Cardiff Council deputy leader Neil McEvoy has made a cameo appearance in a new film that charts the inspiring life of Welsh boxing legend Howard Winstone.
Cllr McEvoy, who is a fluent Spanish-speaker, plays a Mexican journalist who interviews Winstone’s big rival Vicente Saldivar in Spanish in the ring following one of their world title bouts in the 1960s.
The film, Risen, is directed by Neil Jones and features Lord of the Rings actor John Noble as Winstone’s coach and former champion welterweight Eddie Thomas; Brian Blessed, Shane Richie and boxers past and present Robin Reid, Leon Spinks and Erik Morales who plays Saldivar.
Risen was filmed in Winstone’s hometown of Merthyr Tydfil and Cardiff. The world premiere will take place on Thursday July 29 at Cardiff International Area during the WBC Night of Champions international boxing festival in the capital next month.
Cllr McEvoy, said: “The premiere of Risen will be a major event for Cardiff. I am told that ticket sales are going well and we could have the most attended UK film premiere ever. It would be great for Cardiff to set this record with a film about a Welsh hero.
“For sport and boxing fans, the film premiere will be a must as the number of boxing champions present will be huge. How often will anyone have the opportunity to rub shoulders with the Marvin Haglers of this world?
“Being able to play a small cameo role in the film was great fun. Meeting somebody like Erik Morales, a boxing legend, was a fantastic experience. Playing a Mexican journalist has given most of my friends a good laugh also.
“To be serious though, this film will give worldwide exposure to Wales and Cardiff. Importantly, the legacy from this project will be to better the life chances of kids at risk. Ideally, we need a successful Night of Champions event, to give us the opportunity to host it again.”
Risen director, Neil Jones, said: “Risen has been an amazingly satisfying project for me. Being from Merthyr Tydfil and being a boxing fan, making a film about Howard Winstone is a dream come true. With more world champions involved than any other film, Risen will have an element of realism which has been lacking in previous boxing films.
“Everyone involved in the film is so proud that the premiere will be held at the prestigious WBC Night of Champions event in Cardiff where we will hope to break the Lord of the Rings record for attendance for a premiere. With the support of the WBC and Cardiff Council we are confident of doing this.”
The WBC Night of Champions international boxing festival will be attended by some of the greatest boxing champions of all time. Stars like Roberto Duran, Leon Spinks, Erik Morales, Colin Jones, Ricky Hatton, David Haye and Vitali Klitschko will be in Cardiff for the three-day festival (July 29 -31).
The festival opens with the Risen premiere before, hot on the heels of Britain’s most successful European Championships ever and as part of their preparation for the London 2012 Games, Great Britain’s Olympic medal contenders will fight a Rest of the World team at the CIA on July 30.
The festival culminates on Saturday July 30 with the Night of Champions which is the boxing equivalent of the Oscars, with awards being made to a variety of champions, ordinary people who commit themselves to supporting young boxers and community projects using boxing as a way of re-focusing young offenders or giving disadvantaged young people new opportunities.
For more information about the festival, visit www.wbcnightofchampions.com or to book tickets, 029 2023 4567.
