Sulphur and White (2020)

Posted on February 27, 2020 by Kent Film Office

Mark Stanley (David Tait) wearing a brown jacket and Emily Beecham (Vanessa Tait) wearing a blue floral dress, looking at each other with greenery and sky behind them.

Mark Stanley (David Tait) and Emily Beecham (Vanessa Tait) in Sulphur and White (2020) Copyright: IMDb Photo: Nick Wall

Screenwriter: Susie Farrell
Director: Julian Jarrold
Starring: Mark Stanley, Emily Beecham, Anna Friel, Dougray Scott, Aftab Shivdasani
Production Companies: AMG International, EMU Films
Kent Locations Used: Thanet (Joss Bay, Kingsgate Bay, Botany Bay)

Feature film Sulphur and White is inspired by the true story of David Tait (played by Mark Stanley), a city trader and mountaineer, who tries to forget his traumatic childhood as he climbs the corporate ladder in the City Of London. When he meets Vanessa (Emily Beecham), David’s life begins to change.

Sulphur and White is directed by the award winning Julian Jarrold (Kinky Boots, Becoming Jane) and the screenplay was written by Susie Farrell (Dirty God). It stars Mark Stanley (Game of Thrones, Run) as David Tait and Emily Beechman (Daphne, Hail, Caesar!) as Vanessa. Co-stars also include Anna Friel (Marcella, Deep Water), Dougray Scott (EverAfter, Hitman) and Aftab Shivdasani (Mast, Kasoor).

Filming took place in Thanet, a district of Kent containing resort towns Margate, Ramsgate and Broadstairs with beautiful beaches.

The production visited Joss bay in Broadstairs, a proclaimed surfer’s paradise, boasting a 200 metre-long stretch of sandy beach. Kingsgate Bay and Botany Bay afford incredible views of white cliffs and highly photographed white chalk stacks.

These coastal locations have attracted various film and TV productions over the years from French coming-of-age film À nous les petites Anglaises (1976), Mr Selfridge Series 4 (2016), Bhikari (2017) to most recently Dracula (2020).

Sulphur and White will be released in UK cinemas on Friday 6^th March 2020.

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

Above the Clouds (2020)

Posted on January 30, 2020 by Kent Film Office

Above the Clouds movie poster- Two characters sat and leant up against a yellow car with clouds in the background. Animated style image.

Above the Clouds (2020) © Leon Chambers – Third Light Films

Director: Leon Chambers
Writers: Simon Lord (screenplay), Leon Chambers, Simon Lord, James Godden
Starring: Naomi Morris, Andrew Murton, Philip Jackson
Production Company: Third Light Films
Kent Locations Used: Margate – Turner Contemporary, Seafront and The Harbour Arm, Marine Drive and The Parade, Thanet Way

Above the Clouds is an offbeat coming-of-age comedy of one girl’s marathon quest to find her real father. When headstrong Charlie (Naomi Morris) discovers her parents have been keeping her biological father secret from her, she recruits a rough sleeper (Andrew Murton) to be her ‘responsible adult’ and sets off for Scotland on her provisional driving licence to go and find him.

Above the Clouds is a feature film directed by Kent filmmaker Leon Chambers who has directed a number of film shorts including Stolen Youth (2008), Lonely Hearts (2013) and The Long Lonely Walk (2010), which won five Film Festival awards. Above The Clouds was written by Simon Lord from a story by Leon Chambers, Simon Lord and James Godden.

Above the Clouds, starring Naomi Morris (Pennyworth (2019) and Back (2017)), Andrew Murton (Let Me Go (2017)), Philip Jackson (Peterloo (2018), The Good Karma Hospital (2017- 2018)), has screened at major international festivals including Austin Film Festival 2018, Naples International Film Festival 2019 and Margate Film Festival 2019 and has won seven awards including Austin Film Festival 2018 Best Narrative Feature – Audience Award, Oxford Film Festival 2019 Best Actress Award & Best Director Award and Naples International Film Festival 2019 Indie Spirit Award. For the full list of festival screenings and awards see here.

