Nell’s Café

The Baby (2022)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Michelle de Swarte as Natasha stands in a field holding a baby. She wears a brown corduroy jacket, and the baby is wearing a white onesie with green, orange and yellow shapes on it. Natasha and the baby both looking nervously at someone to the right of the frame, who’s face is obscured from view.

Michelle de Swarte in The Baby (2022) © Ross Ferguson/HBO

Writer / Creator: Lucy Gaymer, Sian Robins-Grace
Starring: Michelle de Swarte, Sinéad Cusack, Isy Suttie, Shvorne Marks, Amber Grappy
Production Company: HBO, Proverbial Pictures, Sister Pictures, Sky
Kent Locations Used: Botany Bay, Acacia Sports Hall in Dartford, Nell’s Café, Ramsgate Harbour Approach Tunnel, St Andrew’s Lake and Watersports Centre in Halling, The Quadrangle in Sevenoaks

The Baby (2022) is a horror comedy series about 38-year-old Natasha who is furious that all her friends are having babies. When she is unexpectedly landed with one of her own, her life is thrown into turmoil. She doesn’t want a baby. But the baby definitely wants her.

Created by Lucy Gaymer and Sian Robins-Grace in their debut as TV writers, The Baby stars Michelle de Swarte (The Duchess) as Natasha, Sinéad Cusack (Waterland (1992), Marcella (2016)) as Barbara, Isy Suttie (Peep Show, Shameless) as Rita, Shvorne Marks (Breeders (2021), Endeavour) as Mags, and Amber Grappy (Wrecked) as Bobbi.

During filming, production visited various locations across Kent including Botany Bay, Nell’s Café in Gravesend, the Ramsgate Harbour Approach Tunnel, Acacia Sports Hall in Dartford, St Andrew’s Lake and Watersports Centre in Halling and The Quadrangle in Sevenoaks.

Botany Bay is a very popular filming location due to its sandy beach, rock pools, white cliffs and highly photographed white chalk stacks. Previous productions to have filmed at Botany Bay include Jhimma (2021), Sulphur and White (2020), and The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2022).

Nell’s Café is a popular roadside café along the A2 in Gravesend. Situated on the southern bank of the River Thames, Gravesend boasts a cast iron pier, promenade and high street as well as international rail links at the nearby Ebbsfleet International station. Previous productions to have filmed at Nell’s Café include Series 1 of Killing Eve (2018-2022), Series 2 of Temple (2021) and Series 2 of In the Long Run (2019).

The Ramsgate Harbour Approach Tunnel is the approach road to Port of Ramsgate. The tunnel is over 800m long and about 9.5 metres wide. Because this is an alternative approach to the Harbour, this road and tunnel may be controlled during agreed periods. Previous productions to have made use of this include Hard Sun (2018) and The Tunnel: Sabotage (2016).

The Acacia Sports Hall in Dartford is a large sports hall and is part of a multi-use site that includes a manor and several outbuildings with ample parking. The Sports Hall is perfect for set building and storage with a ceiling height of over 20m. Recently opened as a build space for productions, The Baby is the first to make use of the facilities.

Situated between the River Medway and Pilgrims Way, St Andrews Lake in Halling is a unique 70-acre blue lake in a former chalk quarry with a total area of 122 acres of mixed woodland and a small lagoon area. From the Watersports Centre, you can hire a kayak, paddle board or a sailing boat.

The Quadrangle is a large Victorian farmstead built in 1870 in the Darent Valley, near Shoreham Village. The site features a grand lofty hay barn (15m x 8.5 m), converted Granary, stables, a holiday cottage, an orchard, and access to the River Darent for swimming and boating. Jamie and Jimmy’s Friday Night Feast (2016) used the location for filming a mini food festival.

The Baby was released on NowTV on Sunday 24th April 2022.

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

Killing Eve Series 1 & 4 (2018-2022)

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Sandra Oh as Eve Polastri and Jodie Comer as Villanelle. The two stand among bushes, framed by lit white candles. Eve wears an off-the-shoulder navy blue dress and Villanelle wears a long-sleeve white flowy dress.

Killing Eve (2022) © BBC America

Writer: Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Emerald Fennell, Laura Neal
Starring: Sandra Oh, Jodie Comer, Fiona Shaw, Kim Bodnia
Production Company: Sid Gentle Films for (BBC America)
Kent Locations Used: Nells Café in Gravesend, Margate Beach, Margate Harbour Arm, Dreamland, Nayland Rock Hotel, the Lido Complex, Sands Café and various streets in Margate.

Killing Eve (2018 – 2022) is an intense spy thriller, based on the Codename Villanelle novellas by Luke Jennings, in which MI6 intelligence investigator Eve (Sandra Oh) and psychopathic assassin Villanelle (Jodie Comer) go head to head in a game of cat and mouse.

Killing Eve is back again for its fourth and final series with screenwriter Laura Neal (Sex Education (2021)) joining the team. Series 4 picks up with titular character Eve Polastri on the run from shadowy crime organisation The Twelve.

