including some nice builders. "Show us your builders' bums!" I shout. Sure enough, a line of all-shapes-and-sizes hairy bottoms gets an airing. Not a pretty site!!
It's girls overboard as Victoria and Melanie get a soaking. Posh is not very happy, as one can imagine - panda eyes and soggy Gucci. Screaming crowds everywhere and paparazzi. LONDON TONIGHT do some sneaky filming when some yuppie guy lets them on to his balcony.
MEL C: "I never really felt like a movie star, except, perhaps, when we were in our trailers. They were proper winnibagos and looked like hotel suits inside. But most of the time, making the film wasn't at all glamorous. We shot a lot of the scenes outside, so we were always waiting for the rain to stop or the clouds to blow over. It was really frustrating. In the river scene, Victoria and I had to get very wet. It was a freezing day and our clothes were soaking and we had to keep getting wet again and again and again, for hours on end."
WEDNESDAY, 18 JUNE
Another early start - picked up at 6am. We're ready to go at 9:30am but we don't actually start the stunt sequence until lunchtime, so we're a bit gutted. We end up on this poxy boat for four hours - Mel B, Emma, Mel C and I sit in the cabin for hours, feeling very seasick. As for the stunt guys, there's Victoria's double, who is extremely foxy, an Asian midget who's playing the little boy and a small, stocky woman you wouldn't want to mess with. They all have to fall into the water. Unfortunately they keep getting the timing wrong and have to do it over again, which is a long process because they have to dry off each time.
At one point they are all in the water, including Mel C Sporty's double. Emma, Mel B and I have to lean over the boat screaming at our friends. But by this time we all have cabin fever and we're in hysterical giggles, so we have to cover our faces to mask our laughter. Hopefully we'll look concerned!
After filming we all pile into the portable studio and manage to write a pretty cool song. I wrote some of the lyrics in the back of the car the other night when I was depressed.
Little do we know that it's kicking off bigtime outside the set. Hundreds of kids have accumulated over the day and it's getting rather chaotic as they try and storm the set. The police are called and it's a mini-riot. The mums and dads are not happy about it, as they proudly express on LONDON TONIGHT. We're oblivious to it all as we're singing away at the back of the set. Oh well, another day at the office.
VICTORIA: "I liked it when we did 'Too Much', because I really like the song, we all had nice white dresses on and there's a good dance to it. It's a real feel-good song. We filmed it at TOTP, which was nice. We always have a good time when we record TOTP."
SATURDAY, 21 JUNE, DAY 7
I would like to say that this morning's pick-up time was positively vile - 5:30am. I got out of bed at 5:35am - well, I refused to conform. That five minutes extra gave me a sense of defiance of time. I flopped into the car still wearing my pyjamas and arrived at the BBC studio extremely crumpled and blurry-eyed.
The first shoot was a complete nightmare because we had limited access to our time in the BBC corridor. I personally thought, hey, this could be any corridor, couldn't it? Anyway, we did a million just-one-more takes for this scene where fans are screaming outside. I'll leave it to your imagination, but reciting the same scene over and over again in front of hysterical eight-year-olds can get to the best of them.
Richard E was on top form today - extremely comical. Our conversations all developed on a downward spiral, using eloquent words like spermatozoa!! It's amazing what keeps one occupied. Andy Coulson, THE SUN's Bizarre editor, showed up looking like one of the reservoir media dogs. "Can I have a part in your movie?" Yeah, right!
After lunch Mr Elton John came down - with a very large entourage, I might add. Elton delivered his witty line with the style of a frisky dandy. But that's another story...
Twelve-hour day - we finished at 6:30pm.
SUNDAY, 22 JUNE
Today I get a lie-in - picked up at 6:30am!! Tired but happy.
Today does not feel quite right. Here I am in wardrobe debating latex pants or denim, with my hair in curlers and a shovel of blusher. Here am I when every other "normal" person is sleeping, watching GRANGE HILL re-runs or eating their Frosties. But I talk myself round by saying that you shouldn't have to conform. So Sunday is meant to be a day of rest. Rest, who needs it? We don't!?
I'm late for our script reading. I enter a very small caravan with the other Spice Girls, Richard E, Clare and Jools Holland, who plays our musical director. Everyone is pretty casual. For five minutes, I am too, but then I yell, "It's Jools Holland! Sorry, I had to get that out of the way. Now we can being." Everything flows and seems pretty cool. Jools is our instant buddy and we volley banter and witty quips all day.