Leon Chambers and Simon Lord are currently in development with their next collaboration, sci-fi satire A Certain Tomorrow.

The film makes use of multiple filming locations in Margate including the Turner Contemporary gallery, Margate Seafront and The Harbour Arm, Marine Drive and The Parade and Thanet Way.

Two characters sitting on a white bench in front of a white wall and window at the Turner Contemporary Gallery. Sea can be seen through the window.

Above the Line (2020) production still – Turner Contemporary © Leon Chambers – Third Light Films

Margate is a seaside town complete with sandy beach, harbour, amusement park, period housing and the ultra-modern art gallery Turner Contemporary which offers exhibitions, events and various educational opportunities.

Margate seafront in the district of Thanet is a popular film location and has been used as in various productions such as in feature films King of Thieves (2018) and King Lear (2018). Ramsgate is also a popular location in Thanet and has featured in several productions such as Baptise (2019), Hurricane (2018) and The Tunnel: Sabotage (2016).

Two characters wearing casual clothes standing and talking in front of Margate beach leant against the railing.

Above the Line (2020) – Margate Seafront © Leon Chambers – Third Light Films

The film was released on 28^th January 2020 and is available to view via iTunes, Amazon Prime and various other on demand channels. For more information see the film’s website: http://www.abovethecloudsfilm.co.uk/

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

This is our Family (2020)

Posted on January 9, 2020 by Kent Film Office

This Is Our Family 2017 cast standing in a row on the front patio of a house, smiling into the camera. The lady in the middle is sat on a pink chair.

This Is Our Family 2017 ©Sky UK ltd

Director: Ellena Wood
Executive Producers: Ben Gale, Helen Littleboy, Natasha Bondy, Marvyn Benoit
Production Company: Little Gem
Kent Locations Used: Margate

“This Is Our Family” follows four families from across the UK, to tell the stories of their lives over a three year period. This ambitious docu-series began filming four years ago and is split into four 60-minute episodes.

The episode directed by Ellena Wood (Louis Theroux: Talking to Anorexia (2017)) and co-directed by Holly Moy, follows three generations of strong women living under one roof in Margate. Maree Miles lives with her three daughters, Ellie, Lily and Dolce in her mum Irene’s house. 86 year-old Irene has dementia and her condition seems to be getting worse.

Executive Producers are Ben Gale and Helen Littleboy for Little Gem, with Natasha Bondy as Creative Director. Marvyn Benoit is Executive Producer for Sky.

Production visited Margate to film at the participants’ home as well as the seafront, including wide aerial drone shots that show the true scale of the town. Scenes were also filmed at The Rodney Pub, Margate Hospital, Margate Crematorium, Margate High street and a local hairdresser.

Other productions to visit Margate include Interior Design Masters (2019), The Empty Housing Scandal (2019) and George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces – Series 8 (2018).

The ‘The Miles Family’ episode will debut on Sky Atlantic at 10PM on Tuesday 14^th January 2020.

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

Top Boy – Series 3 (2019)

Posted on September 9, 2019 by Kent Film Office

Group of four men, two sitting and two leaning against a grey parked car in front of a block of garages. All men wearing jackets and jeans.

Top Boy Series 3 © Channel4

Writer: Ronan Bennett
Starring: Ashley Walters and Kane Robinson, Malcom Kamulete and Shone Romulus
Produced by: Cowboy Films
Kent Locations Used: Margate, Ramsgate and Gravesend

Top Boy is a British drama series revolving around the life of Dushane (Ashley Walters), leader of an underground drug operation, and his friend Sully (Kane Robinson). Their aim is to become the richest men in town and are joined by troubled teen Ra’Nell (Malcolm Kamulete.

Series 2 ended in 2013, with those loyal to Dushane paying a high price for their involvement in the drug business. Axed by Channel 4 in 2013, the show soon found a new home on Netflix and series 3 will be produced by none other than rapper Drake, a long-time fan of the series.

