kent

Red Dwarf, Gunmen of the Apocalypse (1993)

Posted on by Kent Film Office

 

DVD poster for Red Dwarf - Gunman of the Apocalypse (1993)- red background with 2 characters in the top left and 2 bottom right. Red Dwarf written in silver

DVD poster for Red Dwarf – Gunman of the Apocalypse (1993) ©IMDb

 

Writer: Rob Grant, Doug Naylor

Director: Andy De Emmony

Starring: Chris Barrie, Craig Charles, Danny John-Jules, Robert Llewellyn

Production Company: Grant Naylor

Kent Locations Used: Filmed in Laredo Wild West Town, Longfield, Kent

In Gunmen of the Apocalypse (Season 6, Ep 3), cult Sci-fi TV Series Red Dwarf visited Kent.  The crew of Starbug intercept a battleship carrying murderous cyborgs called “Simulants” which infect the Starbug with a virus. Kryten (Robert Llewellyn) deliberately infects himself with the virus to find an antidote. Rimmer (Chris Barrie), Lister (Craig Charles) and Cat (Danny John-Jules), end up in the computer simulation of a Wild West town, facing four outlaws, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, whom they must defeat.

The episode stars Chris Barrie (Lara Croft: Tomb Raider), Craig Charles (Coronation Street), Danny John-Jules (Blade II, Death in Paradise), and Robert Llewellyn (Mirrormask) star.

The computer simulation was filmed in Laredo Wild West Town, in North Kent, claiming the only Wild West barn location not in the United States. It has previously been used in the feature film about J.M. Barrie – Finding Neverland (2004)

Red Dwarf Gunmen of the Apocalypse was first shown on television in 1993.

 

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

The Mirror Crack’d (1980)

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Angela Lansbury, Rock Hudson and Edward Fox stood having a conversation in front of a window with beige curtains

Angela Lansbury, Rock Hudson and Edward Fox © Columbia-Warner Distributors

Starring: Angela Lansbury, Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, Tony Curtis, Geraldine Chaplin, Edward Fox and Kim Novak

Production Company: G.W. Films, EMI Films

Kent Locations used: St Clere Estate, Smarden, Shoreham

The Mirror Crack’d is a detective drama based on an Agatha Christie novel of the same name. In this instalment of the Miss Marple Franchise, a visiting Hollywood production has come to the town of St Mary Mead. The story focuses on the life of Marina Rudd (Elizabeth Taylor), a veteran actress competing for the spotlight with a younger actress, Lola (Kim Novak), in an upcoming production. When a local resident is poisoned at a grand reception, it is thought that Marina herself was the intended victim.

Angela Lansbury (Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Murder She Wrote, Beauty and the Beast) stars as Miss Jane Marple alongside Elizabeth Taylor (Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Cleopatra), Tony Curtis (Some Like it Hot), Rock Hudson (Dynasty, McMilan & Wife, Pillow Talk), Geraldine Chaplin (Remember my Name, Doctor Zhivago) Edward Fox (Gandi, Never Say Never Again) and Kim Novak (The Great Bank Robbery, Falcon Crest).

St Clere Estate, Heaverham in the Sevenoaks District of Kent is a private, family run country estate that today prides itself on being an ideal location for filming and photography, due to its period architecture and beautiful grounds. In this episode, it was perfect of the setting for Gossington Hall, the grand home of the Rudds.

 Ye Olde George Inn and a Bridge on Church Street in Shoreham are both noticeable in the production, doubling as part of the village of St Mary Mead. Shoreham is a picturesque village near Sevenoaks, famous for its traditional pubs and annual May Day duck race.

The village of Smarden and St Michaels Church are also used to double as the village of St Mary Mead. The Thatched House in Smarden was used as Miss Marple’s cottage. Smarden is located in the Ashford district of Kent, and the traditional thatched houses and village shops made it a perfect filming location.

The Mirror Crack’d was first released in February 1980 and is now available to buy on DVD.

 

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

The Medusa Touch (1978)

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The Medusa Touch Movie Poster- image of a man's face in black and white facing the camera. Telekinesis written in white with The Medusa Touch written in purple

The Medusa Touch Movie Poster © Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS)

Directed By: Jack Gold

Written By: Peter Van Greenaway (novel), John Briley (screenplay)

Starring: Richard Burton, Lee Remick and Lino Ventura

Production Company: Coatesgold, Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Kent Filming Locations Used: Herne Bay & Reculver

The Medusa Touch is the chilling tale of a man with a gift for disaster. Richard Burton (Cleopatra, Where Eagles Dare) is John Morlar, a man with astonishing powers of telekinesis. When French detective Brunel (Lino Ventura-Army of Shadows) is tasked with investigating John Morlar’s murder whilst on assignment with Scotland Yard, he discovers that the victim is not as dead as he first appears. Working with Morlar’s psychiatrist Doctor Zonfeld (Lee Remick- The Omen), the detective reconstructs Morlar’s mysterious life.

It is in the childhood memories of John Morlar that Kent makes its debut. The “Welcome Hotel”, where Morlar and his parents spend their holidays, stands in the coastal town of Herne Bay. Although the Hotel may have been fictional, the building remains the same. Spanning numbers 37-40 Central Parade in Herne Bay, the building is now a row of residential properties next to the Royal British Legion Headquarters.

On their holiday the family also visit the nearby Reculver Towers for a seaside picnic. It is in this scene that Morlar first makes use of his powerful telekinetic abilities.

Although the film was released in 1978, the Reculver Towers have stayed unchanged and are. a distinctive landmark on the Kent Coast They are the  remains of a 12th Century church that once stood there among the ruins of a Roman Saxon Shore fort and a Saxon monastery,  and part of  Reculver Country Park which is a Special Protection area due to its rare cliff top meadows and the yearly migrating birds.