Written by Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag, No Time to Die), Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman, Saltburn), and Laura Neal (Sex Education (2021), My Mad Fat Diary), stars Jodie Comer (Doctor Foster, Free Guy) as Villanelle, the fearsome female assassin, Sandra Oh (Grey’s Anatomy, Sideways) as Eve Polastri, the MI6 agent hunting her down, Fiona Shaw (The Avengers, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone) as Carolyn Martens, head of MI6’s Russia division and Kim Bodnia (Pusher, The Bridge) as Konstantin, Villanelle’s handler.

For the opening scene of Series 1, Episode 5, production visited the M2 motorway in Medway and Nell’s Café, a popular roadside truck stop off the A2 near Gravesend. In the scene, Eve (Sandra Oh) and Elena (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) question Frank (Darren Boyd) about his connections to Villanelle and the criminal organisation she works for.

Gravesend is situated 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 The Escape (2018), Bull (2021), and the popular Netflix anthology series Black Mirror (2019), which used several locations across Gravesend for the hostage sequences in Series 5, Smithereens. BBC’s crime drama The Interceptor (2015) also filmed at Nell’s Café.

In 2021, production visited various locations across Margate for Episodes 4 to 7 of Series 4, including local attractions and businesses Dreamland, the Lido Complex, The Nayland Rock Hotel and Market Square. Filming also took place on the sea defence steps of Margate Beach, Margate Harbour Arm, the Nayland Rock Shelter, Sands Café and Newgate Lower Promenade.

Street filming featured some of the many different aspects of Margate, maximising the town’s rich architectural history from the Edwardian Nayland Rock Shelter, the Georgian Royal Crescent Promenade to the quirky, modern vibe of Market Street, Duke Street and Broad Street with their narrow streets and boutique shops. In contrast, All Saints Avenue gives a city feel, running alongside Arlington House with its brutalist architecture. Recent productions to film in Margate include Whitstable Pearl (2021-2022), Pandemonium (2020) and Netflix’s crime drama Top Boy (2019-2022).

Considered to be the oldest surviving amusement park in Great Britain, Dreamland dates back to the early 1870s and was revamped in 2017. The Park has a Retro Roller Room, vintage arcades, a fully restored Grade II listed Art Deco Ballroom and beautiful rides dating from 1920 to present day. Dreamland has previously welcomed productions including Two Weeks to Live (2020), Jellyfish (2018), and the Only Fools and Horses 1989 Christmas Special The Jolly Boys’ Outing.

Built in 1885, the Nayland Rock Hotel is situated on Margate beach, with stunning panoramic views of the English Channel, and only a walking distance away from Margate’s top attractions. Joe Penhall’s King of Thieves (2018) starring Michael Cain and Michael Gambon features the Hotel in a scene where the aforementioned actors have lunch together.

Killing Eve first aired on BBC One on Saturday 15th September 2018, and Series 1-4 are available to stream on iPlayer.

Series 4 of Killing Eve was made available on BBC iPlayer on Monday 28th February 2022.

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

Temple Series 2 (2021)

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Mark Strong as Daniel Milton stands at the top of an escalator coming from underground. He is bald, and wears a blue suit, with white shirt and a black tie. Behind him are some historic London buildings and skyscrapers, as well as several people in red prison jumpsuits being arrested by police officers in high-visibility vests. One man stands atop an orange car holding a purple smoke bomb in the air and screaming. Hanging from one building is a hand-written white sign reading ‘Save Our Planet’. Two women are looking off into the distance on either side of the frame; on the left side is a woman with ginger hair cut into a bob who wears a white shirt, black trousers, and a long black and white checked coat, on the right side is woman with brown hair pulled into a low bun, who wears a long buttoned-up black trench coat.

Temple Series 2 (2021) © Sky UK Ltd

Writer:  Mark O’Rowe
Director: Christopher Smith
Starring: Mark Strong, Daniel Mays, Carice Van Houten, Rhys Ifans
Production Company: Hera Pictures
Kent Locations Used: Nells Café in Gravesend

Temple (2021) is a British television show based on a Norwegian series about a surgeon who sets up an illegal medical research facility underneath Temple Tube Station to find a cure for his dying wife.

The series was created by Mark O’Rowe (Boy A, Intermission) and Series 2 is directed by Christopher Smith (Alex Rider, Curfew) with actor Mark Strong (Sherlock Holmes, Shazam!) playing the lead Daniel Milton. Series 1 also co-starred BAFTA nominated actor Daniel Mays (Line of Duty, Des), Emmy nominated Carice van Houten (Game of Thrones, Black Book), Catherine McCormack (Braveheart, 28 Weeks Later) and Tobi King Bakare (Cursed, I May Destroy You) who are all set to reprise their roles for Series 2.

Amongst the new arrivals are dubious and deeply unpredictable underworld fixer Gubby, played by BAFTA-winner Rhys Ifans (Alice Through the Looking Glass, Berlin Station) and his poetic but frequently inebriated medical assistant, Dermot, played by Michael Smiley (Bloodlands, Luther).

A night-time sequence from Series 2 Episode 6 was filmed at the popular Nell’s Café in Gravesend. Production also filmed some driving sequences on various roads around Luddesdown in Gravesham, but we think these didn’t make the final cut.

