Filming has begun in Bath for a BBC feature-length drama The Night Watch, adapted from the book by best-selling author Sarah Waters.
The Night Watch plays out the story of four ordinary people caught up in wartime and post-war London amidst scenes of air raids, blacked-out streets and bomb damaged landscapes.
Waters’ novels Fingersmith and Tipping the Velvet were the subject of successful BBC television adaptations in 2002 and 2005 respectively.
Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Film Office has been working closely with the BBC to help with the filming arrangements. “We have worked closely with the BBC crew to find locations for 1940s bomb-damaged Victorian terraces, parks, canal paths, factories, town halls, ambulance stations, underground subways and cinemas” said Jenni Wagstaffe, Film Commissioner.
“Although the production is on a very tight schedule, all the Council departments involved, such as Highways, Parking, Open Spaces and the Guildhall have as always pulled out all the stops to make the filming run smoothly in Bath”.
Councillor Terry Gazzard, Cabinet Member for Tourism Leisure and Culture, said: “I’m very pleased that The Night Watch team have chosen to film in Bath rather than in London. Major drama productions tend to centre on the capital but our film-friendly city has a lot to offer - Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Film Office has a very strong track-record in offering expert help and support to film crews. In return, the economic benefits that these large-scale productions bring to our region are always substantial.”
Filming for The Night Watch, which features double BAFTA award-winner Anna Maxwell Martin, Claire Foy, Anna Wilson-Jones and Kenneth Cranham among its cast, started this weekend and will be taking place in Bath until the middle of December.
This drama is being produced by Bath-based Annie Tricklebank (whose credits include Lark Rise to Candleford) and directed by Richard Laxton. It is due to be broadcast on BBC2 in April 2011