Sir Tom Courtenay returned to Bradford, where he made two classic films, for a Lifetime Achievement award presented by his footballing hero.
More than five decades after he got his big-screen break from Shipley-born director Tony Richardson, the Bafta-winning actor was honoured at the Bradford International Film Festival.
Sir Tom said that when came to make Billy Liar in 1962, after months of starring in the play, he felt “Billy Liar was in every molecule of my body”.
He revealed that when he saw Julie Christie audition for the role of Liz, who encourages dreamer Billy to leave his northern roots for London, he thought that, despite being “extraordinary to look at”, he “wasn’t convinced she was right for the role”.
“That shows how much I know,” he added.
The 75-year-old actor went on to be nominated for an Oscar for his role in David Lean’s 1965 epic Doctor Zhivago, and said he got Omar Sharif to follow his beloved Hull City. Former Hull City player Ken Wagstaff presented Sir Tom with his award at the National Media Museum on Saturday.
On accepting the award, he said: “Bradford is a city that has played a significant part in my film career. I shot Billy Liar here 50 years ago, and then 20 years later returned to make The Dresser at The Alhambra Theatre.
“I am very grateful to receive this award and thank the Bradford International Film Festival for thinking of me for this great honour.”
Sir Tom’s contribution to cinema has been celebrated by the film festival with screenings of Billy Liar and The Dresser. Nominated for an Oscar for his role as dresser to Albert Finney’s troubled actor, he said that by the time the film was made he had appeared in 500 performances of the play on both sides of the Atlantic.
Sir Tom spoke of his childhood in Hull and his friendship with Albert Finney and John Thaw.
Watching a clip of Billy Liar, Sir Tom said he preferred his work in The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner because Tony Richardson got a “very raw, natural thing out of me”.