The Movie Lover’s Guide to London

By Charlotte Booth and Brian Billington

London is a magical place which has intrigued people for more than 2,000 years, and never is this more apparent than in the past 130 years following the invention of the moving image.

London has been a draw for filmmakers for decades, and this book guides you through the locations, in the shadow of some of your favorite movies.

Take a tour by movie, go on a movie pub crawl, a leisurely stroll through cemeteries with connections to the movies or create your own tour by postcode. This book will allow you to visit new parts of London but with the familiarity of a well-loved film.

With more than 500 movie locations from 91 films covering more than six decades of movie making and more than 100 images, this book will have something for everyone and will show you London in a new, sparkling, glamourous light.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pen and Sword
• Release date: May 4, 2023
• ISBN: 9781399072700

Charlotte Booth

Charlotte Booth is a freelance Egyptologist with a PhD in Egyptology. She has had numerous books and articles published on all aspects of Egyptology.

Book preview

BRITISH CINEMA

The British cinema industry is growing and is certainly not a synonym for ‘small’ and ‘independent’ films only being shown in ‘local’ cinemas. Many British films have international financial backing which enables them to go global. But even those that don’t have financing are able to cross the pond to international success.

Take the Harry Potter Franchise for example: filmed in the UK, all British actors but an international phenomenon. Unfortunately, Harry Potter does throw the averages out for everything else, but if we take Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (Dir. Guy Ritchie), it made $3.9m in the domestic box office and $24m in the international box office. Paddington (Dir. Paul King) is another example where the domestic box office was $76m and the international was $206m. It is clear that British cinema is making a splash the world over.

The styles and themes of British cinema have also changed and diversified a great deal over the years, with a combination of international influence as well as themes and issues which are fundamentally British. Some have even said that British cinema has had an impact on what it means to be British, in all its diversity. Hopefully, with the sites presented here, for British cinema we have covered all aspects of being British, from the pubs to the canals to the curry houses, and from residential areas which are up and coming to the West End where we can see how the elite live, embracing this diverse city.

1984 (1984)

Dir. Michael Radford

Senate House, Malet Street, WC1E 7HU

O’Brien (Richard Burton) invites Winston Smith (John Hurt) to his home to discuss the Newspeak dictionary.

The exterior of his apartment building is Senate House which was built between 1932 and 1937 and is part of the University of London. In the Second World War it was the home of the Ministry of Information, which became Orwell’s inspiration for the Ministry of Truth in his dystopian novel.

Alexandra Palace, Alexandra Palace Way, N22 7AY

https://www.alexandrapalace.com/

Alexandra Palace was used as the location for Victory Square. At the time it had been damaged by fire and has since been renovated.

Opened in 1863, and other than in wartime, Alexandra Palace has been a place of recreation ever since, with exhibitions and events regularly held, including an ice-rink in the winter, activities for children and places to eat and drink.

28 Days Later (2002)

Dir. Danny Boyle

Central Middlesex Hospital, Acton Lane, NW10 7NS/ Greenwich District Hospital, Vanbrugh Hill, Greenwich, SE10 9HW

Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes up in a deserted hospital which is meant to represent St Thomas’ Hospital on the Thames.

The internal shots were filmed in Central Middlesex Hospital, and the exterior shots as he leaves the hospital were filmed at Greenwich District Hospital, which closed in 2001.

Alexandra Palace, Alexandra Palace Way, N22 7AY. Courtesy of PhilaFrenzy, Wikimedia Commons

As he leaves the hospital Jim walks through a deserted London, stopping at a number of sites.

Westminster Bridge, SE1 7GA – He walks from the south side towards Parliament passing the iconic Coade lions at the entrance to the bridge. These lions are not stone as you would think but actually mould-fired pottery, known as Coade Stone, which have stood on the bridge for 160 years without damage.

Whitehall, SW1 2AY – As he walks along Whitehall he comes across an overturned bus by the statue of Douglas Haig, the 1st Earl Haig.

69 Horse Guards Parade, SW1A 2BE – Jim then walks away from the War Memorial in Horse Guards Parade.

Duke of York’s Steps, St James’s, SW1Y 5AJ – Here, Jim finds bank notes blowing in the wind, which he quickly gathers up, not realising that in this new world they’re valueless.

Bank of England and Old Royal Exchange, Princes Street, EC3V 3LA – There is an establishing shot taken here as he continues to walk through the abandoned city.

Westminster Bridge, SE1 7GA. Courtesy of Amandabhslater, Wikimedia Commons

Centre Point, New Oxford Street, WC1A 1DB – Jim walks past Centre Point through the crossroads with Tottenham Court Road and Oxford Street. There is an abandoned Mercedes on the hatchings in the centre of the road and as he looks through the window the alarm goes off, making him jump.