Today was a hard but good day. Have you ever reached that level of tiredness when everything is hilarious? Everyone even finds me funny - they too must be tired. Humour is the best remedy in the world. I cannot stop talking in a broad Scottish accent because the crew are mostly Scots.
Here's a tip: if you need a good-natured crew, then wheel in the Scotsmen. They're cheery and happy, but with a cynical dry edge to keep you on your toes. Finish 8pm - pop star's glamorous lifestyle, eh! I am off home, talking to myself. We contemplate sleeping on set. Why not? Nah, perhaps not.
MONDAY, 23 JUNE
Tell me why I love Mondays? Pick-up 7am.
Today I was Marilyn and Wonder Woman. Tomorrow - who knows? It was an exhibitionist's dream. I was back in wonderland, making a childish fantasy into reality. As I stood upon the grate, the wind rushed up and almost blew my wig off. The thought dawned on me that here I was, little Geri, dresses as the sexiest woman ever - Marilyn Monroe, for godsake - with a rather large crowd watching. I swiftly tried to bury my nervous awkwardness. "Happy Birthday Mr President," I murmured.
Each of us played an icon - Jackie O, a Charlie's Angel, Sandy from GREASE. I have to say I was absolutely amazed at the transformation in Emma - where's my Baby Spice gone??!
The rain pounded and the press pestered to get that preview. Did we get wet? No! Did they get a preview? Hell, no! (Well I hope not. I suppose they could have been hiding on the rooftops.)
We recorded Gary Glitter's "C'mon C'mon" and I lost my voice. Wrapped at 8:30pm and went to the studio to rewrite "Good Times". Arnie was in town so we sent him a note which read: "Hello Sexy! We really, really want to in our movie. Cigars free. Kids welcome." We'll have to wait and see.
MEL B: "One day I pretended to be Diana Ross. I felt very glamorous in all my sequins. With my hair done like hers and her music playing in the backround, I felt quite like her. I couldn't walk in the dress, though. I fell over quite a few times, which was quite comical."
KIM FULLER: "I wanted a photosession scene because that's something they do a lot. They came up with the ideas of who they wanted to dress up as, except for the final joke when they dress as each other. I wrote down who would be the biggest contrast to whom, and they went along with it."
TUESDAY, 24 JUNE
LOCATION SMITHFIELD MARKET AND PROTO STUDIOS. CALL TIME 11AM.
Today I was Elvis, the late bloater, and I felt like one in my guady jumpsuit and with sideburns painted on - the works. Mel C was David Bowie in one of his eccentric phases - was it Ziggy Stardust? She was sporting an eye patch and an absolutely awful pair of red, skin tight trousers. She looked like an amazing freak. You've got to hand it to her - she's sporty in name, and nature too. She's made me laugh so much. I was uncontrollable with laughter when we teamed up to do this - Elvis, Bowie and Bob Marley (Mel B). I couldn't keep a straight face. I hope they don't cut it out.
We then all dressed up as each other. I was Mel C and felt fantastic with no platforms on, running around like a little imp. Wicked, although I looked like a street kid of about twelve years old. It was a nice change from propping my boobs up to my chin. But I have to say that Mel C is best at being Mel C!
10pm. We shoot outside Smithfield Meat Market. Big crowd. It feels good, just how you imagine movies are made - stopping traffic, lights, action! The mood is serious and intimate. Still we all have such a laugh with each other. I am labelled "Gumbo of the Day" for cocking my line up. "I wonder whatever did happen to Bob." Bob? That's the name of our director, durrr! "I wonder whatever did happen to Brian." Sorry!!
The press have shots of me as Marilyn, which is a gutter because it was meant to be a surprise. So they WERE hiding on the rooftop.
Finished at midnight.
