Railway footage in feature films and television...

[ajwffc]

Hi,

 

I believe that the trainline adverts take place inside Chiltern Mainline's Refrubished MK3's!

 

I can't remember who it's for, but there is an advert where a lady is seen sitting in a MK1 carriage, quite distinctive by the window frames, which then is seen going past and it has magically turned into a First Capital Connect Class 377! After a few secounds, the lady then steps out of a Blood and Custard Mk1 again!

 

Simon

 

It is the TK-Maxx Christmass advert and i think it was fillmed at the BKR.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VycZ1BxVMc

[Danemouth]

The Christmas Day episode of "Downton Abbey" featured a railway scene with "the family" supposedly going to Scotland for their hols. Now IIRC Downton Abbey was set in Yorkshire so where did they film it - The Bluebell of course!

 

The train had a carriage that looked the dog's danglies but with a van and brake van with an obviously Southern tender loco?

 

So much for historical accuracy!

 

Dave

[The Stationmaster]

The Christmas Day episode of "Downton Abbey" featured a railway scene with "the family" supposedly going to Scotland for their hols. Now IIRC Downton Abbey was set in Yorkshire so where did they film it - The Bluebell of course!

 

The train had a carriage that looked the dog's danglies but with a van and brake van with an obviously Southern tender loco?

 

So much for historical accuracy!

 

Dave

 

Obviously Southern tender loco Dave? - looked like Bachmann's finest off the SECR to me  But worst of all was the freight brakevan on the back, hadn't they got a suitable passenger vehicle I wondered?

 

However with all these things you do wonder what alternative they might have had?  Clearly they didn't want to spend too much so like almost everything else in the series, and this 'special', they had to shoot in southern England (Note *) and they would then get their location bookers to see what's on offer in their neck of the woods.  And when you think about it there's not much choice if they want a station with a reasonable period atmosphere  and some realistic looking stock - that's what the average viewer will want and that was what they got.

 

Note * 'Downton Abbey' , of course Highclere Castle while the village is Bampton in Oxfordshire.   Nearer railway would have had a distinctly GW theme I suspect, which would have been even worse.

[melmerby]

At least they stickered the rolling stock & loco NER. But why bother when the rest was so historically inaccurate.

 

However Inverary Castle, Downton's  "Duneagles" is in Scotland, not exactly the Highlands though (well probably, on second thoughts)!

 

Keith

 

EDIT Isn't the series currently now post 1923 i.e. "The Grouping" ?

Edited December 26, 2012 by melmerby

[The Stationmaster]

At least they stickered the rolling stock & loco NER. But why bother when the rest was so historically inaccurate.

 

However Inverary Castle, Downton's  "Duneagles" is in Scotland, not exactly the Highlands though (well probably, on second thoughts)!

 

Keith

 

EDIT Isn't the series currently now post 1923 i.e. "The Grouping" ?

 

It is definitely 'about then' but I'm not sure if it is now past 1923 as the recent series was fairly firmly 1920/21 in some episodes.

[SM42]

The model of Mallard in NCIS mentioned back in #288 featured in another epsiode where Ducky appeared carrying out some maintenance on said loco and gave a surprisingly accurate description of what the model was.

 

Back to flims: Can't see it mentioned but The Love Match with Athur Askey as a train driver features (not unsurprisingly) a reasonable amount of railway footage.

 

I also recall a film with Peter Sellars, Lionel Jeffries and other contemporary faces that featured some shenanigins at a level crossing. I think it was was called The Wrong Arm of the Law or something similar. Anyone know the level crossing used ?

 

Back to TV and a recently repeated episode of the BBC series  Hustle, where the gang take on a dodgy loan company called Dosh4U, featured Birmingham New St signalbox as the exterior face of Dosh4u's headquarters.

 

Andy

[big jim]

peep show on christmas eve featured a chiltern 165 starting at marylebone with various cut away filmed between what looked like great missenden and aylesbury

[newbryford]

Anybody noticed the howler in "Skyfall"?

 

The tube station featured is "Temple" and it shows tube sized stock, but Temple is on the District/Circle lines........................

 

Cheers,

Mick

[Danemouth]

Obviously Southern tender loco Dave? - looked like Bachmann's finest off the SECR to me  But worst of all was the freight brakevan on the back, hadn't they got a suitable passenger vehicle I wondered?

 

 

Note * 'Downton Abbey' , of course Highclere Castle while the village is Bampton in Oxfordshire.   Nearer railway would have had a distinctly GW theme I suspect, which would have been even worse.

Thanks Mike,

 

Being a GWR man I didn't recognise a foreign kettle - saw the light green loco and knowing the station jumped to a conclusion!

 

Whilst appreciating the true location setting "Downton Abbey" is supposed to be near Leeds - well it was in one of the earlier series. So if they were filming in Scotland one of the northern preserved lines might have been a better choice. Still I suppose we must be grateful that a small saddle tank engine didn't appear as it did in an episode of Sherlock Holmes (Jeremy Brett) when he was supposed to be" catching the fast train to London"!.

 

Cheers,

 

Dave

Edited December 26, 2012 by Danemouth

[melmerby]

Whilst appreciating the true location setting "Downton Abbey" is supposed to be near Leeds - well it was in one of the earlier series. So if they were filming in Scotland one of the northern preserved lines might have been a better choice.

