'Quatermass 2' location question

[Anthony McKay]

Exact location:

51°50'14.44"N 0°36'33.46"W

[smiler]

Originally Posted by alan french I am not sure where the original television version was shot other than an oil refinery in Essex. Possibly the same as the film version. Alan French.

filming for the bbc serial took place at the now flattened 'shell haven oil refinery' at stanford-le-hope essex. i think some outdoor scenes were filmed at the nearby mucking marshes, some of other scenes were shot at another long gone venue - white city stadium (for the angry mob at the gate scene), or QPR's football stadium, sorry can't remember which. i know that the scene where quatermass confronts the alien slime behind an inspection window, was filmed in the basement of lime grove studios.

[alan french]

HI.
Yes. I have wondered about the hilly bits in certain shots. I was not sure if they were trick photography or another location. Ivinghoe Beacon, yes, fits the bill. I had only been a memeber for a few minutes and was not fully acquainted with the full forum.I gave reference to the two housing estates that were in Hemel Hempstead. These were definately used for certain shots. I live in one of the estates utilized. I note that someone has referred to the Oil Depot in Buncefield Lane. This was not built until 1968. Years after both the television and film were made. Interestingly, in the original television version, at least one dome exploded and gas escaped. Very similar to the real life explosion in 2005, of which is still a controversial subject in this town. One of the estates I referred to, Warners End, also has a road called Quartermass Road. Many people think it is in memeory of the film. But in fact it is the named after a local family whose daughter was murdered during a byegone era.


Alan French.

[philkb]

I was always hoping I could someday get to England to find and visit the spots used for filming of the movie, which has spooked and fascinated me for 50 years,
I pinned the coordinates given on Google Earth and that sure looks like where Winnerden Flats was, too bad all the "debris" is long gone, so as to really get the feel of it. Also, it's too bad about Shell Haven. Gone for good. I tried looking at the roads and scars around the area but nothing is recognizable. (Gate 4)? Now, after the post about the stadiums, I wonder if one of those is where that little guard shack with the little horn on top actually was. I was sure that was actually at an entrance to the plant. I got a kick out of the scenes closing in on the little horn when it was clear that the siren sound was from an old, hand-cranked siren. I assume that much of the scenes of the rocket base, etc., were from whatever studios were used for the filming. Still trying to locate the Carlisle road too, right near where there are steel power line towers. No luck finding that either. Not to mention the spot at Hemel Hempsted where quatermass talks to a resident, and where the Community Centre was located. (Long gone too, no doubt)
I know this a long-winded post but one can see how strong my fascination with this film is.

Phil,
USA

[alan french]

Hi.
Winnerdon flats I think you find is a mixed bag of location and studio. Carlisle Road is fiction. It is I think you will find, part of the Watford By-Pass. One building is the entrance to the ruins of Berkhamsted Castle. The shack or community centre is now Martindale School in Boxted Road Warners End . This may be under threat of closure. The zombies with their meteor detectors are on a paved footpath next to it and a block of flats in Boxted Road. Opposite is Galley Hill where the strikers march and pot shots are taken at Quatermas' car. There is also a shot of one or two buses on some grass. That is the Gadebiridge end of Galley Hill. The scene where Quatermass asks a lady for directions is one of the roads off Boxted Road in Warners End. Warners End and Gadebridge areas are housing estates in Hemel Hempstead. Warners End was in process of being built at the time of filming. Other locations are Ivingho and a refinery in the county of Essex as referred to elsewhere.

Because of the Hemel Hempstead connection, as far as the cinema film is concerned, I have seen the odd reference to the Buncefield Oil Depot which exploded in 2005. The original version of this tale was a serial which went out live on BBC television in 1955. In this version the domes in the plant at Winnerdon Flats explode and release vapours etc. This may be similar to the real Buncefield explosion but it is coincidence. Also Buncefield was not built at that time. It is right over the other side of Hemel Hempsterad.
Alan French.

