It must have been a shock, two years ago, because Visitors of The Efteling were faced with a bizarre tombstone, which was placed nearby the haunted house.

The name of a legendary singer was carved into the stone, a singer who is very much alive, and besides an amusement park isn’t exactually a place for a tombstone. Did someone pull a bad joke here?

For the answer, we need  to go back in time, 25 years ago. Kate Bush, still a young girl, and just finished her first record. She’s  just 19 years old, but she’s got a great voice! Her record company came up with the idea for a video. Her first single does sound a bit spooky, so why not make a video at The Efeling, who were just celebrating the opening of the new haunted castle. A great idea, and so it happened.

And there she is, next to Styrofoam tombstones, skeletons made of plastic, and fake ghosts. Despite all that, the director isn’t happy at all… ” there is something missing “ something that gives it an extra touch. He chats with the designers of the haunted castle, and after a few hours they  come up with something special, a  real tombstone with Kate her name on it ! Kate doesn’t really like it at first sight, your own tombstone while you’re still alive…But for the sake of the music special, she agreed with it. Later one,  it doesn’t seem to bother  her anymore…….

After all the filming was done, the tombstone was stored, and never seen again. Until last year, it showed up again, and everybody was wondering what it was all about….

Kate’s  brother Paddy was with her during the shoot of the Efteling special. From the first single, Paddy has been a wonderful photographer, and makes great promotional  Photographs  For Kate. The photo’s that Paddy made at The Efteling, were later used to create a set of 2 posters, which were only available through Kate’s fan club. 3 photo’s from The man with the child in his eyes performance were used for a poster, called : Lakeside. ( see photo )A few shots from  the Moving performance were used for a poster called : Kate Bush - Lakeside.

Occasionally they show up for sale at E-bay.

The special in Efteling was a promotion for Bush's debut LP and the opening of the Spookslot, the theme park's new crowd puller at the time. When the special was broadcast, it was also the young singer's first Dutch television appearance.
Long, hard days "These were very rough days", lighting designer Bert Klos recalls the recordings of the twenty-minute special. "There were so many different locations and I wanted to support Bush's performance as best as possible with light." The Efteling was not unfamiliar territory for Klos, as the now retired lighting designer had contributed to the lighting plan in the Spookslot himself.
Henk Gulikers, who took care of the camera work, also remembers the long working days: “We only slept around three in the morning and at half past six in the morning we were again at the breakfast table with Kate and a cup of tea. That was in Hotel De Swaen in Oisterwijk.” [YouTube:body:http://youtu.be/nRgiOclY-H4]
“A short, short British with a thin voice”, lighting designer Klos recalls Kate Bush. “But really a professional pur sang. That woman was unbreakable, she just kept going. Then we wanted to sit down for a while, and she would shout again: 'come on guys!' I can even remember that a sound engineer tripped over his feet from sleep around one o'clock in the morning!"
Perfection Gulikers had also noticed that professionalism. “For one song she had to stand on a high pole. That was in the Spookslot and therefore very difficult to illuminate. I told her she could get off that pole for a while until we were done with the lights, but she wanted to stay there until we got the light perfect. I have rarely seen artists so closely involved in the result. She stood on that pole for an hour," laughs Gulikers.
The images in the Spookslot in particular were very difficult for the team to make. It was difficult to get rid of all the technique of the attraction and with the cheaper film material everything had to be on it in one go. Gulikers: “Looking back now, it's striking how slow the shot changes are. It was really only the woman, it was all about her. No intermediate shots with dancers or anything like that. It is beautiful to see for that time.”
Bush thanked cameraman Gulikers in a special way after the shooting: “I got an LP from her, on which she wrote: 'For dear henk, the one who is very much alive behind the dead camera'. I thought that was very nice.

Kate op het dak van het spookslot  !

moving
The special begins with a specially made tombstone covered in leaves. The wind blows away the leaves to reveal the name "Kate Bush". Kate then comes into the picture, the first time that the Dutch public is introduced to her singing and dancing. The song 'Moving' was recorded for the Spookslot. Some aerial shots were made with a crane.

Wuthering Heights
Kate Bush's most famous song, the hit from 1978, was included in the main show of the Spookslot, where visitors cannot come. Kate emerges from the sarcophagus wearing a long white dress. Walking and dancing she moves through the main show. There is a smoke machine for extra effect. Kate dances in front of the monks' gallery, in the catacombs and between the tombstones.

Them Heavy People
The song starts in the preshow of the Spookslot. We see Kate in the crystal ball of the Eastern Spirit, on the square in front of the Indian Water Lilies, and between the judges in the attic window in the main show of the Spookslot.

The Man With the Child in His Eyes
This song was recorded at the Rowing and Canoeing Pond, where Kate sits among the swans. For added effect, a soft focus circle is added in some shots.

Strange Phenomena
Once again Kate can be seen in the crystal ball of the Eastern Spirit, but the camera zooms out to reveal the complete figure. In the other shots of this clip, we see Kate in the dark hallway of the Haunted Castle, where she is next to her reflection. She wears a red glittering wizard costume with a black hat and she takes a string of colored handkerchiefs from her sleeve. We see her dancing further in front of the Eastern Spirit and further down the dark hall (with an empty alcove with blue light in the background, where originally the moving skulls are).

The Kick Inside
Kate is in a rowboat that serves as a coffin. Her hair is painted gray and she is wearing a black dress with a veil. She is surrounded by red and white flowers. At the end of the song she pulls her veil over her face and the boat floats further up the pond. This ends the special.

De mensen die de Efteling muziek special hebben gemaakt zijn:

Graphics: Godske Holck Bruun
Film camera: Henk Gulikers
Lighting: Eli Huitema, Bert Klos
Sound: Piet Monnereau
Make up: Ab Gorter
Film Editing: Hans van Dongen
Video Editing: Evert Elbertse
Production and Assistant Director: Marianne Manders
Production and Director: Rien van Wijk