 

Cheers,

 

Dave

Presumably they would not have got a through train from Yorkshire to "The Highlands" so a change would have been made in Edinburgh or Glasgow.

Maybe a shot of arrival at "Duneagle" filmed on the Strathspey line would have been better. (Glenbogle anybody?)

 

Keith

[Brian Indge]

 

 

I also recall a film with Peter Sellars, Lionel Jeffries and other contemporary faces that featured some shenanigins at a level crossing. I think it was was called The Wrong Arm of the Law or something similar. Anyone know the level crossing used ?

 

 

 

The location for the level crossing was Bushy Park Road, Edenton, Midlesex.

 

The crossing and gas works are no longer there.

 

If you put the road name into Google it should come up with the website that has some great photos before and after of the location.

 

Regards,

 

Brian

[Coppercap]

Anybody noticed the howler in "Skyfall"?

 

The tube station featured is "Temple" and it shows tube sized stock, but Temple is on the District/Circle lines........................

 

Cheers,

Mick

 

 

Well, I thought the same as you. But where I was sat my view wasn't that clear, so I kept quiet!   

[Pacific231G]

I was quite amused, while watching The Bruce-Partington Plans episode of Sherlock Holmes a  couple of days ago, that in the scene in the ticket office of Woolwich station a single line token machine is very evident. Conan Doyle's story was written in 1895 and he clearly had a reasonably good knowledge of the system. 

The text of the story is available on http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2346/2346-h/2346-h.htm

Edited December 27, 2012 by Pacific231G

[The Stationmaster]

Presumably they would not have got a through train from Yorkshire to "The Highlands" so a change would have been made in Edinburgh or Glasgow.

Maybe a shot of arrival at "Duneagle" filmed on the Strathspey line would have been better. (Glenbogle anybody?)

 

Keith

The train they joined on the journey to Scotland gave a reasonable impression of being a special - limited number of vehicles and one which could be taken as something akin to a family saloon.  While the loco would obviously have not worked through the 'saloon' and luggage van (plus possibly another vehicle for the servants although unlikely in this case) would have gone through.  Family saloons were definitely still in use in the early 1920s and some were dual braked (vacuum and Westinghouse) thus allowing them to operate on all companies' lines - provided they were in gauge.

 

Alas the image was spoilt by Lady Mary getting off what appeared to be the same train when she returned!

[griffgriff]

Anybody noticed the howler in "Skyfall"?

 

The tube station featured is "Temple" and it shows tube sized stock, but Temple is on the District/Circle lines........................

 

Cheers,

Mick

TBF they did a lot of running around down there... and perhaps they ended up at Holborn via Aldwych using an invisible fly shunt - Mornington Crescent anyone 

[D803Albion]

Stepford Wives 1975

 

A couple are in the living room of their new house discussing the pro's and con's of leaving New York and moving to Stepford.

 

On the mantle piece as clear as day is a painting of what looks like the Royal Albert bridge over the Tamar!!

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

My favourite is the 1953 colour version of 'Any Man's Kingdom' which explores Northumberland and features the Border Counties railway between Riccarton jnc and Bellingham (North Tyne). Lovely quality. If anyone looks for it then avoid the later version which features vintage buses rather than the steam trains.

 

Cheers

 

Dave 

Edited December 27, 2012 by Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71

[JeffP]

Prince Caspian: why, oh why, did the producers have the children whisked to Narnia from a tube station platform?

 

The book is as clear as crystal: a sleepy country junction station.

 

Horstead Keynes, anyone?

[Eggesford box]

Anybody noticed the howler in "Skyfall"?

 

The tube station featured is "Temple" and it shows tube sized stock, but Temple is on the District/Circle lines........................

 

Cheers,

Mick

Or the train at the start of the film where the train divides, the air pipe parts but the train keeps moving. Had to bite my tongue or the missus would have hit me!

[jamie92208]

Or the train at the start of the film where the train divides, the air pipe parts but the train keeps moving. Had to bite my tongue or the missus would have hit me!

 

We were watching Downton yesterday and as soon as the train came on SWMBO told me in no uncertain terms not to say what was wrong with it.  My only comment now after watching it is that the north and sounbound trains were both pointing the same direction.

 

 

Jamie

[Rugd1022]

'Gideon's Way' has a few nice bits of railway footage in some episodes - in one there are a couple of scenes shot at what looks like the abandoned station at Uxbridge Vine Street, another features a wages snatch at Kings Cross while another has footage shot on the concourse at Waterloo.

[PatB]

Or the train at the start of the film where the train divides, the air pipe parts but the train keeps moving. Had to bite my tongue or the missus would have hit me!

Trains in films with non-functional continuous brakes are my personal technical bete-noir too. Those and road vehicle anachronisms.

[Killybegs]

The original version of The 39 steps (lunchtime today). Flying Scotsman leaves Kings Cross for Scotland. Next progress shot is of a Castle emerging from what looked like Box Tunnel!

[bluebottle]

The original version of The 39 steps (lunchtime today). Flying Scotsman leaves Kings Cross for Scotland. Next progress shot is of a Castle emerging from what looked like Box Tunnel!

 

You meant to say, of course, "Flying Scotsman leaves England for Waverley".

[Michael Delamar]

finally found this, The Bill episode Chicken..

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckUxtBKe9ac