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MOVIE FANS CAN GO ‘INTO THE WOODS’ WITH A VISIT TO THE FAIRY TALE FILMING LOCATION

Film fans will soon be able to walk in the footsteps of their favourite Hollywood stars – as English Heritage offer special tours of the fairy tale castle used to film highly anticipated blockbuster ‘Into the Woods’.

Castles and ruins have long been the perfect fantasy locations, and the film’s producers took full advantage of England’s rich settings when scouting for locations. From 10th January, Dover Castle in Kent will be offering ‘Into the Woods’ themed guided tours, showcasing the areas which featured prominently in the film and exploring the real life stories of kings and queens who lived there.

Released this week (9 January), the big screen adaptation of the award-winning Broadway musical features an all-star cast, including Meryl Streep as the Witch, Anna Kendrick as Cinderella and Johnny Depp as the Wolf.  Also playing a starring role is one of England’s most significant historic monuments, which was transformed to play a key location within the story.

The film tells the tale of a childless couple who set out to end a curse placed upon them by a vengeful witch, encountering characters from well-known fairy tales along the way.

One of the most spectacular castles in the country, Dover Castle became the setting for a fairy tale castle, home to a handsome prince.  King Henry II’s magnificent Great Tower and Inner Bailey walls took centre stage for scenes set at ‘the King’s Palace’, and one of its grand gateways adorned with a curtain of flowers provided the backdrop for a ‘Royal balcony moment’ at Cinderella’s wedding to her Prince.

Becky Smith, General Manager at Dover Castle, said: “The team here was very involved in working with the location team and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It’s not every day you get to witness a giant causing an earthquake, or get to host a fairytale ball!”

“We had to strike a careful balance between the needs of our visitors, the protection of the historic buildings in our care and the film-makers’ requirements, which I feel we achieved very well. This is a fantastic opportunity to show off the majesty of Dover Castle in a high-profile, British-made film. “We’re really excited to see how Henry II’s splendid Great Tower looks on the big screen and it just goes to prove that the best fantasies are inspired by reality.”

Although located high above the coast in real life, in the film the castle lies at the edge of the woods, so a woodland scene was created from lorry-loads of trees, shrubs and greenery on the grass banks within the castle’s outer walls. Atmospheric night-time scenes were filmed here, with only burning torches to light the way, while another dramatic scene saw an earthquake strike the castle.

The romantic ruins of England’s first Cistercian Abbey, Waverley Abbey in Surrey, were also transformed, this time into a fitting storybook tower where Rapunzel, played by MacKenzie Mauzy, was held captive.  “The sets had the sense of a fairy tale, but at the same time were very real and haunting,” says Mauzy. “Our set designers did such an amazing job that it was hard to tell the difference between my character’s tower and the ruins of the Abbey, itself. You instantly become part of that world, because it seemed so real.”

Productions like this play a key role in supporting the work of English Heritage, which cares for hundreds of historic properties across the country. All the income from filming goes towards supporting maintenance, restoration and enhancement projects at these properties.

 

Channel website: http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/

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