EMMA: "It was really cool dressing up as each other. I thought Victoria looked great as me - much better than me, in fact! 'Get those socks off, they look better on your legs!' The wig was good as well - I might nick it. I loved playing Mel B. I felt really funky, even though I look a bit bigger than she does. I had really dark make-up on and a dark wig which made my eyes look really blue. It definitely made me act differently - because I was wearing trousers I could dance with my legs apart and be really funky - at least, I thought I was. I think it would drive me mad to be like that all the time, though - shouting and screaming and getting my cleavage out. I'm glad I got to dress up as Mel B because she's so different from me. If I was Geri, it would have been a bi different, but in ways we're quite similar. Sometimes I go for the posh look like Victoria anyway and on my days off I wear trackies and trainers, so being Mel C wouldn't have been such a contrast either. So Mel B was the one I had to be because she looks completely different to me. When they put that wig on me my whole face changed. I tried to get her accent when she says 'Oh no!' and I think I got it quite well. We chose to dress up as the person we least resembled. If you think about it, Victoria is completely different from me - she would never dress in baby dolls and pigtails - so we picked well. This was one of the best days we had on the film."
MEL C: "It was really good fun dressing up all the time. Trying to be Victoria was a bit of a nightmare, though. I thought I was going to break her dainty little shoes, walking along like a rugby player in her little dress. I looked dead butch. It was quite funny behind the scenes because you'd go to say something to Emma, but Emma would be Victoria and it would really freak you out. It was a bit like when we did "Who Do You Think You Are?" with the Sugar Lumps for Comic Relief, when you'd turn round to talk to Victoria and it would be Dawn French!"
VICTORIA: "I know what I like to wwear, which is a bit of a problem when you take on a role. I didn't feel particularly comfortable the day I had to dress up as a Bond Girl and Jackie O, because the clothes were horrible. They were both glamorous parts, but Jackie's skirts were far too long! I liked dressing up in clothes I like - not unflattering sacks. Still, it was really good fun getting into the role for the scene where we dressed up as old bags and each other. It was funny dressing up as Emma in a little pink dress and white shoes and it was interesting seeing Mel C as me - you don't realise what your characteristics really are until someone imitates you. I really like make-up and I learnt quite a lot from Karin, our make-up artist during the film. It was interesting to find out how to use make-up for different scenes and situations.
WEDNESDAY, 25 JUNE
I woke up aching all over. My body was suffering from the shock of yesterday's activity as Sporty. I'm telling you - you have to be sporty to be Sporty Spice!
Today was the club scene at the Ministry of Sound with over 120 extras. They were a sight for sore eyes - drag queens, PVC, muscle men and babes gyrating everywhere. It felt pretty good as we haven't been clubbing for so long. At last, a mad night out. Okay, so it was acting in the movie, but hey, better than sitting in the winnibago.
I must say our acting is steadily improving. It was a tense scene. I believed it, so hopefully, the audience will too. We had to squeeze in two magazine interviews and one O-ZONE interview between takes as well as do a mini photo-shoot, have a meeting with accountants and a quick chat with the Grim Reaper, our solicitor who deals with the press. We got our security guards to be the bouncers on the door, which was pretty hilarious. One of them looks just like Grant Mitchell. One bizarre thing: one of the extras was Shadow (the ex-Gladiator shamed in a media scandal). It was rather odd seeing him there, gyrating in his leather. I thought he would growl any minute.
SATURDAY, 28 JUNE
LOCATION LIVERPOOL STREET, THE CITY. SHOOTING THE ITALIAN SHOW 'BIZARRO' WITH THE DREAM BOYS.
As expected, these tanned tangerine torsos turned up to tantalise. Except they didn't, bless 'em. Nice lads, although I felt a little sorry for them - the innuendoes were non-stop. I suppose it goes with the job. Their manager was Andy Warhol re-incarnated - we have to give him a part in the film. I don't think they realised the gag was on them. The scene was a tribute to tacky Italian TV shows.
Annie Lennox and her kids came down. She is a fine woman and very inspiring.
Luck was on our side after the wettest June - it was raining all week but it didn't rain today and we've finished ahead of schedule! An evening off! Whoopee!
There is a brilliant vibe on the set. There seems to be a real camaraderie amoung everyone - the director, producers, writers, cameramen, actors, extras, runners, costume and make-up. There's a team spirit of fun. I am really enjoying this adventure. I shall be sad when it's over.
SUNDAY, 29 JUNE
Glitter power!!
Started 6pm, which was rather cruel. We couldn't get into Sunday relaxing mode knowing we would be working later.
