Sunday 17 April 2016

Madhouse diaries : On set with Harry Styles (in advance !)


There is much excitement at The Madhouse because a Hollywood film about Dunkirk and Operation Dynamo is imminently about to be shot and it would appear that none other than Harry Styles is set to be one of the actors. As Sophie and Juliette are huge One Direction fans, this is hugely exciting news for them and the other stars like Leonardo Di Caprio pale into insignificance. I still can't get my head around the idea of Harry Styles with a 1940s haircut but there you go, time wil tell ! As it was a beautiful day, we decided to head to the promenade for a wander along the beach and see what's been going on in preparation for the shoot.


We headed down the Digue des Alliés to the historic jetty where the Dunkirk Evacuation took place.


Pierre and Juliette preferred running along the beach itself. This area is part of the flood prevention plan and loads of sand was brought in to create a bigger expanse of beach. They've planted beach plants in various areas to help protect the sand so it all looks pretty wild and natural.


It was a really warm, sunny day, a total contrast to our last visit when the dramatic storm clouds were rapidly closing in on us.


Looking back at the menacing colour of the sky, I really don't know how we didn't get absolutely drenched that day !


As we neared the end of the main jetty, we realised that our walk would be cut short because there was a security guard stopping people going any further. It will be off limits to the public for the next few months apparently.


If you compare the picture above with the one I took in February, you can see that they've demolished all the concrete posts along the jetty. Apparently the film producers wanted to put the jetty back to the way it was during the war, but this has been a bit of a controversial move with the locals. As someone pointed out, if they can use special effects to recreate the destruction of New York City and all its monuments by a tidal wave or earthquake, surely they could have just used technology to hide the pillars. I'm sure they'll put it back to how it was once they've finished filming.


We headed back up to the seafront which is getting ready for the summer season. They've put out the trampolines and the palm trees in oversized plant pots. It will be the beach huts that will be installed next then we'll know that summer is really on its way !


The Kursaal exhibition hall is going to be disguised as a factory for the film apparently, so there are loads of big containers supposedly filled with props.


Sophie's already planning how she's going to fit stalking Harry Styles in around her exams ! I think it'll be really interesting to see a true-to-life reenactment of the evacuation because, although we've visited the local war museum and seen numerous photos, it's impossible to really get the scale of events.

Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays Cornwall

10 comments:

  1. It's weird to think that a world-famous singer is going to be in Dunkirk, I have to meet him I'm never going to be that close of him than then !

    ReplyDelete
  2. So much history along that stretch of coast. How exciting to have a film being made there and a very promising cast. We have Poldark with Aidan Turner being made just up the road from Coombe Mill and I took a bike ride on to the Moor or to see what I could spy there too, sadly not much! Always a delight to see your coast and the changes ready for the summer season. Thank you for sharing with me on #CountryKids

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't think we'll be able to get anywhere near the set, let alone the actors, especially if they've already got a security guard posted there weeks before filming starts, but you never know !

      Delete
  3. Oh I have a two OD fans in my family as well - they'd definitely stalk them given the opportunity. Hope you get to meet him!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, Sophie has her fingers, toes and everything else crossed !

      Delete
  4. I hope she gets to spot Harry Styles. That's very strange that they've changed the area up instead of using special effects. But it will be very cool to have a film made close by. You never know, you could all apply to be extras and get up close and personal to the stars!! It'll be exciting to see how the area changes in the next few months. Thank you so much for sharing this with Whatever The Weather xx

    ReplyDelete
  5. That sounds exciting! Hope you get to see a bit more of what's going on and even watch some of the filming (from a distance!). Strange to think that there will be several celebrities filming not too far away, hope the girls get to see Harry Styles, even if they don't meet him. A shame they decided to demolish the concrete pillars, they surely could edit it in the filming, they have plenty of special effect people that could do that easily I'm sure. Looks like a gorgeous beach, with a lot of history. Thanks so much for linking up with #Whatevertheweather :) xx

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...