Nell’s Café is situated along the A2 in Gravesend and previously hosted Killing Eve (2018-2022) and In the Long Run-Series 2 (2019).

Gravesend is a town in northwest Kent on the south bank of the Thames with a promenade, high street and two shopping centres. The Town’s Pier is the oldest remaining cast-iron pier in the world. Previous productions to film at Gravesend includes Black Mirror Series 5: Smithereens (2018) and Top Boy Series 3 (2019).

Series 2 of Temple aired on Sky Max and NOW TV on Thursday 28th October 2021 at 9pm and the entire series became available as a box set on release.

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

In the Long Run – Series 2 (2019)

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In the Long Run Series 2 Poster featuring various cast members on a yellow, orange and green patterned background. In The Long Run 2 created by Idris Elba written to the right.

In the Long Run Series 2 Poster © Sky UK Limited

Creator: Idris Elba
Director: Sandy Johnson
Writers: Idris Elba, Danielle Ward, Shivani Vijayapalan, Grace Ofori-Attah, Ben Tagoe, Fraser Ayres
Starring: Idris Elba, Bill Bailey, Neil D’Souza, Madeline Appiah, Jimmy Akingbola
Production Companies: Green Door Pictures, Sprout Pictures
Kent Locations Used: Nell’s Café Gravesend

In the Long Run (2017-) is a series created by and starring Idris Elba. The comedy is semi-autobiographical about the actor’s childhood in London during the 80’s. The second series starts as Walter (Idris Elba) is elected union representative at his workplace. When their jobs are threatened, Walter’s friends and colleagues, Bagpipes (Bill Bailey) and Rajesh (Neil D’Souza), plan to go on strike. Meanwhile, Agnes (Madeline Appiah) is looking to start a new career at the local council.

The series stars Idris Elba (Thor Ragnarok, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom), Bill Bailey (Hot Fuzz, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy), Neil D’Souza (Humans, EastEnders), Madeline Appiah (Partners in Crime, Hamlet) and Jimmy Akingbola (Spectral, Arrow).

Series 2 is directed by Sandy Johnson (Johnathan Creek, Benidorm). Episode writing credits include Danielle Ward (Danger Mouse, Mongrels), Shivani Vijayapalan, Grace Ofori-Attah (Urban Myths), Ben Tagoe (Jamie Johnson, Coronation Street) and Fraser Ayres (Holby City, Coronation Street).

During filming production visited Nell’s Café in Gravesend where Bagpipes and Valentine (Jimmy Akingbola) stop for a cuppa on the road on their way to Southend.

Nell’s Café is located just off the A2 and M2 motorway at Marling Cross, Gravesend. It is a popular, long running family owned café and has previously featured in Babylon (2014), Age of Heroes (2011), The Interceptor (2015) and the BAFTA & Emmy award winning crime drama Killing Eve (2018). 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.

In the Long Run Series 2 aired from Saturday 26th October 2019 on Sky One.

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

The Interceptor (2015)

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The Interceptor actors in an office L-R Valerie (LORRAINE ASHBOURNE), Cartwright (EWAN STEWART), Ash (OT FAGBENLE), Martin (CHARLIE DE MELO), Tommy (ROBERT LONSDALE), Kim (ANNA SKELLERN)

The Interceptor Valerie (LORRAINE ASHBOURNE), Cartwright (EWAN STEWART), Ash (OT FAGBENLE), Martin (CHARLIE DE MELO), Tommy (ROBERT LONSDALE), Kim (ANNA SKELLERN) © BBC/Des Willie

Creator: Tony Saint

Director: Farren Blackburn

Starring: O.T. Fagbenle Trevor Eve, Jo Joyner, Robert Lonsdale, Lorraine Ashbourne, Anna Skellern, Lee Boardman

Production Company: BBC

Kent locations: Nell’s Café and the A2, Gravesend

The Interceptor is a new BBC One eight-part series about state-of-the-art surveillance team, UNIT, whose mission is to track down some of Britain’s most wanted and dangerous criminals.

The series is created by Tony Saint (Margaret Thatcher: Long Walk To Finchley), directed by Farren Blackburn (Luther, The Musketeers) and stars O.T. Fagbenle (Looking, Breaking and Entering), Trevor Eve (Death Comes To Pemberley, Waking The Dead), Jo Joyner (Ordinary Lies, EastEnders), Robert Lonsdale (From Here To Eternity, Walking with the Enemy), Lorraine Ashbourne (Playing The Field, King Kong), Anna Skellern (Gambit, Heading Out), and Lee Boardman (Da Vinci’s Demons).

In March 2014, The Interceptor production team visited Gravesend where they filmed at Nell’s Café, an old style truck stop cafe and the A2 alongside it.

Gravesend is on the south bank of the River Thames and boasts a cast iron pier, promenade and high street as well as international links at the nearby Ebbsfleet International station. The Gravesend area has previously welcomed film productions such as Babylon (2014), Great British Railway Journeys (2014) and Age of Heroes (2011).

Don’t miss The Interceptor which starts on BBC One on Wednesday 10th June 2015 at 21:00.

 

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