So Glitter Power took off at 8:30pm - BIZARRO, with the Dream Boys and Gary Glitter! What a showman he is. You have to hand it to the man. He still has that 'joie de vivre'. How does he maintain such effervescence? He says, "It's gotta be from within, man, because everything on the outside tends to droop." Ooh-er! Even when the cameras weren't rolling Gary was still completely switched on, like a true professional. I was dying to ask how old he was - over sixty? I mean, he did those OAP travelcard ads. Emma's mum came down and she's a big Gary Glitter fan. She went all giggly when she met him. C'mon C'mon - quite a buzz tonight.
The crowd of Italian extras were excellent. The Dream Boys had their bottoms on display. I think they had numb bums! One of them had spots on his bot - it's nice to know they're not perfect. My two Spanish friends came down as extras. They were hilarious - like kids in a candy shop around all the hustle, bustle and muscle!
Finished 1:30am.
MONDAY, 30 JUNE
A harem of relaxation is the only way to describe today's set - filled with giggles, word play and raucous banter. In the scene we were discussing the idiocy of the tabloid media, which was ironically appropriate as we'd all received another helping over the weekend. Maggiages? Romances? The press do seem to have a wild imagination, to say the least. But hey, it's only tomorrow's fish and chip paper!
Richard E was neurotically funny, as usual. Michael Barrymore came in later to do some rehearsing. I think he's going to be brilliant as today we couldn't stop laughing. He was hilarious, marching up and down like a Sergeant dandy on acid.
Today's real highlight was receiving a Blue Peter badge. Katy the babe presenter joined in the rumpus and agreed we deserve one. Mel C had to point out, "C'mon, we've had four No. 1s and broken the US - isn't that worth one?" "Oh, all right, then." So that was quite a thrill after all those years of watching toilet rolls and Goldie. We have a real symbol of childhood and it's a pass to get you anywhere.
We brought in our own caterers, as good food is definitely part of the Spice Girls' lifestyle.
TUESDAY, 1 JULY
Who won the war, eh? Spice Girls?
Well, we weren't there, but today was combat training. We were all in combat greens, ready for anything or fit for nothing? One way of the other, we were up for it with the wacky Sergeant-Major Barrymore. It was 'The Krypton Factor' on acid.
Mel B looked like she was Public Enemy No. 1, but she was Scaredy Spice today, with the swing jump. Emma was Private Benjamin and totally going for it. Me, I was looking like a cross between an old natural hippy (make love, not war) and Rambo. After a really cool run-up I fell into the water like a real plank. As for Victoria, she wore a little army green dress and attempted the assault course in high heels - I don't think so. I was dead proud as we chanted our way in our stomping boots. We ended the day with a photoshoot and a good old mud fight. A wicked day. Sing it now: "We're in the army now..." Wahoo!!
MEL C: "One of our in-jokes from the film came from the Michael Barrymore sketch where he keeps saying, "That is correct." We like that one and use it quite a lot now! It's quite funny, because we're always quoting the film these days."
EMMA: "A lot of the scenes are true, although perhaps they're shown in a different way. And some of the film has actually come true since we did it - like the scene where we're all at Spice Camp in a big house, going for dance lessons, which is exactly what we've been doing to prepare for our concerts. Also, one of the women who is helping with our clothes is pregnant and going to have a baby any day now, just like our friend Nicola in the film. After doing the army assault course, I fell in the water and had a mud fight with Mel B. We really mucked around - tipping water over each other and rolled around until our bodies, clothes and hair were caked in mud. Geri joined in, too, and got covered!"
VICTORIA: "I chose everything I wear in the film. There was one thing that I didn't want to wear because I looked absolutely gross in it - a silly, horrible, disgusting unflattering army dress. But I wore it anyway. Apart from that, I liked my movie wardrobe. Geri always knew what she was wearing in advance, but the rest of us didn't. A lot of the time we didn't actually know what we were wearing until we turned up on the day, but that's all part of it."
MEL B: "It was great doing the assault course with Michael Barrymore. We were all in army gear and we had to run along the course and swing across some water. We weren't supposed to end up in the water, but we all eventually did. It was very funny, although I was a bit scared of dislocating my knee like I did at school.
One day we had to jump off a platform and do a foward roll in the air - as if we were falling of a bus. That was quite energetic. You had to say to yourself 'Come on!' and then just do it. Often if you stop and think about what you're doing, it can freak you out a bit."