The series was written by Ronan Bennet (Gunpowder, Hidden) and stars Ashley Walters (Figures of Speech, Bulletproof) and Kane Robinson (Tower Block, Point Blank

Filming took place in Margate at Walpole Bay and Fulsam Rock Beach and nearby streets including Athelstan Road. Production also visited Ramsgate, where they filmed at Jacob’s Ladder, outside the Rose of England pub on the High Street and Ramsgate Train Station.

In addition, Gordon Place in Gravesend played the role of the fictional ‘Summerhouse Estate’ in London.

Gravesend is on the southern bank of the River Thames and boasts a cast iron pier, promenade and high street as well as international rail links at the nearby Ebbsfleet International station. The Gravesend area has previously welcomed film productions such as Killing Eve (2018), The Escape (2018), and Doctor Strange (2017).

Top Boy will be released on Netflix on Friday 13^th September 2019.

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

Interior Design Masters (2019)

Posted on August 13, 2019 by Kent Film Office

Picture Shows: Backrow (L) to (R) Cassie Nicholas, Jim Biddulph, Verity Coleman, Frank Newbold, Nicki Bamford-Bowes all standing at the back of a bricked room with blue pictures on the wall. Front row (L) to (R) Trish Coggans, Terian Tilston, Jerome Gardner, Kyle Broughton-Frew and Ju De Paula sitting on sofas looking into the camera.

Presenter: Fearne Cotton

Starring: Michelle Ogundehin, Mary Portas, Jade Jagger, Matthew Williamson

Production Company: Darlow Smithson Productions / Endemol Shine

Kent Locations Used: Whitstable

On Interior Design Masters, ten designers take on different design projects and compete with each other to gain a commission with a client for a job.

Among the contestants is Jim Biddulph, 32, from Margate. He left a previous job as a design writer to pursue his new career which was 10 years in the making and seized the opportunity to be involved in the programme. Fellow contestant Frank Newbold also boasts Kent connections as he previously lived in Rochester.

The guest judges on Interior Design Masters are Michelle Ogundehin (The Great Interior Design Challenge), Mary Portas (Hotel GB/Mary Portas: Secret Shopper), Jade Jagger (Gomorron/Divendres), Matthew Williamson. Presenting is Fearne Cotton (Celebrity Juice/Lemon La Vida Loca).

In Episode 7 , the semi final, the three remaining candidates are asked to each remodel a hairdressers in Whitstable High Street. Guest judge Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen will help to decide whether the classic look of Len’s Barber Shop, the futuristic theme of Jelly Beanz or the industrial remodel of Edge is good enough to get the designer to the final.

Whitstable is on the north coast of Kent. The town is famous for its oysters, celebrated during the famous Oyster Festival during the summer.

The series was created by BBC 2 and Netflix, consisting of eight episodes.

Episode One of Interior Design Masters will be shown on BBC Two on Wednesday 14^th August 2019 at 8pm on BBC2.

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

Teen Mom UK – Series 6 (2019)

Posted on July 29, 2019 by Kent Film Office

Five young mothers group photo with blue background each holding one of their children and smiling at the camera - The child furthest left is being held upside-down and one on the furthest right is crying.

The Mums of Teen Mom UK Reality TV Series ©MTV UK

Starring: Megan Salmon Ferrari, Amber Butler, Chloe Patton, Sassi Simmonds and Shannon Wise
Production Company: True North Productions
Kent Locations Used: Margate

Teen Mom UK is back for its sixth series. The UK’s spin off from the hit American TV show Teen Mom, is a reality show which focuses on young mothers and how they deal with pregnancy, children, family and their day to day lives. The new series continues to be full of drama as it follows Amber Butler and Steven Rankine as they take the next steps in their relationship, as well as Shannon Wise’s exciting gender reveal party.

