PAUL DI'ANNO Documentary Director WES ORSHOSKI: IRON MAIDEN Was 'Super Cool' During Making Of Film

On the latest episode of "The David Ellefson Show", hosted by former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson and David's co-host Joshua Toomey, director Wes Orshoski spoke about his new documentary film "Di'Anno: Iron Maiden's Lost Singer" which chronicles how two IRON MAIDEN fans encounter the band's former singer Paul Di'Anno at the lowest point of his life and then set out to restore his health and relaunch his career. Reflecting on how he managed to capture Di'Anno's first face-to-face meeting with MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris in three decades in May 2022 before MAIDEN's concert in Croatia, Orshoski — co-director and producer of the acclaimed 2010 film "Lemmy" about the MOTÖRHEAD icon — said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): " The funny thing is I filmed it on my phone. I filmed that scene on my phone because I… The day after I signed the contract to make this film in 2017, I called [MAIDEN's longtime manager] Rod Smallwood. I had a phone call with Rod and Dave Shack [managing director of Phantom Music, MAIDEN's artist management company], and they were so nice. Rod was so cool. He said, 'I love the 'Lemmy' film, and I love what you do, but we're not gonna be involved in this.' And so they had told me way back in 2017, five years prior, that they weren't gonna be involved, and so I didn't wanna bring attention to myself. I snuck my camera in. So I snuck in with Paul. I guess if you wanna get into a concert in Croatia, go in with the rock and roll legend in the wheelchair. And so we snuck in. Well, I wasn't the only one, by the way. And I just kind of hung out in the corner behind a few people, and I didn't wanna take my camera out. So when Steve actually came into the room, I just filmed it on my phone, and a couple other people were filming it on their phones. And so that was a big kind of stressful situation for years, whether he would sign off on it. And MAIDEN, in the end, were super cool and allowed me to [use the footage in the film]."

Asked if Steve was the only member of MAIDEN to come and talk to Paul at that time, Wes said: "Yeah, that broke my heart. I was so hoping that… I've only maybe seen one or two interviews ever with [MAIDEN guitarist] Dave Murray. I was, like, 'Oh, man, how cool would it be if Dave walked in, or Adrian [Smith, MAIDEN guitarist], or even Bruce [Dickinson, MAIDEN singer]?' But, no, Steve was the only guy. In that moment, if you guys re-watch it, it's all about that initial moment when they see each other and they smile. Because they haven't hung out in 40 years, so they don't really know each other anymore, but in that moment, there's tenderness. And then they kind of default to that kind of shy British kind of thing."

Referencing the fact that Di'Anno sold the rights to much of the music he wrote with MAIDEN many years ago for a relatively small sum of money, Wes said: "I've often wondered if Paul had never sold those rights, what his situation would've been like. Instead of living in a small three-room apartment in Salisbury, would he have a house and would he have money to kind of, like, afford private health care at the time? Or I think what a lot of people told me through interviewing people for the film is he probably would've burned through all the money he had. That was just kind of his personality, I think. I think if he would've had more money, he would've spent it more, and who knows? I mean, maybe he would've been a casualty at a much younger age. But I think the big problem with Paul, somebody says it in the film, is whereas when [Ronnie James] Dio went solo or when Ozzy [Osbourne] went solo, they had infrastructure. They had good management. They had a great band. And Paul didn't really have any of those things. He made an AOR album out of MAIDEN. Even if he had made a punk album, the first thing he did after MAIDEN, I think that would've been better for him than what he ended up doing."

Wes also talked about the fact that MAIDEN paid tribute to Di'Anno during the band's October 22, 2024 concert at Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. He said:  "MAIDEN was on tour in America, and then they had that day [on October 21, 2024 when Paul died] off. And weirdly enough, it's only recently that I really kind of realized this, the town they play the next day is Saint Paul. That's where they happened to be, and that's where they do this incredible break from what they do every night. They did this moment of silence at a MAIDEN show. I'm so jealous for the people that were there to have experienced that. I wasn't there, no. And the next morning I got a call from Dave Shack in IRON MAIDEN's office, and he's, like, 'We wanna give you this footage' [of MAIDEN's tribute to Paul]. And it's just another example of them being super cool. Even though I would've killed to get interviews with all of those guys, especially Rod, they still did incredible things for me. They allowed me to license the music and video elements, and then they called and gave me this, which I kind of augmented with fan footage so that you could feel what it felt like to be in the rafters in that arena."

"Di'Anno: Iron Maiden's Lost Singer" features appearances by James Hetfield (METALLICA),Gene Simmons (KISS),IRON MAIDEN's Steve Harris and members of EXODUS, SLAYER, MEGADETH, OVERKILL and SEPULTURA.

Metal Hammer describes Orshoski's latest film as a "harrowing insight into Di'Anno's frustration and frailty at a desperately low ebb with an abrasively real, warts-and-all approach to its subject that serves Paul's legacy far more compellingly than some sanitized panegyric", while Metal Talk called it "a raw, dark and intimate documentary detailing the tragic final years of IRON MAIDEN's original singer, Paul Di'Anno."

Wheelchair-bound since the mid-2010s, Di'Anno's health nosedived during the COVID-19 pandemic, when those two fans launched a crowdfunding campaign which ultimately led to him relocating to Croatia, where — through the help of those fans and doctors — he made a dramatic turnaround while running out of money, reuniting with his former MAIDEN bandmates and falling in love. Eventually he makes a heroic and drama-filled return to the stage. All of this is captured in "Di'Anno: Iron Maiden's Lost Singer", which Orshoski began shooting in 2017.

