Aimee Lou Wood

Seize Them! (2024)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Jessica Hynes, Nicola Coughlan, Lolly Adefope and Nick Frost stand in front of a red background. Between them, in a wooden throne, is sitting Aimee Lou Wood as Queen Dagan. Either side of the throne is a medieval cannon and a wolf. Wood is wearing a red dress and golden crown. Hynes is wearing a blue tunic and holding a sword, Coughlan is wearing a lighter blue tunic with a decorated leather vest and holding a cannonball, Adefope is wearing a paisley printed blue dress and Frost is wearing a dirty brown tunic and holding a large wooden shovel.

Seize Them! (2024) © Entertainment Film

Director: Curtis Vowell
Writer: Andy Riley
Starring: Aimee Lou Wood, Nicola Coughlan, Lolly Adefope, Nick Frost, Jessica Hynes
Production Company: Entertainment Film Distributors
Kent Locations Used: Allington Castle

Seize Them! (2024) is a female-led comedy set in the Dark Ages. It follows Queen Dagan, who, after her reign is toppled by the revolutionary Humble Joan. Left a fugitive in the land she once ruled, Queen Dagan must embark on a dangerous voyage to win back her throne.

Written by Andy Riley (Year of the Rabbit (2019), Big Bad World (2013)) and directed by Curtis Vowell (Baby Done, Fantail), Seize Them! stars Aimee Lou Wood (Sex Education (2021), Living (2022)) as Queen Dagan, Nicola Coughlan (Bridgerton (2020), Harlots (2017)) as Humble Joan and Lolly Adefope (This Time with Alan Partridge (2021), Ghosts) as Shulmay, with Nick Frost (The Boat That Rocked (2009), The Nevers (2021)) and Jessica Hynes (The Fight (2019), Seagull (2019)) in supporting roles.

Filming took place at Allington Castle in Maidstone.

Allington Castle is a privately-owned 13th Century Castle situated on the River Medway. Once opening its doors to King Henry VIII, the Castle now plays host to film and TV crews, with productions such as The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood (1984), the 14th-century ABC drama Covington Cross (1992), and Series 2 of the American soap opera The Royals (2016), all making use of the Castle’s picturesque location.

Seize Them! (2024) will be released in UK Cinemas on Friday 5th April 2024.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

Living (2022)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Bill Nighy, as Williams, stands in front of a large, grey, historic courthouse building. He is wearing a black pinstripe suit, polka dot tie, and black bowler hat. He carries an umbrella in his hand and is looking at a watch on his wrist.

Bill Nighy in Living (2022) © Ross Ferguson

Director: Oliver Hermanus
Starring: Bill Nighy, Aimee Lou Wood, Alex Sharp
Production Company: County Hall, Film4, Filmgate Films, Ingenious, Kurosawa Production Co., Lipsync Productions, Number 9 Films
Kent Locations Used: The Historic Dockyard Chatham, King’s Theatre – Chatham

Living (2022) is an English-language adaptation of Akira Kurosawa’s classic film Ikiru by Kazuo Ishiguro, set in 1950s London.

Directed by Oliver Hermanus (Moffie, Beauty), Living stars Bill Nighy (The Boat that Rocked (2009), Pokémon: Detective Pikachu (2019)) as Williams, Aimee Lou Wood (Sex Education (2021), The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2022)) as Margaret Harris and Alex Sharp (The Trial of the Chicago 7, The Hustle) as Peter Wakeling.

In June and July 2021, production visited The Historic Dockyard Chatham to film various scenes. The exterior of the Lead and Paint Mill doubles as the bomb site which Williams later transforms into a playground, the Ropery alley doubles for the streets of London, and the Commissioner’s House Gardens doubles for St James’s Park in London.

A historic 17th-Century dockyard spanning over 80 acres, Chatham Dockyard contains over 100 buildings dating from the Georgian and Victorian Periods. It is the most popular filming location in Kent, having played host to many high-profile films and TV shows. Most recently, Operation Mincemeat (2022), The Nevers (2021) and The Phantom of the Open (2022) shot various scenes on the site.

A group of people sit in an old-fashioned cinema.

Behind the scenes at King’s Theatre, Chatham. Alex Sharp, Bill Nighy and Aimee Lou Wood with Spotlites staff © Spotlites

Filming also took place at King’s Theatre in Chatham, where Bill Nighy and Aimee Lou Wood’s characters watch a film at the cinema. Chatham is a historic town situated in Medway, North Kent and is known for its historic dockyard, army barracks and high street. The Last Rite (2021) also filmed a short scene in Chatham town.

Living was released in UK cinemas on Friday 4th November 2022.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2022)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Benedict Cumberbatch, as Louis Wain, stands on a pebble beach, wearing sunglasses and looking off into the distance with a row of colourful houses in the distance. Cumberbatch, dressed in white trousers, navy blazer and blue and white striped t-shirt stands to the left with three women sitting on wooden stools with wooden easels in front of them to the right of the frame.

Benedict Cumberbatch, Stacy Martin, Sharon Rooney and Aimee Lou Wood in The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2022) on Walmer Beach, Deal © StudioCanal

Writer: Will Sharpe, Simon Stephenson
Director: Will Sharpe
Starring: Benedict Cumberbatch, Claire Foy, Andrea Riseborough, Aimee Lou Wood, Toby Jones
Production Company: Amazon Studios, Film4, Shoebox Films, StudioCanal, SunnyMarch
Kent Locations Used: Botany Bay, Kingsgate Bay, Deal, Walmer, Kingsdown Leas

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2022) is a biopic of the English painter who rose to fame at the end of the 19th century. Known for his unique paintings of anthropomorphised cats, Wain suffered from poor mental health in his later years and was hospitalised when his family could no longer care for him.

Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange, Sherlock) stars as the titular character Louis Wain, with Claire Foy (The Crown (2016 – 2023), A Very British Scandal (2021)) portraying the love of his life, Emily. The film also features Andrea Riseborough (Luxor, The Grudge), Aimee Lou Wood (Sex Education (2021)), Toby Jones (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Christopher Robin) and Sharon Rooney (My Mad Fat Diary, The Tunnel: Vengeance (2017)). The film was written and directed by Will Sharpe (Defending the Guilty, Flowers) alongside writer Simon Stephenson (Eleventh Hour, Paddington 2).

Various scenes were shot on the Kent coast, including at Botany Bay and Kingsgate Bay in Thanet, Kingsdown Leas, Deal seafront and the Coast House B&B in Walmer, Deal.

Botany Bay in Thanet is a popular filming location in Kent. The sandy bay is set against a beautiful white cliff backdrop which is popular with tourists. Previous productions to have made use of this stunning location include Sulphur and White (2020) and Series 2 of Humans (2016).

Kingsgate Bay is a small sandy bay surrounded by chalk cliffs that connects at low tide through Whiteness cliff arch to Botany Bay. The Victorian Kingsgate Castle is perched on top of the sea defences; it has since been turned into private residences. Other productions to have filmed at Kingsgate Bay include True Things (2022), Mr Selfridge (2013-2016), and Bhikari (2017).

Deal is a town on the south coast of Kent with a long naval history as one of the major Cinque Ports. Deal’s seafront has a large green, promenade, small fishing fleet, huts, sailing boats, lifeboat station as well as an extensive pebble beach. Liar Series 1 & 2 (2017 – 2020) and Baptiste (2019) both recently filmed here.

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain was released in UK cinemas on Saturday 1st January 2022.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.