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When British locations stand in for far-flung Hollywood locations

When British locations stand in for far-flung Hollywood locations

When British locations stand in for far-flung Hollywood locations
07 April 2016

‘Are the Cantina Band playing the 02 Arena?’

Forget AT-AT Walkers and shiny Stormtroopers, what really caught the eye in the new trailer for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, which you can see here, was a blink-or-miss-it clip of people legging it down what appears to be the Jubilee line platform inside Canary Wharf station.

Not in a lookalike sense either - we mean the real actual physical Isle of Dogs location, doubling up for some intergalactic location in the saga’s next chapter, which Twitter users were only happy to try and speculate.

It wouldn’t be the first time a British location has been transformed into an exotic location for a film of course. So, starting with the new Jason Bourne film below, here are some other notable recent examples.

Woolwich Tube Station for Athens in Jason Bourne 5

Commuters at Woolwich station found themselves hugely befuddled a fortnight ago when filmmakers behind the new Jason Bourne film doubled the station up as Athens. Presumably cheaper than flying Matt Damon and a few cameras out to the Mediterranean, the production crew simply plastered a couple of Greek signs around. No wonder Matt Damon’s amnesiac is so confused all the time.


When British locations stand in for far-flung Hollywood locations

New Top Gear presenter Matt Le Blanc had gone maverick.


Manchester for forties New York in Captain America: The First Avenger

See blurry Chris Evans here, pacing barefoot down the streets of Manchester's Northern Quarter? He's not had his trainers nicked, he was filming his Steve Rogers origins story in a stand-in New York, wearing rubber prosthetic feet and no doubt delighted that it had stopped raining.


When British locations stand in for far-flung Hollywood locations

When former shot-stopper Sergio Romero left United, he didn't leave the city.


When British locations stand in for far-flung Hollywood locations

Tracy Barlow had taken enough.


London's Millenium Bridge for Guardians of the Galaxy

If you thought those Apprentice candidates were terrified marching over London’s imposing Millennium Bridge to the BBC show's bombastic theme, that's nothing compared to the paint-splattered, panicked extras running over it for Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. Airbrushing the Tate and the like out, it's at least good to know it's not all CGI these days.


When British locations stand in for far-flung Hollywood locations

'Did they mean the next millennium?'


Glasgow for Philadelphia in World War Z

Rumour was Brad Pitt chartered an entire Virgin Pendolino from London when transporting his brood to the fair city of Glasgow, doubling for Philadelphia in the opening of World War Z. Such was the level of detail they went to setting the scene, stopping just short of hiring angry Celtic/Rangers fans to play the infected miscreants, we’re surprised they didn’t slap an Am-track logo on Brad's train while they were at it.


When British locations stand in for far-flung Hollywood locations

Glasgow's St George Square was also used for Fast & Furious 6.