FRIDAY, 4 JULY
TOP OF THE POPS
We filmed the Walkers Crisps advert at some film studio where we happened to bump into Gary Oldham. He was lovely and down to earth. We met his eight-year-old son, who is a big fan and we asked him to be in the party scene in the film. Fingers crossed - it would be wicked.
We also decided to use our new song, "Too Much", at the opening of the film instead of the Pepsi track. This is a fantastic idea because we wrote it on the set. It's such a sad ballad that it will suprise everyone.
SATURDAY, 5 JULY
Today we filmed the last scene of the film, where we realise the audience is still watching after the credits roll. It was a bright sunny day and most of the cast were there. Everyone was on good form. We met the guy from 'Saturday Night Live' - he plays a writer in the film and seemed pretty good at the parts.
What a difference makes when the sun shines.
SUNDAY, 6 JULY
We were shooting at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital - the most expensive rebuilt hospital in England. It looked rather like a sports centre.
A long day - we started at 10am and didn't finish until 1am - which involved running down corridors chasing the bad guy (Richard O'Brien), an intimate bed scene with a sick patient and banter with the 'Peak Practice' doctor. We stopped by the children's ward to say Hi! Seeing those brave kids smiling through their pain was the most inspiring part of the day.
The last scene was at 12:30am. Okay, a close-up. So I get a hair and make-up touch-up and I'm ready to go. Oh no, it's only a back shot!
MONDAY, 7 JULY
At the Top of the Pops studio - talk about organised chaos. After writing "Too Much" last week when we were in the Docklands, we decided we should have it as the opening song in the movie. This was only decided two days ago, so this morning we're in our winnie working out our choreography. Talk about last minute!!!
But let me tell you, I know a monster when I feel one, and performing this today certainly gave me the shivers - it felt soooo good. We went for the slick white look, so hopefully the classy ballad opening will be a bit of a surprise start to the rollercoaster...our movie!!
MEL C: "I loved the day we did the TOTP scene and sang 'Too Much', one of our new songs. I think that it's my favourite song on the album, actually. It was great - I felt like a proper pop star, looking at the camera and giving it loads."
EMMA: "'Too Much' always reminds me of the months we were making the film. We wrote a lot of the songs on our new album around that time. We were having fun because we were all together and having a laugh and running around doing different scenes. So the vibe was always good when we went into the recording caravan at night to write songs. And the songs just come together when we're vibing and having a laugh."
8-9 JULY
OUT THERE-ALIENS!!
They're here...In a misty forest somewhere on the outskirts of Slough Burnham Beeches, we met another life force.
It was freezing cold. We endured red ants, a wind machine and the bite of evening chill until 4am. I wasn't comfortable in my PVC. This is a really excellent scene. It was nearly left out of the final draft - thank goodness it wasn't. We played that game of would you rather eat a live sparrow or a spider? A poo or a glass of wee?
SATURDAY, 12 JULY
The break-up of the Spice Girls - a tense scene at the Albert Hall where we tell Clifford to get lost and there's bickering between us. It's quite ironic - the mood of the scene was quite similar to our own: angry, tired and defiant.
The honeymoon period is over and we and the crew are getting rather snappy. But hey, it's like a summer romance - fun while it lasts.
MEL B: "When we had our argument scene it was easy, because I just flicked on to that part of me and brought back the feelings of when I was last angry. It really was easy. Maybe that's because my life is one big drama. Us five do argue occasionally. It's only natural when we're together all the time, but it's never anything serious."
EMMA: "We'd known Kim Fuller, the writer of the film, for quite a few years, so he knew what we'd do in certain situations and how we'd react to things. He's a friend, so he knows exactly what we're like and what we say and how we'd argue, so that was cool. We sat down and went through the script and if one of us said, 'No, I wouldn't say that,' he changed it. I think the best scene were the ones when we're all together, chatting or having a row."
SUNDAY, 13 JULY
Albert Hall extravaganza. 4,000 people, a monumental building, a mad film crew, five girls and a crackin' new number. I can hardly beleive it - the vibe was electric. Just another day on set, not quite. Today was the peak of the movie shooting.
After hours in make-up and hair and lots of general neurotic manic activity we arrive on set, only an hour and a half late. The crowd whipped up into a frenzy. We performed 'Spice Up Your Life' five times. It felt pretty good and the crowd were really receptive considering they'd never heard it before. We managed to wing our dance routine to slickness.
