JK Rowling and the idyllic village that never was... And the five Cotswolds towns TV show used instead
Forget the stars and intrigues. The real draw of tonight's eagerly awaited A Casual Vacancy TV debut is its utterly gorgeous setting. Or IS it?
The small West Country village of Pagford is a rural dream, with its abundance of small stores, family-run shops and cobbled streets. The fictional community on which author J. K. Rowling based her book The Casual Vacancy was always meant to reflect the absolute essence of English country life.
But when it came to turning the author’s bestselling novel into one of this year’s most hotly anticipated television series – beginning tonight on BBC1 – it swiftly became apparent that such a quintessential rural retreat no longer exists.
So to accommodate all the strands of rural life in one location, the BBC was forced to use five Cotswold villages instead of one.
To accommodate all the strands of rural life in one location, the BBC was forced to use five Cotswold villages to stand in for the village of Pagford in the TV adaptation of JK Rowling's A Casual Vacancy, which stars Michael Gambon (right)
Tonight, when viewers tune in for the first episode – a story of intrigue, simmering resentment, drug addiction, child neglect and domestic abuse – it will appear as though the £4 million drama unfolds in a single village. In reality, Pagford is made up of elements of the popular tourist spots Bisley, Minchinhampton, Northleach, Painswick and Burford.
However, the run-down council estate that borders Pagford and sends its residents into a snobbish tizzy was filmed 60 miles away in Bristol.
Producer Ruth Kenley Letts admits: ‘Logistically it was very complicated, but the locations are as important as the characters so there had to be a high level of detail that you just couldn’t get in one place.’
Suspense: Keeley Hawes (pictured) plays lingerie shop owner Samantha Mollison
The difficulties became apparent to director Jonny Campbell when he filmed the opening sequence of the three-part series, which shows two boys on a supposedly gentle bicycle ride. They actually clocked up enough miles for a long-distance bike race.
Mr Campbell says: ‘To have them passing Pagford village landmarks, they actually had to cycle from Bibury, downhill to Painswick, then to Northleach and ended up in Burford, where we set the community hall. It was their very own Tour de Cotswolds.’
The drama is based on J. K. Rowling’s first foray into adult novels following her Harry Potter series. Its plot has been described as Midsomer Murders meets Trainspotting, with the bleakness of a Thomas Hardy or Charles Dickens novel thrown in for good measure.
The story begins when a vacancy appears on the parish council following the sudden death of one of its leading lights, Barry Fairbrother, played by Rory Kinnear. As villagers vie for the role, the intriguing feuds, bitter secrets and clandestine relationships that have been shrouded in secrecy begin to unfold.
To help you follow what’s what in Pagford – and where’s where – here is our behind-the-scenes guide to the village that’s five places rolled into one…
1. Haven for druggies
SWEETLOVE HOUSE
This community centre – home to social services, including a hotly disputed drug-rehabilitation centre and food bank – is central to the drama’s action.
In reality, the building is Warwick Hall in the heart of the busy town of Burford. The building’s listed status meant producers had to employ technical wizardry to transform it into Rowling’s vision: a custom-designed wall mural and the centre’s logo are special effects.
2. Coffin chaos in a tiny cottage
BARRY AND MARY FAIRBROTHER'S HOUSE
When the film crew spotted an idyllic cottage a stone’s throw from the church in Bisley, they decided it was perfect for the home of Barry, the councillor whose death sets the drama in motion. However, they hadn’t reckoned on the difficulty of getting his coffin out of the front door.
Jonny Campbell says: ‘We didn’t really appreciate that getting a coffin from the kitchen and outside to the church would be so tricky.
‘It ended up with the crew having to take the coffin halfway up the stairs and then manoeuvre it out as if it was part of a furniture removal rather than an emotional scene.’
Location: In reality, Pagford is made up of elements of the popular tourist spots Bisley, Minchinhampton, Northleach, Painswick and Burford
3. Oh Lord! It's the Luftwaffe's church
PAGFORD CHURCH
Not one, but two churches were used. Long-distance shots showing the romantic spire of Pagford actually show Painswick church.
The close-ups that viewers will see are of All Saints in Bisley, which boasts a medieval spire reaching almost 900ft above sea level and visible for miles around.
Local folklore suggests the Luftwaffe used it to mark their course on bombing raids of Gloucester.
