Sir, - In the feature entitled "The Best of Belfast" (Weekend, April 29th), Michael Walker stated that George Best "was said to have left a private screening embarrassed by the invention and misinterpretation". This is totally inaccurate. George was a consultant on the script of Best from before even one word was written, right through the filming. He was and is totally supportive of the film.
I did arrange for a private running of the final cut of the film for George and his wife Alex last October in London. Quite the contrary to walking out of the running, both George and Alex remained in the screening room for at least half-an-hour afterwards, during which time my husband, John Lynch, and I joined them for a chat. Immediately afterwards we retired to a nearby hotel for a coffee/drink and a chat during which time we established that neither George nor Alex desired any changes whatsoever to the content of the picture as presented.
This is bearing in mind that requests from George regarding the portrayal of certain aspects of his life had already been implemented at script and production stage. They were both afforded full consultation on every draft of the script and formally approved the final shooting draft. The film as we ran it for them last October is now the final cut and they have not viewed it since. - Yours, etc., Mary McGuckian,
Director, Producer, Executive Producer and Co-Writer for Best, Villefranche, France.
George Best Feature Film
Michael Walker writes: I neither stated nor implied that George Best left the private screening early, but I still believe that his view of the film does not concur with Ms McGuckian's.