There are no words to describe how it felt performing. I guess you have to be there, inside one of us, to feel it. But it's complete emancipation, liberation and freedom. It's gratifying receiving that warm adoration. One could almost bask in that intensive electrifying vibe, just like the sun.
We kept up the compereing between takes with the usual banter, followed by a Mexican wave. We managed to cram in two interviews for the US as well.
Energised, we performed three of our hits as a crowd "thank you".
Mel C nearly got pulled off when we all got mobbed as the stage was invaded by the fans. I quite liked it. It just feels like it's part of a ride that's climbing higher and higher.
MEL B: "I really enjoyed the Albert Hall scene because it was performing and that's what it's all about, really. Forget all about your interviews and meeting and greeting people - at the end of the day people want to see you getting up there and performing the music that they like. That's 100% important to me. It's on stage that your own personality can come out. A prime example is Mel C - she may seem really quiet, but when she gets up on stage she lets it rip. That's what it's all about.
I designed the outfit for that scene myself. It was a cross between Salt-N-Pepa, a bit of a wild cat and me. I wanted that wild look, but with a different feel. So I went for animal print, but with spots instead of stripes. I hadn't been down the dalmatian road up until then. I told the wardrobe lady Eleanor what I wanted, she measured me up and they made it. It was just how I'd envisaged it - and if it hadn't been, I would have sent it back! I chose everything I wore in the film. Well, I wasn't going to wear anything that I didn't like, was I?"
EMMA: "It seems really silly, but every time I sing 'Mama' I cry. We did it at the Albert Hall for the film and I was looking up at my mum and crying, because it was about us. It was quite an emotional moment.
Just before we did this scene we'd been talking about the tour and I was worrying that I might not be fit enough to do it. But that day we were there for six hours doing the dance routines, singing and chatting to the audience without stopping, and I realised that if I could do that, the tour wouldn't be a problem. The adrenaline keeps you going."
MONDAY, 14 JULY
The party scene, in Chiswick. All cooped up in our winnies, squashed inside a large car park. It's the celebrity pary scene, only it's now called just "party" because, although we do have a fair amount of celebs in the movie, they are a bit thin on the ground in this scene. Unfortunately Gary Oldman was too busy, but Jennifer Saunders and Bob Geldof came down and they were both a hoot. Saunders played her "Edina" part with Victoria and Geldof got the Scary Spice treatment.
There was a lot of hanging about. Mel B is sick, so she went home early.
I wore another understated outfit, which was a celebration of the Renaissance and a tribute to Dangerous Liaisons, with a splash of (fake) Westwood. It was a bustier bask with a bustle and boots and a large feather trimming.
Afterwards we all went to the studio and started "Lady Is A Vamp".
MEL B: "I designed the zebra suit that I wear in the party scene - William Hunt made it for me.
TUESDAY, 15 JULY
The second day of shooting at the celeb party in which Emma and I each had our little moments with a guest. Emma's was a rather dashing actor, Jason Isaac, who was playing an intense writer like Irvine Welsh. My scene was with a very cute guy called Craig Kelly. He'd just come from filming The Titanic, so they were both "real" actors!
I nearly got off to a shaky start with Craig. As I walked into wardrobe I thought he was the new assistant and was about to ask him to tie my necklace on when he was introduced as "your handsome man". Oh, right!
The filming went really well. Loads of extras. I didn't do too badly and was handed a card by a rather good-looking man. "My telephone number is on there - ring me. But if you're going to throw it away, don't throw it on the floor!"
"What? Okay, right."
I was then approached by a girl who said, "You don't know this yet, but I'm gonna marry you."
"Okay, fine."
So that was that. A competition winner came down for a hair cut and red mousse. He was very sweet and only fifteen.
WEDNESDAY, 16 JULY
Today we filmed the press conference and the bus run with the police.
We had an early start to run over our lines with Jonathan Woss (who can't pronounce his 'R's) before we did our little verbal spectacle in front of the media. In this scene we are announcing the "Spiceworld Live Performance".
This was a breeze. Jonathan was very charming with his weally weally good wendition of a DJ interviewing us. We spiced him up in our usual manner.
We met his children and his little two-year-old son was gorgeous, wearing a very cute floppy indie haircut. We certainly have met some great kids on this movie - it's unbeleivable how many different characters there have been, which certainly says something about their celebrity parents. And every child has so much influence on their parents - it's the Achilles heel.
