BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF ANTHONY HEAD

Anthony was keen on the concept of Buffy from the start, and recalls his first read through: "I was sitting in the Border Grill in Santa Monica, on my own. I was reading the script and laughed out loud, and sort of suddenly found myself having to stop because people were looking at me! As I was reading it, I couldn't wait to turn the page and find out what happened next. I thought, 'This is an extraordinary combination. I'm no judge of what is going to be a success on TV but this has to be a success. It's so different. There's nothing like it on TV."

When asked how Anthony 'saw' Giles, at the beginning of the series, he said, "The way I always envisaged it was that all he knows is what he has been trained to do. He knows books, but he's had little or no practical experience. When I was researching it, I went to an American High School for a while. I got a vibe for the library, then I went upstairs and sat in their lunch area. It was such a cultural shock that it was the best part of the whole experience, because I felt so ill at ease and so alien in this little world. It was like nothing I'd ever known. That was it basically. Giles was completely out of place."

Anthony has taken the character a long way since the first season. The boundaries of the character were pushed open and it was revealed that he was a rebel in his teenage years. "I was glad Joss gave him that," says Anthony, "it's fun to actually play somebody who has secrets."

At the end of season four, after a period of time as a man of leisure, 'Giles' place of work became the Magic Box set. Anthony told David Richardson of Cult Times magazine, in issue # 81 June 2002, "the Magic Box was definitely designed with all the needs in mind - different areas, lots of colours, different ways to make interesting pictures. There was a common sigh of relief when they did build The Magic Box."

Many people feel that the musical episode, 'Once More with Feeling', that aired in season six, was one of the best episodes ever. A CD of the soundtrack was released on September 24th, 2002. "There are things that we recorded that didn't end up in the episode. Lots of little bits and pieces that you don't hear on the finished article," he told David.

Anthony singing in a scene from "Once More With Feeling"

A. When Tim Minear was still on the show, he said "Now, this year, I definitely think we could get Giles in there, because Wesley has found his niche and has pretty much settled into it, and it would be great to then throw Giles back into it to stir Wesley up. Now Tim's gone to another show, Wonderfalls, and David Fury is there, I don't know what the feeling would be. I know that James (Marsters) is now a regular, but I don't know what they've got in mind. I will talk to them shortly to see if they've got any plans in place already for September, so if it happens, it happens. I'd love to do it."

Thanks to the Official Buffy Magazine Yearbook 2003 for permission to display the above quotes.

Pictures © 20th Century Fox Film Corporation.

* Thanks to David Richardson, of Cult Times magazine, for quotes from his interview with Anthony. Don't forget to visit the Cult Times website.

BUFFY ON DVD

'COMPLETE BUFFY COLLECTOR'S EDITION BOX SET (Series 1-7) DVD UK   'COMPLETE BUFFY COLLECTOR'S EDITION BOX SET (Series 1-7) DVD USA The 'Complete Buffy Collector's Edition Box Set (Series 1-7)' is available to order from Amazon and various online outlets worldwide.

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