Watch out... Gripper is back!

4:10pm Saturday 14th April 2007

A PLAYGROUND villain of yesteryear has returned to the big screen to act in a film made by students in York.

Mark Savage, who is known to a generation as the terrifying school bully Norman "Gripper" Stebson in BBC's Grange Hill, has starred in a short film made by students at York St John University.

The ten-minute movie, called Oranges And Lemons follows the relationship between a mother and child in a world where "designer babies" are a reality.

It was written and directed by Robyn Henderson, 20, a third-year student, as part of her graduate project.

She said she put an appeal on an acting website and Mark got in touch, saying he was keen to be involved in the project.

He said: "He said he wanted to do it because it was just such a good script. He was absolutely fantastic.

"He wanted to play the role of the doctor in it and he knew everything about how he wanted to play the character. He has definitely put more confidence into student films."

One of Mark's co-stars was 12-year-old Grace Boyd, from King James's School, in Knaresborough.

The film will have a private viewing for regional production companies at City Screen, in Coney Street, York, on May 24. Robyn said she also wanted to take the film to a number of film festivals.