Writer: Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara Director: Yorgos Lanthimos Starring: Olivia Colman, Emma Stone, Olivia Colman and Rachel Weisz Production Company: Element Pictures, Scarlet Films, Film4, Waypoint Entertainment Kent locations Used: Knole
The Favourite (2019) had its world premiere at the 75th Venice International Film Festival in August 2018 where it won two awards. The film is a historical comedy-drama and is set in early 18th Century England. The story follows the life of dysfunctional monarch, Queen Anne (Olivia Colman) and Anne’s close friend and lover, Lady Sarah (Rachel Weisz), who effectively rules the country. However, her efforts to control Anne are undermined when Sarah’s impoverished younger cousin Abigail (Emma Stone) comes to work for Anne as a maid and the two women vie for Queen Anne’s favour.
Knole Park was used as the exterior of Westminster Place in a carriage scene that sees our protagonists abused by the peasantry. Sadly, we think this scene may have ended up on the cutting room floor, but do let us know if you spotted it!
Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law revisit their roles as the great Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson in Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows. When the Crown Prince of Austria is found dead, inspector Lestrade (Eddie Marsdan-Law and Order UK ) believes it to be suicide. But Holmes deduces that the prince has been a victim in a murder that is part of a larger and more elaborate plot designed by Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris- Fringe).
Holmes tracks down the clues to a gentleman’s club where he and his brother Mycroft Holmes (Stephen Fry-Alice in Wonderland) celebrate to Dr Watson’s final night of bachelorhood. There Holmes meets the mysterious fortune teller Sim (Noomi Rapace-The Girl Who kicked the Hornet’s Nest) whose unwitting involvement with the Crown Prince’s murder makes her the next target for the killer.
Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows was adapted by Michele Mulroney (Unlikely Hero, Sunny & Share Love You) and Kieran Mulroney (Paper Man) and directed by Guy Ritchie (Snatch, RocknRolla). Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man, Tropic Thunder) and Jude Law (The Talented Mr. Ripley, Enemy at the Gates) return in the starring roles alongside Noomi Rapace (The Drop, Child 44), Rachel McAdams (The Notebook, Spotlight), Stephen Fry(V for Vendetta Alice in Wonderland) and Jared Harris (Lincoln, The Boxtrolls).
A number of popular Kent locations take a starring role in this latest blockbuster from director Guy Ritchie. The cast and crew returned toThe Historic Dockyard Chathamwhere the Punchbowl Pub fight scenes and the hanging of Lord Blackwood amongst other scenes were filmed for the first movie. Eagle eyed viewers should watch the trailer below and see if they can spot the dockyards alongside the other Kent Locations! The Historic Dockyard Chatham is a popular film location, havingpreviously featured inRustom (2016) and Oliver Twist(2007).
The production company also visited thePort of Dover where they boarded the Waverley Paddle Steamer to film the White Cliffs of Dover. The paddle steamer was re-built in 1947 after the original was sunk off Dunkirk in 1940 and now sails around the country offering tours to the general public. The Port of Dovercan be seen in Johnny English (2003) starring Rowan Atkinson and in the James Bond classic Diamonds are Forever (1971) starring Sean Connery as the location for a dramatic hovercraft scene.
National Trust Property Knole in Sevenoaks was also used, though you’ll have a hard time spotting the structure of the inner courtyard in its new Alpine setting. Adored by Henry VII and given to him by the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1538, it later was presented to the Sackville family by Elizabeth I. The house showcases stunning architecture, priceless Stuart furniture and is set at the heart of the only remaining deer park in the county. A popular film location it has appeared in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011).
Lastly, crews took to Fort Amherstin Chatham to shoot scenes for the film. The extensive tunnels were the perfect double for the Paris sewer system. The fort is Britain’s largest Napoleonic Fortress and with an impressive network of historic buildings across 20 acres, it is becoming a firm favourite for film productions. Fort Amhersthas also featured in Jekyll and Hyde(2016) and The Saint (1997). Considered one of Britain’s most haunted Forts, it is open to the public, though apparently you’ll risk meeting one of the many poltergeists and ghostly apparitions that walk there.
Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows was released in cinemas in December 2011 and is now available to buy on DVD.
In the fourth instalment of the blockbuster Pirates of the Caribbean series, Johnny Depp returns as the lovable rogue Captain Jack Sparrow. On a quest to find the fabled Fountain of Youth, he is joined by veteran pirates Geoffrey Rush (returning as Captain Barbossa) and Kevin R. McNally as Captain Jack’s long time comrade, Joshamee Gibbs. Ian McShane makes his pirate debut as the murderous Blackbeard.
In this action packed tale, Jack is lured on board the ship of the notorious Blackbeard by the mysterious Penelope Cruz, a long lost love from his distant past. Racing against the Spanish and English Naval fleets to reach the Fountain of Youth; Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is a whirlwind story of adventure, revenge and dangerous mermaids.
Directed by Rob Marshall(Chicago, Into the Woods),the film stars a host of acting talent including Johnny Depp(Sleepy Hollow, Alice in Wonderland), Penélope Cruz(Volver, Vicky Cristina Barcelona), Ian McShane(Lovejoy, Hercules), Kevin R. McNally(Legend, Dad) and Geoffrey Rush (Shakespeare in Love, The King’s Speech).
Knole Park near Sevenoaks was the Kent location used in the film. The large inner courtyard was filled with gallows intended for Gibbs.
Set in the heart of the only remaining medieval deer park in Kent, the beautiful 18th Century house has been shown off to visitors for the past 500 years. Family home to the Sackvilles’, the house was also the setting for Virginia Woolf’s novel Orlando. Within its thirteen rooms, the stately home, it contains the world renowned Stuart furniture, paintings by Gainsborough and Many 17th Century Tapestries.
Pirates of the Caribbean is not the only Hollywood film to recognise the beauty of Knoleas a filming location. Costume Drama The Other Boleyn Girl(2008) was filmed there in 2006; it was the setting for many of the London night scenes. The inner courtyard was used to replicate the famous Whitehall Palace where grand arrivals and departures were depicted. The courtyard was also transformed for 2010 film Burke and Hare(2010)into a crowded market square complete with extras and stars Simon Pegg and Isla Fisher.
The film was released in cinemas in May 2011 and is now available to buy on DVD.
Director: John Landis Writers: Piers Ashworth, Nick Moorcroft Starring: Simon Pegg, Andy Serkis, Isla Fisher Production Company: Ealing Studios, Fragile Films Kent Locations: Knole House
Burke and Hare (2010) includes scenes filmed at Knole House, near Sevenoaks, which on a cold February day was transformed into a lively Edinburgh market.
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.
Kings Hill is a housing and business development built on an airfield site which has been featured as a film location in Channel 4’s Cape Wrath (2008).
