With one week until the release of new Sky Christmas film 'Tinsel Town', we've been catching up with director Chris Foggin about his experience shooting scenes in Knaresborough and Wetherby.
In a chat with Your Harrogate presenter Pete Egerton, Chris praised Knaresborough and the wider Harrogate district after choosing the area as a key filming location for the festive flick.
Tinsel Town, which was filmed in and around Knaresborough and Wetherby earlier this year, showcases a range of recognisable North Yorkshire settings and features several local businesses.
Chris, who was born in Sunderland and later lived in Durham before his work took him to the South, said returning to the North to film felt like the right creative decision.
His recent projects have been based across Leeds, Harrogate and Wetherby, but he was particularly pleased with his time filming in Knaresborough:
“Thanks goes to Knaresborough for looking so wonderful, and the people of Knaresborough for being so accommodating.
“I remember getting the script for the first time and it obviously needed that romantic, chocolate box feel to it, where ultimately our character, who is a bit of a fish out of water, can fall in love with it, so Knaresborough and the North was the place to do it.
"We just had such a wonderful experience making it and we’re so grateful for all the local businesses who were amazing and allowed us to descend on the town. I hope it does Knaresborough proud.”
Chris said he has long had personal ties to the area, recalling regular visits to Wetherby and Stockeld Park in his twenties.
He said:
“The North to me is just the best. Visually it’s amazing, the people… And I wanted to make sure when we shot this film, it had the colour of how I see these areas.”
Tinsel Town will star Kiefer Sutherland as Bradley Mack and Rebel Wilson as choreographer Jill, as well as Jason Manford and Danny Dyer.
The story depicts a once-renowned Hollywood action star who finds himself unexpectedly cast in a local pantomime production in a fictional town.
And when it came to casting, Chris said it had always been his ambition to secure Kiefer Sutherland for the lead role.
He said:
“We sent it to him and were sure he’d say no, but a couple of days later we heard that he loved it and wanted to chat to us,” he said. “He got the sensibility and what we were trying to do with it, so he was great.”
He added that cast members who were not from the UK quickly adapted to the film’s tone and themes, including the distinctly British appeal of pantomime.
Speaking about Rebel Wilson, Chris said:
“Rebel was amazing. She spent a lot of time in the UK, lives in the UK, gets the UK sense of humour so she was straight into it as well.”
Sky Original movie ‘Tinsel Town’ showcases locations including Knaresborough - with filming around Castlegate, Riverside and Green Dragon Yard - and Wetherby, where production utilised the town centre and Town Hall area.
The film is set to release on Friday 5th December, with an exclusive early screening at Fraser Theatre on Tuesday 2nd December.
LISTEN IN FULL: Your Harrogate's Pete Egerton chats to Tinsel Town director Chris Foggin:
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