[earlb]

Being an old Hempstedian a friend sent me this message:-

The Quatermass film shot at Warners end was "Quatermass 2" in 1956 and released in 1957. I think the American title was "Enemy from Space" I well remember standing behind the camera watching Brian Donlevy doing one of his scenes.
It was a very cold winter's day with snow on the ground and was a supposed Community hall opposite Galley Hill. The area there had no buildings on it and was just open ground waiting for houses to be built on. In fact a school now stands where the filming took place. The Community hall itself was just a mock-up of the front of a building made from wood covered with hessian and sprayed black. I can remember seeing the material gently blowing in the light wind. There is a quatermass road further down the hill off of Spring lane. it does seem a little strange that this road that was built some time after 1957 was nothing to do with the film. The Hemel Hempstead Gazette states that it was named after a 12 old girl who was murdered in the 1800s, but as we well know the Gazette has been known to print crazy stuff in the past. They said that the Old Princess Cinema was where the Odeon is today and the Luxor was where Woolworths is today ???
I suppose its only us old ancient folks who remember the true facts of what was where in the old town. Next time I am up that way I will take pictures and send you the original site where they shot the film.....

[philkb]

I will be anxiously waiting to see the photos of the areas and I thank you very much for getting me that info.
I just tried to post a reply about 15 minutes ago and it said I was not logged in even though I was and I lost the whole post.
It's still a surprise how many areas were used for filming given the budget for the film. I've even had a dream about being outside the old Community Centre, even with imagined changes for the present time. I've also had a dream or two about Broadhead's horror at the plant and could almost smell the ammonia. Man, that was grim!!
I feel bad about missing any possible opportunity to see the Shell Haven plant, assuming I could get lucky enough to get to England in the first place. If I could get there, my wife and/or any other people accompanying me would probably get bugged with my fascination for the film and going to places where it was filmed. None of them ever saw the film, and inasmuch as it's old and B&W, I couldn't get anyone else interested in seeing it. Of course I have the DVD of it and I'm amazed how clear the picture quality is. I lost count of how many times I've watched it since getting the DVD.
Anyway, thanks again,

Phil

[earlb]

Filming locations for Quatermass 2 (1957)
Canvey Island, Essex, England, UK
Chobham Common, Surrey, England, UK
Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England, UK
House Of Lords, Houses of Parliament, Westminster, London, England, UK
Ivinghoe Beacon, The Ridgeway, Buckinghamshire, England, UK (Winnerden Flats)
London, England, UK
Parliament Square, Westminster, London, England, UK
Shell Haven Refinery, Essex, England, UK
South Downs outside Brighton, East Sussex, England, UK
Trafalgar Square, St James's, London, England, UK

[philkb]

So many changes must have taken place in the past 50 years it will be hard to find anything reconizable, even if the plant still existed. It too would probably be so changed as not to be anything like it was in 1957.
I'm still trying to match the layout of the homes and streets in the area where the Community Centre was but nothing quite matches up. Again, who knows how many different locations may have been used in the jump from Quatermass' approach to the street where he made the first right turn, to where he actually stopped to ask for help, not to mention from that place to the road shown where he made the left turn to go to the Centre. Studied Google Earth to try to find the spots but they didn't seem to match what I saw in the movie. I had the movie on and used pause while looking at the Google Earth images. I found the school where the Centre was supposed to be, but the closest road coming out onto Boxted Road didn't match the one from the movie.
Oh well, what can I say, without having actually been there. Everything looks different from above anyway.

Phil

[philkb]

I'm just on Google Earth at this moment and I think I may have located the road used for the "Have you been in an accident or something" shot: Someries Road. This has the correct turn direction, the row of 7 houses behind it and just around the corner is the pathway behind the houses on that road, particularly the long structure that has its peak 90 degrees from the length of the structure, as seen in the film. I'd like to say WOOT!! I found something but I want to be absolutely sure of it.

Phil

[philkb]

I'm still trying to orient myself using the Google Earth image as well as scenes from the movie so as to establish the location of "Gate 4" which I now suspect was well inside the plant, obviously close to the spheres, and that everything on the opposite (outside) of the gate, was probably masked off and matte techniques used during the film making so as to make it look like the "middle of nowhere" on the outside of the gate. I don't see any other possible way those scenes could exist in a natural state considering the location of various objects in the plant. The gate and the fencing connected with it looked like it was added in. The gatehouse seems as if it must have been built for the movie also. Much of the fencing to one side of the gate looks like it's made from wood and supported in a temporary fashion. I wonder if there are any records of how things were done kept at the Elstree studios? Even then, they may not want anyone to know how everything was done so as to make things different in the film than in reality.

Phil