THE people behind a Darlington community venue are thrilled after impressing a film crew when it used its building last month.
Cast and crew on the production of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry used Pathfinder House, in Northgate, Darlington last month.
Oscar winning actor Jim Broadbent, who is playing Harold Fry in the adaptation of the novel by the same name, was among those to use the venue during a day of filming in October.
Read more: Jim Broadbent spotted filming in Darlington today
Darlington-born assistant location manager Stuart Wharton, who is part of the Rose Pine Productions team, has written a letter of thanks to staff at the venue.
He said: “On behalf of all the cast and crew from Rose Pine Productions, I would like to say a huge thank you to the staff at Pathfinder House.
“We hired Pathfinder House while we filmed some scenes from our new feature film ‘The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry’. It was a great place for our cast and crew to relax and eat between shooting. The staff were very welcoming and the building has loads of rooms and space that would work for a lot of different events.
“As a Darlington native, it was a pleasure to bring a feature film there, and with more help from people and places like Pathfinder House, more things could hopefully film there in the future.”
Stephen Morgan, who runs the venue, said he was thrilled by the feedback.
He added: “It was brilliant.
“When we got the booking we were told it was for a potentially high profile person so we were told to keep quiet.
“When we said we were a community building and had people coming in all day they didn’t think we could do it but we were able to use the back entrance and no-one knew they were there.
“It’s great to get that kind of feedback. Who knows what could happen in the future.”
The film crew was spotted filming near the Northgate roundabout in October.
The film is an adaptation of the book by the same name by Rachel Joyce.
The film and book follows a seemingly unremarkable man in his 60s named Harold (Broadbent), who one day learns his old friend Queenie is dying.
He embarks on a walk, only to keep going for 450 miles until he reaches Queenie’s (Linda Bassett) hospice, much to the despair of his wife Maureen (Penelope Wilton), left at home.
Shooting is taking place entirely on location and sequentially, mirroring Harold’s own journey in the story.
The high-budget independent feature is the first work from director Hettie Macdonald since the BBC series Normal People.
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