Later we did some bus-running scenes where we encountered the old bill. The actor playing the main copper brought his child along. She was a funny little thing - not an obvious beauty but with such a charming sweet soul that she was a real treat to have around. She was even correcting her dad's lines when he got them wrong. She was only eight - very cheeky, yet polite.
While waiting around between shots in a big Shogun Range Rover, the five of us were alone at last, for the first time in ages. We giggled about how funny it would be just to drive off. Well, I was in the driving seat and then I was actually asked to move the car. So I took it a little bit further round the block. What a laugh! It gave us just that little bit of spontaneity. It's quite sad, I know, that such a small thing could give us such a sense of fun (knowing the security risk and panic it caused), but I didn't think about it till afterwards. It just gave us that feeling that we were still that fab fivesome, all in it together, although security gave me a real telling off when we got back. You just don't realise your actions can affect so many people. They could lose their jobs over something like that.
THURSDAY, 17 JULY
DELIVERY DAY!!!
Today we were in the old maternity wing of Queen Mary Hospital. In this scene, our old friend Nicola (played by Naoko Mori, who is fabulous) is having a baby. The tension was mounting. Moki was great - legs spread, puffing and screaming. There was slapping, fainting, tears and laughter all round.
The baby provided was two weeks old and looked like a real bruiser. Only problem was, he had blonde hair. So we had to colour it black to look authentic. The only other problem was that the baby was meant to be a girl and it was a boy! So we kept the giveaway parts well hidden. A very rewarding scene.
Later we visited two little boys who had severe burns - one because he'd been playing with a lighter. It was tragic that such a silly accident could do such a monstrous thing. But in their eyes you could see beautiful brave children who were glad to see us. Puts things into perspective - another reality check.
MONDAY, 21 JULY & TUESDAY, 22 JULY
It's the last two weeks of filming the movie and we're shooting at the Twickenham Film Studios. It's like the comfort part after a real slog, roughing it out on location. Typically, it's now boiling outside just as we come inside.
WEDNESDAY, 23 JULY
Enter the vixens from hell - the silver Spice chicks who kick ass!
KIM FULLER: "With Spice Force Five, I liked the idea that they've all got great skills apart from Victoria, who's just Victoria. Emma doing karate was great, she's great at doing all that. I wanted kids to think, 'Wow, that's little baby Spice doing all that.' It worked against the stereotype."
EMMA: "I did a wicked stunt where I had to beat up three male karate experts, throw one of them over my shoulder and another on over my head. I did it all myself!"
VICTORIA: "The Spice Squad costumes were excellent. I think we all looked just like mad superheroined in them."
THURSDAY, 24 JULY
Today we filmed the scene inside the bus where we get annoyed with Clifford for booking up our day off with a visit from some competition winners.
"What, no day off?"
Great vibe and verbal banter. We were giving each other serious gip!
See you in the morning.
MONDAY, 28 JULY
It's the last week on set - and then it's a wrap. There is an air of anticipation and a little sadness that it's all coming to an end and everyone will go their separate ways. We have established a routine of togetherness - the crew, the stand-ins, make-up, hair, lighting, props etc. And soon the little community will disperse. Eight weeks is a long time to be together day in, day out. But today we marked the occasion with a group photo.
Chris Smith, the Minister of Culture and Arts, came down to the set. Apparently he is the first "out" gay minister. We spiced him up and I said I hoped he wouldn't overspend on the Millennium budget because there are starving people in Africa?! Barry Norman also came down to film for 'Film 97'. He's very funny in his placid manner. We talked about the movie and said that if a film is as good as it feels when you make it, then this will be a great movie.
We filmed the title sequence - a bit of a mix between Tales of the Unexpected and James Bond - silhouettes with long arms and bodies moving.
TUESDAY, 29 JULY
It's really hot and I need and fan. We did a scene today when a little girl is meant to come in screaming. But this little girl merely whimpered. It was hysterical. We're all rather tired.
THURSDAY, 31 JULY
Bus sequence, with falling off the bus stunts. Emma and Mel C had stunt doubles. I did my own stunt and fell through the roof. But then we all had to do roly-polys in mid-air as if we were free-falling through the roof. Everyone did it great except me - I tried too hard and ended up landing on my neck. Ow!
FRIDAY, 1 AUGUST
It's all over! Phew!