Vanity Fair (2018)

Poster for Vanity Fair series- women in long red dress sat on a gold chair with her feet up on a globe model.

Poster for Vanity Fair series ©ITV Studio

 

Writer:  Gwyneth Hughes

Director: James Strong

Starring: Olivia Cooke, Suranne Jones, Martin Clunes

Production Company: Mammoth Screen

Kent Locations Used: Deal, Dover, Sevenoaks and Medway

This new ITV series is an adaptation of William Makepeace Thackeray’s classic Victorian novel Vanity Fair. Set in the time of the Napoleonic wars, it follows the life of a beautiful and determined woman named Becky Sharp (Olivia Cooke) as she attempts to claw her way out of poverty and climb straight to the top of 19th century English Society.

Starring Olivia Cooke (Ready Player One, Bates Motel) as the antihero Becky Sharp, Suranne Jones (Doctor Foster, Scott and Bailey) as Miss Pinkerton, Martin Clunes (Doc Martin, Men Behaving Badly) as Sir Pitt Crawley, Michael Palin (Monty Python, Remember Me) as Thackeray, Tom Bateman (Snatched, Into The Dark) as Captain Rawdon Crawley.

A cottage on Chevening House Estate was used for filming and featured as Rawdons’ (Tom Bateman) Cottage. This location is situated at the foot of the North Downs in Sevenoaks with extensive parkland surrounding it. It is set aside for official Government business.

A scene on the promenade, featuring soldiers and horses was filmed outside the Royal Hotel in Deal. The town is situated on the South Coast of Kent and has a longstanding naval history as one of the major Cinque Ports and many period features remain.

Squerryes Court in Sevenoaks was also used for filming Miss Pinkertons’ (Suranne Jones) school interiors. This location is a beautiful 17th century manor house which has been in the residence of the Warde family since 1731. It is surrounded with 20 acres of attractive and historic gardens which includes a lake and 18th century dovecote. Previous films that have used this location are The Hollow Crown: Henry V (2012) and The Boat that Rocked (2009).

The Historic Chatham Dockyard was also used. Production filmed various London street scenes outside the Ropery, as well as Anchor Wharf for an embarkation to France and the interior of Commissioners House. The Historic Chatham Dockyard built many ships for the Royal Navy over the last 400 years, including HMS Victory, and it is the home of the Royal Rope Makers, having produced ropes since 1618. It is a popular filming location which offers many period locations, authentic cobbled streets and three historic warships. The Dockyard has previously been featured in films such as Suffragette (2015) and Mr Turner (2014).

Vanity Fair begins on 2nd September 2018 at 9pm on ITV, with episode two airing the next day, on Monday (3rd September 2018). It will then continue for 5 Sunday nights at 9pm.

 

 

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

 

 

 


The Crimson Field (2014)

osalie Berwick (Marianne Oldham), Kitty Trevelyan (Oona Chaplin), Flora Marshall (Alice ST Clair) dressed as midwives standing in front of old fashioned shelves

Rosalie Berwick (Marianne Oldham), Kitty Trevelyan (Oona Chaplin), Flora Marshall (Alice ST Clair) © BBC – Photographer: Todd Antony

Directed by: David Evans, Richard Clark, Thaddeus O’Sullivan

Written By: Sarah Phelps

Starring: Oona Chaplin, Kevin Doyle, Anthony Farrelly, Kerry Fox, Suranne Jones, Hermione Norris, Marianne Oldham

Production Company: BBC

Kent Locations Used: The Historic Dockyard Chatham

The Crimson Field is a 6 part WW1 drama created as part of the BBC’s First World War Centenary Season. It focuses on the story of three new voluntary aid detachment (VAD’s) recruits, Kitty Trevelyan (Oona Chaplin), Flora (Alice St. Clair) and Rosalie Berwick (Marianne Oldham), who have left their old lives behind to volunteer at a field hospital in war torn France. 

When the three new VAD’s arrive at the field hospital in Northern France and begin putting their training into practise, they realise that the reality of volunteering is harsher than they imagined. Feeling under prepared, all of the girls must learn to cope with the traumas that war brings.

Starring Oona Chaplin (Game of Thrones, Quantum of Solace), Kevin Doyle (Downton Abbey, Scott and Bailey), Anthony Farrelly (Midsomer Murders, New Tricks), Kerry Fox (Patrick’s Day, Trap for Cinderella), Suranne Jones (Scott and Bailey, Coronation Street), Hermione Norris (Outcasts, Spooks), and Marianne Oldham (Titus, WPC 56).

The Historic Dockyard Chatham was used as the port of Boulogne in Northern France, where the VAD’s disembark before heading to the hospital. HMS Gannet features as the ship and was recently the focus of a £3million restoration project, returning the ship to its former glory.

The Historic Dockyard Chatham is one of Kent’s most popular filming destinations previously hosting productions such as Call the Midwife (2012-2013), Les Miserables (2013) and Sherlock Holmes (2009).

The Crimson Field is next on BBC1 on Sunday 13th April 2014 at 9pm.

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