205 Wardour Street, W1F 8ZH – Continuing his journey Jim stops at a ransacked newsagents where he sees the headlines in the newspapers about the evacuation of London.

Shaftesbury Monument Memorial Fountain (Eros), Piccadilly Circus, W1J 9HS – On hoardings around the fountain the severity of the crisis becomes clear as he sees the thousands of notices pinned there of missing people and commemorating the dead.

St Anne’s Church, Limehouse, Three Colt Street, E14 7HA

https://stanneslimehouse.org/about/

Jim enters the church to be confronted by a sea of the dead. He calls out ‘Hello,’ alerting his presence to the infected priest (Toby Sedgwick). He is then attacked by the priest who he beats to the ground with his bag of drinks before once more fleeing to the streets.

This church was built by Nicholas Hawksmoor in 1730, although following a fire it was heavily restored in 1851. The church is open to the public.

Canary Wharf Station, E14 5LL

Following the destruction of the petrol station, Jim is led down the escalators of Canary Wharf underground station towards the Jubilee Line platforms to the safety of a convenience store.

South Quay DLR Station, Harbour Exchange Square, E14 9GQ

Jim, Selena (Naomie Harris) and Mark (Noah Huntley) start their journey to Jim’s parents’ house in Deptford by walking along the tracks of the DLR railway. Needless to say, don’t try to recreate this scene.

Naval Row Pedestrian Bridge, East India, Poplar, E14 2EB

The group continue walking to Deptford along the Naval Row Pedestrian Bridge.

South Colonnade (between Cabot & Upper Bank), 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, E14 5AB

Following the death of Mark, Selena and Jim leave Deptford to find safety elsewhere. They walk along the South Colonnade in Canary Wharf, and Selena says for the first time that she would kill Jim ‘in a heartbeat’ if he showed signs of being infected.

It is while they are walking here that they first see the fairy lights on the tower block balcony.

Trellick Tower, 5 Golborne Road, Notting Hill, W10 5PA

The external shots of the tower block with the balcony lit up with fairy lights is Trellick Tower. The interior of the building where they first meet Frank (Brendan Gleeson) and Hannah (Megan Burns) was filmed in River Heights, SE18, which was demolished shortly after filming finished.

Trellick Tower is a Grade II listed brutalist style tower block designed by Ernő Goldfinger and was completed in 1972. It was one of the final buildings he worked on before his death.

Blackwall Tunnel, E14 9RY

When Jim and Selena decide to join Frank and Hannah on their journey to Manchester, they jump in the black cab and drive to the entrance of the Blackwall Tunnel, wondering, as many a driver has, whether there is another route.

Limehouse Link Tunnel, Poplar, E14 4AS

Whilst in the tunnel, the group get a flat tyre and as they are changing it they notice all the rats fleeing the infected who are filling the tunnel. The internal shots were filmed in Limehouse Link Tunnel which links Limehouse with Canary Wharf and was opened in 1993.

It is thought to be the most expensive road per mile in Britain as at 1.1 mile long it cost £293,000,000 to construct.

145 Tottenham Court Road, W1T 7NE

Once getting through the tunnel safely, the group decide to stock up on food. They do this at a Budgens supermarket which stood at 145 Tottenham Court Road.

Now the store is a Lidl, so you can still stock up on food, irradiated fruit and a 16-year-old, single malt whiskey if the need arises.

28 Weeks Later (2007)

Dir. Juan Carlos

11 Saville Road, E16 2DS

As the new arrivals of evacuated citizens return to the UK they watch a street being cleared of yellow and red bin bags.

This was filmed on Saville Road with the camera angles near number 11 showing the Tate and Lyle factory in the background.

Canary Wharf DLR Station, E14 4QT

The new arrivals come into Canary Wharf station on the DLR. Tammy (Imogen Poots) and Andy (Mackintosh Muggleton) see their dad, Don (Robert Carlyle) waiting for them on the platform.

Canary Wharf Station, E14 5LL

Don and his children walk past the station entrance and a small shrine of candles and messages on the way to his apartment.

South Quay Footbridge, E14

When Tammy and Andy leave the quarantine zone to see if they can find their mother, they start by sneaking along the outer edge of the South Quay Footbridge.

It goes without saying that this is not a recognised way of passing over this bridge.

Bole, 30 Crouch Hill, N4 4AU

On the corner of Japan Crescent, Tammy and Andy steal a moped from outside the pizzeria in order to make their escape easier.

Now this pizzeria is Bole, a furniture and design business.

32 Therapia Road, Honor Oak Park, SE22 OSE

This was the family home, where Tammy and Andy let themselves in using a hidden key. Andy finds his mother Alice (Catherine McCormack) hiding behind the bed and realises that she hadn’t died as their father had told them. As they leave the house they are all taken back to the quarantine zone by soldiers.