Filming for one of the upcoming episodes took place in Margate, where one of the teen moms takes a trip to the beach with her partner before the birth of her second child. The show journals their holiday in Margate.

Margate is a seaside town located in the district of Thanet. It has a sandy beach, harbour, amusement park, vintage shops and the modern art gallery the Turner Contemporary. Previous filming here includes Long Lost Family: What Happened Next (2018) and Who Do You Think You Are? (2018).

The series started on MTV UK on Wednesday 24^th July 2019 at 8pm. Margate will feature in a later episode airing sometime in September 2019. The first episode can still be viewed on MTV player and on NowTV.

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

Jellyfish (2018)

Posted on February 11, 2019 by Kent Film Office

Jellyfish Poster- A woman riding a bike in a coat along the seafront at night is at the bottom of the poster with the jellyfish text at the top.

Jellyfish (2018) © Jellyfish Feature Film LTD

Writers: James Gardner, Simon Lord
Director: James Gardner
Starring: Liv Hill, Sinead Matthews, Cyril Nri
Production Company: Nik Holttum Productions
Kent Locations Used: Margate, Thanet

Jellyfish is a drama about a teenage carer discovering an unlikely talent for stand-up comedy. Fifteen-year-old Sarah Taylor (Liv Hill) struggles to care for twin siblings and a bed-ridden, manic depressive mother (Sinead Matthews) as well as bullying from her school peers. Jellyfish tells the story of how stand-up comedy becomes an unlikely outlet for Sarah’s frustration and quick-tempered wit.

Jellyfish is a feature film directed by James Gardner, who co-wrote the piece with film producer Simon Lord. Gardner has won six awards for Jellyfish, including three for Best Film, and is known for directing other works such as Barry Glitter and Ferris and the Fancy Pigeon, for which he won the Royal Television Society (RTS) Award for Best Post-Graduate Drama. Simon Lord has worked with Gardner on previous projects including Barry Glitter, and wrote the screenplay for the 2020 film Above The Clouds.

Jellyfish, starring Liv Hill (The Little Stranger (2018) and Three Girls (2017)), Sinead Matthews (Pride & Prejudice (2005), The Boat That Rocked (2009) and Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang (2010)) and Cyril Nri (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019), This Life (1996) and Tale of the Mummy (1998)) premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in April 2018 and had its International premiere shortly after at Edinburgh International Film Festival, where it won the Michael Powell Award for Best Performance in a British Feature Film.

Liv Hill stands on a deserted beach wearing a coat looking out at the pink sunset over the low tide.

Liv Hill in Jellyfish © Jellyfish Feature Film LTD 2017

Mostly filmed in Margate, a seaside town in Thanet in Kent, production shot on the seafront, Margate train station, Dreamland and Cedar Close as Sarah’s home and the Theatre Royal. The film also features landmarks such as The Lido, Arlington House and the Main Sands as its backdrop. Margate offers amusement, culture and luxury, and is part of the district of Thanet, a popular film location. Recent productions to film in Margate include Above The Clouds (2020) and Top Boy – Series 3 (2019).

Jellyfish was released on the 15^th February 2019 in UK cinemas and is available to watch on Amazon Prime.

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

Britain’s Favourite Walks: Top 100 (2018)

Posted on January 24, 2018 by Kent Film Office

This new two-and-a-half-hour special for ITV pulls on its hiking boots for a countdown of Britain’s favourite walks. Britain’s Favourite Walks: Top 100, presented by Julia Bradbury (Countryfile) and Ore Oduba (The One Show), showcases the finest rambles, scrambles and ambles across the countryside and through cities to bring viewers the ultimate guide to the British outdoors.

Based on the results of the largest survey ever conducted, the top 100 have been voted for by more than 8,000 walking enthusiasts. Famous faces, including Ade Edmondson, Janet Street Porter and Robert Bathurst hit the trails to reveal their own favourites, joined by walking experts, nature aficionados and members of the public with extraordinary stories to provide a vivid insight into the the history of the trails.