4. Bookshop becomes part of the story
TESS AND COLIN WALL'S HOUSE
The deputy head of the local comprehensive – and wannabe parish councillor – and his wife, live in a cosy cottage which is actually a former bookshop in Bisley. The property, owned by the National Trust, was sitting empty when location scouts snapped it up for the programme.
5. Boudoir that made villagers blush
SAMANTHA'S BOUDOIR
Glamorous Samantha Mollison, played by Keeley Hawes, is one of The Casual Vacancy’s key figures, but her lingerie shop caused outrage among real-life visitors to Painswick.
The real parish council received a number of complaints about the prospect of a racy boutique opening up in a village known as the ‘Queen of the Cotswolds’. They claimed that not only was it ‘wholly unsuitable and degrading’, but that they’d never visit the village again.
Not everyone was shocked, however. Series producer Ruth Kenley Letts revealed that one elderly gentleman discreetly asked when the grand opening would be as he’d like an invite.
Too racy: The 'boudoir' fooled real-life visitors to Painswick, who protested about the prospect of a racy boutique to the parish council
6. Library that's hardly local
PAGFORD LIBRARY
Locals and visitors to the area will be familiar with the facade of Painswick Town Hall which, in the series, is Pagford library.
But once inside, they could be forgiven for some confusion. The interior shown in the series is actually that of a teaching hospital in Bristol, 60 miles away.
7. Sorry, no coffee at this cafe
MOLLISON'S CAFE
A wine bar in Northleach became Pagford’s cafe. Tourists regularly asked to be seated at tables which were empty between takes, hoping for a cappuccino. Some brought deck chairs and sandwiches to watch filming from the pavement.
8. Medieval torture locals want back
VILLAGE STOCKS
This instrument of punishment was once a feature of most village greens, including Northleach’s, before they and the green were replaced by the modern necessity of a car park for visiting tourists. They were reinstated for the five days filming took place in the town, and many locals were disappointed when they disappeared again at the end of the shoot – so much so that parish councillors are now considering putting them back permanently.
Chain of events: Michael Gambon (left) as parish council leader Howard Mollison, and Abigail Lawrie (right) as teenager Krystal Weedon - who lives with her heroin-addict mother on The Fields estate
9. Gambon's fake deli that fooled hungry tourists
MOLLISON'S DELICATESSEN
Perhaps the fact that actor Michael Gambon – who plays parish council leader Howard Mollison – was serving behind the counter should have been a clue that something unusual was happening in the Black Cat Cafe at Northleach.
But director Mr Campbell says: ‘Some tourists wandered in assuming it was a real deli and were picking up bits of fake bread and sausages to buy. They had no idea they’d wandered on to a film set.’
10. Centre stage for the village theatre
THE GUILDHALL
Barry Fairbrother dies in the street outside the building that will become a polling station as power-hungry villagers vie for his vacant seat. Away from the cameras, it is a local theatre and function room in Minchinhampton. The square in front doubles as a car park for shoppers. Strict parking restrictions were enforced during filming – so that in one scene a flock of sheep could be driven through the square, to the delight of many residents.
Scene-setter: Historic Minchinhampton was one of five locations used, with the town's Guildhall doubling up as Pagford's polling station
11. The posh hotel where the sheets are dirty
THE CROWN HOTEL
An upmarket bistro where Pagford’s residents enjoy candlelit dinners. What viewers won’t see are the piles of rubble which surrounded the cast during filming.
The property, in Minchinhampton, was being turned into a gastropub and boutique B&B, but wasn’t completed by the time the cameras appeared last July – so half of it was dressed to look like a restaurant, while dust sheets hid the building site that made up the rest.
12. Estate village snobs hate
THE FIELDS
The housing estate disdained by snobby residents of Pagford was filmed at Long Ashton and at the Bisley Estate in Stroud. According to Ruth Kenley Letts, finding an estate that had only two-storey houses and no flats was difficult, but crucial. ‘We couldn’t have anywhere that was surrounded by high rises because it wouldn’t have been in keeping with the village feel.’
Teenager Krystal Weedon lives there with her heroin-addict mother, and longs to escape.
- The Casual Vacancy is on BBC1 tonight at 9pm.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2954218/JK-Rowling-idyllic-village-never-five-Cotswolds-towns-TV-used-instead.html#ixzz3RqlKNp1I
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