The nearby coastal town of Herne Bay offers two miles of seafront lined with café’s, amusement arcades and fish and chip shops,  all overlooked by  stunning examples of Victorian Architecture. In true spirit of an English seaside town, brightly coloured huts line the beach and the location is popular with tourists every summer. The town is home to several antique shops and hosts one of Kent’s biggest markets every Saturday. Productions that have filmed in the area include  Got To Dance (2012), Things I Haven’t Told You (2008) and French Dressing (1964).

The Medusa Touch is now available to buy on DVD.

 

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

Doctor Who: The Claws of Axos (1971)

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Doctor Who (Jon Pertwee) and Jo Grant (Katy Manning) holding hands running across a muddy floor.

Doctor Who (Jon Pertwee) and Jo Grant (Katy Manning) © BBC

Director: Michael Ferguson
Starring: Jon Pertwee, Nicholas Courtney, Roger Delgado, John Levene, Bernard Holley, Katy Manning
Production Company: BBC
Kent Locations Used: Dungeness

The Claws of Axos (1971) is a four-part serial from popular sci-fi show Doctor Who starring Jon Pertwee. The Doctor investigates claims by Axons, who are the occupants of a mysterious object that has landed on Earth, to have a miracle substance that would end world famine. When he discovers an old enemy is involved, The Doctor becomes suspicious and must work with the UNIT team to drive the Axons from Earth. 

Jon Pertwee (Worzel Gummidge, Jackanory) stars as the third Doctor alongside Nicholas Courtney (Then Churchill Said to Me, Incendiary), Roger Delgado (The Battle of the River Plate, The Road to Hong Kong), John Levene (Permission to Kill, CanniBallistic!), Bernard Holley (Travels with My Aunt, Z Cars) and Katy Manning (Oakie’s Outback Adventures, When Darkness Falls). 

The production visited Dungeness to film the scenes where the Axon ship lands and The Doctor and UNIT team go to investigate. Dungeness Power Station doubled as the “Nuton power complex” in the third and fourth episodes of The Claws of Axos.

Dungeness is in the Shepway district of Kent and has a beautiful shingle beach with a mixture of old and modern homes, two lighthouses, a historic railway station and a Power Station. Dungeness is a popular film location and has been used for productions such as The Poison Tree (2012) and The Inspector Lynley Mysteries (2006).

Doctor Who – The Claws of Axos (1971) first aired on BBC1 from Saturday 13th March to Saturday 3rd April 1971 and is now available to buy on DVD. 

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

Magical Mystery Tour – The Beatles In Kent

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The four Beatles standing in front of a tree, next to their piano in a large field in Knole Park, Sevenoaks

The Beatles Strawberry Fields ForeverForever © The Beatles

Kent Locations: Knole Park, Sevenoaks, West Malling Airfield now Kings Hill.

Legendary English band ‘The Beatles’ who were formed in 1960, became world favourites with their huge catalogue of catchy rock and pop songs. The band, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr filmed several music videos in Kent in 1967 including Strawberry Fields Forever, Penny Lane and I Am The Walrus. They also starred in 52-minute British television film named Magical Mystery Tour in 1967 which documented the band tour in a themed bus with their fans. For the film they arrived in West Malling where they filmed various interior and exterior shots at the old airfield, including the Mystery Marathon. The film was released on 26 December 1967 and is available to buy on DVD.

The Strawberry Fields Forever video filmed at Knole, where the band members walk across the park and climb on and off a tree which is attached to their piano.

The video for Penny Lane includes the band riding their horses through an archway at Knole Park and down towards the ponds. The group then dismount and sit at a picnic table where they are served with their instruments by liveried footmen.

The I Am The Walrus video was entirely filmed at West Malling Airfield, now Kings Hill, where the band perform the song on the airfield as part of their Magical Mystery Tour film.

Historic house Knole is set in a medieval deer-park in Sevenoaks. The National Trust location is over 500 years old and was once the palace of archbishops and royal property of the Tudor dynasty. Knole has previously featured in productions such as Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows (2011), Pirates of the Caribbean On Stranger Tides (2011) and The Other Boleyn Girl (2008).

Kings Hill is a housing and business development built on an airfield site which  has been featured as a film location on Couples Come Dine With Me (2014) and Channel 4’s Cape Wrath (2008).

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

Grand Prix (1966)

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Grand Prix image of two race cars on the side of a track. loads of people are surrounding them

Grand Prix © MGM

Director: John Frankenheimer
Starring: James Garner, Yves Montand, Antonio Sabato, Eva Marie Saint
Production Company: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Douglas & Lewis Productions, Joel Productions, John Frankenheimer Productions Inc, Cherokee Productions
Kent Locations Used: Brands Hatch

Grand Prix (1966) is a film that follows four Formula One drivers through a fictional 1966 Grand Prix and charts their tough and dangerous races, as well as their accidents, losses and love affairs.

At the 39th Academy Awards held in 1967, Grand Prix won three Oscars for Best Sound Effects, Best Film Editing and Best Sound.

Directed by John Frankenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate, The Island of Dr. Moreau), Grand Prix stars James Garner (The Rockford Files, The Great Escape), Yves Montand (The Wages of Fear, Z), Antonio Sabato (Escape from the Bronx, Seven Blood-Stained Orchids) and Eva Marie Saint (North by Northwest, On the Waterfront)­.

Brands Hatch is the locations used for the UK race in the championship.

Brands Hatch is in the Sevenoaks district of Kent and is a popular motorsport race track which has also been used as a film location for Rush (2013).

Grand Prix (1966) was released on Wednesday 21st December 1966 and is available to purchase on DVD.

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