I'm sad to report that Worzel cinematographer Wolf Suschitzky has passed away at the incredible age of 104. Wolf was incredibly supportive during work on The Worzel Book and I visited him a couple of times at his flat in London's Little Venice, overlooking the water.
An accomplished stills photographer, Wolf had documented his time on Worzel with many beautiful portraits of the cast and crew, several dozen of which are in the book. His black and white pictures captured the show's curious blend of the whimsical and the macabre perfectly and were shot with an artist's eye.
My favourites are a wonderful ambiguous still of Connie Booth caught unawares, shot through a car window, and a picture of Sean Pertwee as a scarecrow, seemingly taken straight from a German Expressionist silent. If you have the book, look them up – they're wonderful.
Worzel was but a small part of a career that included exhibitions right up until this year, documentary films and big budget movies like Get Carter. During my research for the book, Wolf's Worzel colleagues singled him out for his craftmanship, professionalism and generosity of spirit. Known affectionately on set by the nickname 'Su', quite simply, he was adored and respected.
When it came to interviewing Wolf, although his memories were sharp, he was difficult to tease quotes from, with his tendency to modestly downplay his work as part of "a team effort." In later years, his photography was much in demand for syndication, and in truth, our small press budget couldn't have stretched to licensing pictures at the rate his work commanded. He generously agreed to the most nominal of fees, happy for the pictures to be seen and enjoyed.
For his years, Wolf's health and stamina were remarkable. He was spry, if a little stooped, but on one visit stood unassisted and unwavering for 20 minutes straight while deep in conversation. During one of our meetings, I asked what the secret to a long life was. No doubt having been asked this a great many times, he had a well-rehearsed answer:
"Have good genes from your parents, do some physical exercise in younger life, and, most importantly… have a lot of sex."
Wolf Suschitzky. A gentleman, an artist, and a life well lived.
