Feature: Stargate SG-1

Amanda Hug ’n’ Kiss

Amanda Tapping, major star (well, okay, colonel now, but that didn’t work so well) of Stargate SG-1 talks about clothes and the lack of them and what’s still to come in Season 8

Visits to the Stargate set are always fun, but there’s a lot more hilarity than usual when Cult Times makes its bi-annual pilgrimage to the Bridge Studios in Vancouver, British Columbia. Now, this heightened state of frivolity could be due to the fact that there are less than two weeks to go before the end of the eighth season of Stargate SG-1, or it could be that one of the many episodes they’re shooting this week looks like being the most amusing of the year. However, Amanda Tapping (Sam Carter) has a very serious comment to make. “You can never have too much brown is what I say,” she declares, as she stares down at her brown stockings, tucked into brown sensible shoes. The crew standing around nod sagely before snorting with laughter.

In a break from the norm, the actress has been cloaked from head to foot in what could be described as tweed – without Vivienne Westwood’s panache. Pulling a loosely-fitting brown cardigan further over a beige blouse and brown skirt, she keeps an entirely straight face and shrugs, “I mean, who could go wrong with brown?” You’ll have to wait to see the episode to understand how ‘wrong’ the look is for both Tapping and co-star Michael Shanks (Daniel Jackson), but it’s well worth the wait. In a fantastic double act, Shanks and Tapping get in touch with their inner geek with hilarious results. “Michael and I have had soooo much fun playing this. We’ve laughed our way through it. This is not highbrow. This is pure schmaltzy humour and that is so very wonderful.”

The scene they are working on before our eyes has Carter and Jackson discussing their rather dramatic change in style and demeanour whilst sitting at a table in the SGC canteen. During the break to reset the lights and cameras, Tapping shares a little known Stargate secret. “Not many people know about this, but we’ve discovered that there’s a pineapple grove 28 floors down under Cheyenne Mountain.” Nodding her head at the incredulous expression this announcement receives, she says, “We try to put the pineapples in as many scenes as possible. Will Waring, one of our camera operators and an outstanding director, has a thing about pineapples so we try to sneak one into as many scenes as possible in all sorts of places where they shouldn’t be. You usually see them in the cafeteria scene. It’s something people have to look out for. Every time you see the cafeteria, there will be a pineapple. Every time there’s a fruit basket, whether it’s in season or not, there will be a pineapple. They can’t be tinned, they have to be natural and fresh and that’s a homage to Will Waring whom we love very much. So look out for them in this episode.”

by Thomasina Gibson

Get the full interview in
Cult Times #111

Photo © Sci-Fi Channel
Feature © Visual Imagination 2004. Not for reproduction

Taken from

Cult Times #111
December 2004
ships from Nov 18 2004
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