Russell Crowe Swaps Sherwood for the Pub

My recent post on the making of Hollywood’s latest £110 million Robin Hood epic, created a great deal of interest. So here is the latest newspaper gossip on the filming of Sir Ridley Scott’s new blockbuster called Nottingham.

Filming has been taking place in Bourne Woods in Surrey, where Russell Crowe filmed the opening scenes of Gladiator in 2000, but now, the locals at Freshwater West, on the edge of the Pembrokeshire coast in Wales have never seen anything like it! Along their normally quiet, remote secluded beaches, amongst the sand dunes, have recently been heaps of dead crusaders, in bloodstained iron helmets, plumes of smoke and the fluttering of tasselled flags. A cast and crew of 800, including 450 local extras (on £80 a day) and 130 horses have arrived on the broad deep sands to film the latest scenes with Russell Crowe aged 45 as a ‘young’ Robin Hood fighting as an archer in Richard the Lionheart’s army.

According to various reports, out at sea, there have been seen four ancient longboats, packed with knights, brandishing crossbows and pikes. Beached beside the rocks, is a huge medieval galleon with its sails fluttering in the wind. Out of shot, there’s a speedboat, a dinghy, three jet skis, a pair of customised fishing boats and three enormous landing craft camouflaged in plywood.

Meanwhile towards the back of the set are seven tractors, 11 golf carts and approximately 33 4x4 vehicles all used to film a battle between the English and the French until the end of the month. ‘Fresh West’ beach, as the locals call the area, will double for scenes set in Dover and France.

Up on the cliff top, in the car park by the ice cream van, stands a tented city providing the props for the film making army and at the far end of the beach stand ranges of temporary stables. Further down are the sparkling white trailers and motor homes of all but the main star-Russell Crowe. He is flown in and out by helicopter on a daily basis from Windsor in Berkshire. Cate Blanchett (Maid Marian) is not required for the battle scenes.

Universal Pictures have injected £1 million pounds into the local area, which has already seen 50 days of filming by the crew of ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.’ Film companies have obviously realised what a marvellous location Freshwater West is and are benefiting from the usual tax breaks given to film making in Britain.

After a day’s filming ended, the locals reported that Crowe, born in New Zealand but raised in Australia, visited the Carew Inn, with a party of pals and delighted staff and patrons with his Everley Brothers renderings of Bye Bye Love and Wake Up Little Susie. He ate a meal of mussels and the chicken special and left a hefty tip!

He has also been seen recently enjoying himself at a private party for 30 guests at the Royal Oak pub in Bray, owned by Sir Michael Parkinson. Crowe arrived with his wife Danielle Spencer and a bottle of red wine, possibly a present for his hosts. The party was said to have continued late into the evening, with comedian Ben Elton roped in to serve as a waiter.