September 2023

56
Wanstead Village Directory
Good evening
Ahead of an evening talk about Sir Alfred Hitchcock for the Wanstead
Historical Society this month, Gary Lewis reflects on his journey to
becoming a tour guide and speaker centred around the iconic director
Good evening (as Leytonstone’s
favourite son himself would say).
My name is Gary Lewis. I’m a local
historian, public speaker and tour guide on
the subject of the late, great film director,
Sir Alfred Hitchcock.
Hitchcock was born on 13 August 1899
in Leytonstone. Known as the Master of
Suspense, he directed over 50 feature films
before receiving an American Film Institute
Life Achievement Award. He made his
directorial debut with the silent film The
Pleasure Garden in 1925. His first successful
film, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog
(1927), helped to shape the thriller genre, while
his 1929 film Blackmail was the first British
‘talkie’. He died in California on 29 April 1980.
I’ve been a resident of Leytonstone for over 40
years, but my fascination with Hitchcock really
began when I was a teenager in the late 1970s.
One Sunday night, I stayed up late to watch
Psycho on TV. I remember jumping out of my
chair at the shower scene and the screeching
violins have stayed with me to this day. After
that, I was hooked. Fast forward to October
2015, I was forced to take early retirement from
London Underground as a Tube driver due to
ill health. For the next year, I wondered where
to turn for my next career move. Inspiration
struck in September 2016 when I joined the
Alfred Hitchcock of Leytonstone Society.
At a meeting of the society in early 2018, I
proposed presenting a slide show on the
early life of Hitchcock, entitled ‘Hitchcock’s
Leytonstone’. They enthusiastically agreed,
and in May 2018, I gave my first talk at The
Birds pub. Three more talks followed and soon
I was hired by local groups, keen to hear about
Hitchcock’s roots. On 4 September 2019, I gave
my biggest talk yet to over 100 people for the
Leyton and Leytonstone Historical Society.
Sir Alfred Hitchcock
Having developed my illustrated talk on the
early life of Alfred Hitchcock, the next logical
step was to start a guided tour entitled
‘Walking in the Footsteps of Hitchcock’. On
29 September 2019, as part of Leytonstone
Loves Film, I guided 60 people from all over
the world – including six from Mexico – on my
first 90-minute tour.
Sadly, on 11 November 2019, I parted company
with the Alfred Hitchcock of Leytonstone
Society. I felt it was time to move on and I
saw this as a golden opportunity to start
my own business. On 12 January 2020, the
dream became a reality and Hitchcock
Talks and Tours was born. The pandemic
followed shortly after, but I kept going when
lockdown allowed. Now, my talks and tours
are generating interest not only from local
residents and local clubs but from all over the
globe. I look forward to bringing Hitchcock’s
Leytonstone to the world!
Gary’s presentation will take place at
Wanstead Library on 4 September from
8pm (visitors: £3). Call 07949 026 212
For more information on Gary’s talks and
tours, visit wnstd.com/hitchcock
To advertise, call 020 8819 6645 or visit wnstd.com