Carmel

Hi does anyone know if the house scene in this film were just pictures or is there a real house that this was shot in, i know the inside was more than likely a studio but would like to know about the outside scenes and were is the village, it seemed a lovely place im sure much changed by now sadly.

GRAEME

According to IMDB the fil was shot at Oakley Court, Windsor Road, Oakley Green, near Windsor. Oakley Court is a hotel now, don't know if it was then.

I'm pretty sure the rest of the film was shot at Shepperton - the greenhouses I remember playing around when I was a kid in the studios.

Anthony McKay

Oakley Court was in a very sorry state in the late '60s - I think it was probably still in private ownership then.

Talking of the the Shepperton greenhouses.

I'm currently wading through the Shepperton Danger Man episodes for the Avengerland guide and I'm putting together a page on the bits using the studio grounds at Shepperton Studio Buildings. When you were playing around the gardens how much of various bridges, buildings and fountains still existed?

Anthony McKay

As well as the water tank did there used to be a large brick chimney as part of the greenhouse buildings?

GRAEME

I'm sorry but I don't remember the chimney.

The greenhouses were pretty rough - lots of the panes broken and all sorts of stuff got thrown in them - porn, bottles, old scripts you name it.

Fountains yes and ornamental podiums and things - but again these were plastercast really and got to look pretty crappy.

Along with the old Oliver! set - everything would be patched up brilliantly if a production was on - but it was skin deep and only if the angles showed things. That's show biz.

There was a "stone" bridge in the woods and a wooden affair that soon went. There was a kind of wooden gazebo/hut I used to play in that I'm sure I saw in the Stewart Granger movie The Trygon Factor.

Very sad day when they sold off most of the land to housing developers.

The old house itself was a set in many films - not least The Omen. You could have lunch in there in the days before the Who bought it as their headquarters. It had a very opulent staircase and lush conservatory.

All this is between 1974 and 1983. I was around the sets quite a lot especially the old Oliver! set, and the Ragtime, Saturn 3, Pink Panthers and Flash prodctions.

GRAEME

Duh!

Of course I should have looked at your website before answering! Sorry.

But wow! Great pics really bring back memories. Yes that's the gazebo/hut thing and the bridges I meant. I do not remember the octagonal pool thing.

But your unknown building with the sharp motor going past, I'm pretty sure was my Dad's office from about 1974 - 1987. The company moved in as MacMillan Film Productions - the film lab part was called METAC and was out the back - the big window near the walkway. Later the company became Middlesex Film Productions with my father Colin Sutherland as MD.

Also seen in Son of the Fly, btw.

It was a smallish one storey building opposite the big sound stage. Behind it was the old house.

Parking was tight and Keith Moon once let all the tyres down on my dad's roller. He offered to buy him another car when he complained! (settled for new tyres). Rumour had it that Peter Sellers got him back at his own game when he parked across the way during one of the later Panther productions!

The strange walk way was eventually glazed in with doors making a kind of cloisters. The two doors at the back of the building - one of them was the ladies loo. Supposedly ours but the set hands (male) used it and left porn mags (which I stole) and bogeys on the wall! Ugh.