CityPoint, Ropemaker Street, EC2Y 9AW

The exteriors of Quarantined District 1 Tower where Don is living was filmed on Ropemaker Street, whereas the interiors were filmed in the London Marriott Hotel, Canary Wharf.

Greenwich Foot Tunnel, SE10 9HT

The group Tammy, Andy, Scarlet (Rose Byrne), Sergeant Doyle (Jeremy Renner), and the Senior Medical Officer (Phillip Bulcock) escape the detonation of District 1 by running through the tunnel and only escape as the domed entrance explodes.

Then there is a montage of sites in London as the horde and the survivors escape the confines of the quarantine zone.

Millennium Bridge, Thames Embankment, EC4V

Smithfield Market, Grand Avenue, EC1A 9PS

22 Stoney Street, SE1 9AG

Watling Street, EC4M 9BJ

Bow Lane, EC4M 9ET

Great Windmill Street, W1D 7LA

Moorgate Tube Station, EC2M 6TX

Whitehall, SW1 2AY

Once they escape in the car they drive around Whitehall, Horse Guards Avenue and Parliament Street, until they end up driving down the entrance to Charing Cross underground station.

Charing Cross Station, Strand, WC2N 5HF

They go through the Jubilee Line ticket office and down the escalators to the platform where Tammy confronts and kills her infected father.

Since the extension in 1999 the Jubilee Line no longer stops at Charing Cross and therefore is only accessible on specialist tours.

Great Windmill Street, W1D 7LA.

Millennium Bridge, Thames Embankment, EC4V.

Wembley Stadium, 117 Preston Road, HA9 0WS

Tammy and Andy are the only survivors and end up walking to Wembley Stadium to be confronted by the helicopter pilot, Flynn (Harold Perrineau) who ultimately rescues them, taking them to France over the white cliffs of Dover.

The exterior shots were of Wembley Stadium but the interior shots were at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff.

A Fish Called Wanda (1988)

Dir. Charles Crichton

Aubrey House, 7 Maida Avenue, W2 1TQ

This was the location of Kipling Mansions, the home of Ken Pile (Michael Palin), where Otto (Kevin Kline) did unfortunate things to fish.

37–38 Hatton Garden, EC1N 8EB

Wanda Gershwitz (Jamie Lee Curtis) checks out Diamond House as the location of the jewel robbery.

Clerkenwell Green, EC1R 0DU

The robbery getaway was filmed in Clerkenwell, where Wanda, disguised by a false moustache, waits in the car but is spotted by a dog walker, Mrs Coady (Patricia Hayes).

Robert’s Place, Clerkenwell, EC1R 0BB

The robbers change cars after the robbery, near the steps which join Robert’s Place and Clerkenwell Close.

St John’s Gate, 26 St John’s Lane, EC1M 4BU

Ken disposes of the evidence near this gate.

69 Onslow Gardens, South Kensington, SW7 3QD

Mrs Coady returns home to Onslow Gardens after her dog walk, only to have Ken Pile make an unsuccessful attempt on her life.

2 New Square, Lincoln’s Inn, WC2A 3RJ

This New Square office block was the offices of barrister Archie Leach (John Cleese), where Wanda pays him a visit.

New Concordia Wharf, 3 Mill Street, SE1 2BG

This was the location of ‘St Trevor’s Wharf’, where Archie Leach borrows a luxurious apartment for his liaison with Wanda.

About a Boy (2002)

Dir. Chris Weitz, Paul Weitz

1 St James’s Walk (Sekforde Street), Farringdon, EC1R 0AP

Will Freeman’s (Hugh Grant) flat is situated on St James’s Walk, but the porch door appears to have been built for the film.

Comptoir Gascon, 63 Charterhouse Street, EC1M 6HJ

This is the French delicatessen that Will visits regularly.

West Hill Primary School, 13 Bromhill Road, Wandsworth, SW18 5ST

This is the location of ‘Finsbury Comprehensive School’ where Marcus (Nicholas Hoult) attends and is bullied, but also meets his ‘crush’ Ellie (Natalia Tena).

Queen Mary’s Gardens, Inner Circle, Paddington, NW1 4NR

The iconic scene where Marcus kills the duck with his mum’s home-made bread was filmed at the pond near the groundkeeper’s house in Queen Mary’s Gardens.

St James Clerkenwell Church, Sekforde Street, EC1R 0EA

This church is shown very briefly when Will (Hugh Grant) is considering volunteering at a soup kitchen. He doesn’t actually make it into the building.

Woodbridge Chapel, 5 Woodbridge Street, EC1R 0EX

The SPATs (Single Parents Alone Together) meeting was held here. Will attends the meetings as a ploy to meet single