"For years there wasn't much to capture," Orshoski, whose other credits also include "The Damned: Don't You Wish That We Were Dead", said. "Paul was waiting for surgeries that doctors in the U.K. would not greenlight. He was in an incredibly dark place. But once he got to Croatia, fans and doctors gave him the hope he was desperately searching for. It was beautiful to witness. I wanted to make a film that was unlike any rock doc you've ever seen. And in the end, I think we got there."

One of icons of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal scene of the late 1970s and early 1980s, London-born Di'Anno helped launch IRON MAIDEN around the world, appearing on two of the most foundational metal albums ever released: IRON MAIDEN's 1980 self-titled debut and the celebrated follow-up, "Killers", released in 1981. In one of the most epic sagas in metal history, Di'Anno left MAIDEN in 1981 and was replaced by Bruce Dickinson, leaving metal fans around the world to debate which line-up and which singer was/is better. It's a debate that continues to this day, almost 50 years later.

Last October, Orshoski stated about "Di'Anno: Iron Maiden's Lost Singer": "I started shooting this film in 2017 and for years there wasn't much to capture. Paul was in a wheelchair, desperately waiting for surgeries that doctors in the U.K. refused to greenlight. By the time the pandemic hit, Paul's health had nosedived. And that's when everything changed for him and my film. Kastro Pergjoni, who runs the Cart & Horses pub in London (known as 'The Birthplace of IRON MAIDEN') launched a crowd-funding campaign to help Paul take control of his own destiny. MAIDEN fans around the world gave. And Croatian MAIDEN superfan/writer Stjepan Juras lobbied for Paul to seek treatment in Zagreb, where he could be treated affordably. Paul acquiesced. Without question, Kastro and Stjepan not only changed Paul's life, they extended it. My film largely documents their efforts, which were without question responsible for nearly all of the good moments at the end of Paul's life."

In August 2024, Di'Anno discussed the status of the documentary in an interview with George Dionne of KNAC.COM. Paul said: "Wes is a good mate of ours. He'd done the MOTÖRHEAD rockumentary. He'd done THE DAMNED [one] as well. And he's a great guy. We've had this in the pipeline for a couple of years now. The unfortunate part about it is we had to take our time in between when he can come over and do this. But the unfortunate thing is I'm sitting in a fucking wheelchair, which is a pain in the ass, but what are you gonna do?"

Asked by Dionne if the documentary will focus on a particular portion of Di'Anno's life or if it will cover everything from beginning to end, Paul said: "Everything. But you'll see the determination sometimes and the despair. And it goes through the whole lot of emotions and stuff. It's a bit strange."

Di'Anno added: "I trust Wes. He's got me in all sorts of weird situations. He even wanted to come in and fucking film the operation. And they said, 'No.'"

Di'Anno was laid to rest on November 21, 2024 at the City Of London Cemetery And Crematorium in Manor Park, East London, United Kingdom.

Di'Anno, whose real name was Paul Andrews, passed away on October 21, 2024 at his home in Salisbury at the age of 66.

An official statement shared to Di'Anno's Facebook page on November 11, 2024 with permission from the late musician's family revealed that his cause of death was caused by a "tear in the sac around the heart."

"Dear fans and friends," the statement began. "We have received permission from Paul's family to bring you the news of Paul's cause of death, after the results of the autopsy have been received."

It continued, "His sisters Cheryl and Michelle confirmed the following: 'Basically he had a tear in the sac around the heart and blood has filled inside it from the main aorta artery and that has caused the heart to stop.' Paul's death was instantaneous and hopefully painless. May he rest in peace."

Born in Chingford, East London on May 17, 1958, Paul first came to prominence as lead singer of English heavy metal band IRON MAIDEN between 1978 and 1981. He sang on their groundbreaking debut album "Iron Maiden" and the influential follow-up release, "Killers".

Since leaving IRON MAIDEN, Paul Di'Anno had a long and eventful recording career with BATTLEZONE and KILLERS as well as numerous solo releases and guest appearances.

Despite being troubled by severe health issues in recent years that restricted him to performing in a wheelchair, Paul continued to entertain his fans around the world, racking up well over 100 shows since 2023.

His first career retrospective album, "The Book Of The Beast", was released in September 2024 and featured highlights of his recordings since leaving IRON MAIDEN.

In December 2022, Di'Anno spent time in Split, Croatia recording an album with his new project called WARHORSE. The band was formed earlier that year by Di'Anno and two guitarists/authors, Hrvoje Madiraca and Ante "Pupi" Pupačić. The resulting LP was made available in July 2024 under the PAUL DI'ANNO'S WARHORSE banner.

WARHORSE previously recorded three songs, two of which — "Stop The War" and "The Doubt Within" — were released in May 2022 as a special DVD single along with Paul's video message to all fans who bought the single and thus helped raise funds for his knee operation.

The WARHORSE single marked Di'Anno's first music release after a seven-year hiatus due to severe health issues.

Di'Anno, who finally underwent his knee surgery in September 2022, played the first show since the operation on October 1, 2022 at the Keep It True Rising II festival in Würzburg, Germany.

In May 2022, Paul played his first full solo concert in seven years at the Bikers Beer Factory in Zagreb. The show was filmed and parts of it are included in the "Di'Anno: Iron Maiden's Lost Singer" documentary.

Photo credit: Marco Benjamin Alvarado (courtesy of Central Press for Conquest Music)