The programme visits various locations in Kent on two walks, firstly the Ramsgate to Margate Walk featuring beautiful spots such as Kingsgate Bay and Botany Bay. The second walk, the Dover to Deal Walk features the stunning National Trust sites of the stunning White Cliffs of Dover and the charming South Foreland Lighthouse, as well as picturesque St Margarets at Cliffe and Deal.

The Kent Coastline is a popular location with TV productions for its dramatic scenery and convenient connections by road to London. Most recently it played a starring role in Sky Atlantic’s The Tunnel: Vengeance 2017 filmed entirely in Kent and Calais.

Kingsgate Bay, a small sandy bay surrounded by chalk cliffs that connects at low tide through Whiteness cliff arch to Botany Bay, was featured in Mr Selfridge Series 4 (2016), while both the White Cliffs of Dover and St Margarets Bay featured in Missing Series 1 & 2 (2009-2010).

The photograph shows Ramsgate Marina with small boats harboured

Britain’s Favourite Walks: Top 100 will be broadcast on ITV at 7.30pm on Tuesday 30^th January 2018.

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

Morgana Robinson’s Summer (2017)

Posted on July 20, 2017 by Kent Film Office

Morgana Robinson looking at camera whilst on beach with comedy shorts title in background

Morgana Robinson’s Summer (C) Sky Arts/Merman

Writer: Sharon Horgan

Director: M.J. Delaney

Starring: Morgana Robinson, Sheridan Smith, Frances Barber, Aimee-Ffion Edwards, Gabby Best, Peter Singh and Edward Aczel

Production Company: Merman

Kent Locations Used: Margate

Part of Sky Art’s 2017 Comedy Short series, Morgana Robinson’s Summer is set on a hot day in Margate and centres around a heavily pregnant Trish. When friends and family gather for her baby shower, a secret is revealed which causes tempers to flare.

The comedy short filmed in various locations in Margate including Marine Terrace, Market Street and the Lifeboat pub.

Margate is a traditional seaside town boasting a sandy beach, harbour, amusement park Dreamland, period housing and modern art gallery the Turner Contemporary. Previous filming here includes The Tunnel: Sabotage (2016), Coast (2014), Last Orders (2002) and many more.

Morgana Robinson’s Summer airs on Sky Arts on Thursday 20^th July 2017 at 9pm is available to view now on Sky Arts On Demand

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

Coast Vs Country (2016)

Posted on November 12, 2016 by Kent Film Office

Presenters Kerr Drummond and Sara Damergi standing in the countryside with the sea in the background

Production Company: Freeform Productions

Kent Locations Used: Broadstairs & Viking Bay, Joss Bay, Kingsgate Bay, Margate, Ramsgate, Canterbury, Herne Bay

Coast Vs Country is Channel 4’s brand new property series from the creators of A Place in the Sun, helping house hunters find their dream property either by the sea or in the countryside.

The series is presented by interior designer, Kerr Drummond and buying expert and current face of A Place in the Sun, Sara Damergi.

Kent features throughout the series including Thanet locations Broadstairs & Viking Bay, Joss Bay, Kingsgate Bay, Margate, Ramsgate, as well as Canterbury and Herne Bay.

The Thanet area boasts the beautiful coastal towns of Broadstairs, Ramsgate and Margate which has sandy bays, parks and open spaces, galleries and amusements. Thanet has been used for filming by productions such as The Lady in the Van (2015) and Eastenders (2015).

Herne Bay is a seaside town which has a pier and shingle beach and is set just outside of the historic City of Canterbury. Previous productions which have filmed in the area include Rustom (2016), Terry and Mason’s Great Food Trip (2015) and Got To Dance (2012).

The Kent episodes will air on Channel 4 on:

Tuesday 22^nd November 2016 – 16:00
Monday 28^th November 2016 – 15:00
Tuesday 13^th December 2016 – 15:00

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

Kent's Premier Film Commission