Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman will fly into the town of North Berwick next month to shoot scenes for a new film. Though the stars are familiar to all, the town itself is only just now becoming famous for its involvement in the pictures. Though several high profile films have shot in the East Lothian town lately, the citizens are still giddy-as-a-schoolgirl at the prospects of a new film, with one citizen saying , “Anything that puts North Berwick on the map will be a good thing.”
North Berwick is a quaint, picturesque Scottish town. It seems like a far cry from anything Hollywood, and even if you did film there, think indie and offbeat over A-list and expensive. Still, Oscar winners Firth and Kidman will be there to film The Railway Man , the story of Edinburgh-born prisoner of war Eric Lomax. The small town is becoming quite a film star in its own right, having hosted crews for Brad Pitt’s zombie flick World War Z , Scarlett Johansson’s sci-fi horror Under The Skin , and even the newest Daniel Craig Bond film, Skyfall .
The Railway Man will shoot in Tantallon Terrace and Port Seton from May 13-18. Though humble and easygoing, the townsfolk embrace the Hollywood hubbub and the coming arrival of both Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman. John Skillen, the 49-year-old manager at the town’s Sweet News newsagent said that, “It will certainly raise the profile of the town. This is a tourism place and a holiday resort so the boost will be good.” 52-year-old Irene Steel, manager at the County Hotel feels that, “This is really good news for North Berwick – it makes the town buzz a wee bit and makes it a bit more exciting. It will really help put the town on the map.”
Colin Firth plays Eric Lomax, a real-life figure whose 1980 memoir inspired the film. The Railway Man is the story of Lomax, who served in World War II as a British army signals officer and was captured in Singapore in 1942. He was then sent to Japan’s infamous Changi prisoner-of-war camp. Lomax, alongside thousands of other Allied prisoners, endured torture and was forced to work on the construction of the so-called “Death Railway” between Thailand and Burma.
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