27 Aug 2013
The south coast of Cornwall will be lighting up cinema screens across the country from 4th September when it stars in Richard Curtis's new film, About Time.
The feel-good romcom which tells the tale of a time travelling quest for love and stars Bill Nighy, Rachel McAdams, Domnhall Gleeson and Tom Hollander, was part-filmed in the St Austell Bay area of Cornwall during the summer of 2012. Cameras rolled at the secluded Vault beach near Gorran Haven, the beautiful fishing village of Portloe and at St Michael Penkevil Church, whilst St Austell Rugby Club turned into a pop-up production office.
An impressive private Cornish residence also plays a starring role as the home of the central characters, the Lake family, and provides a South West anchor in the film as the storyline moves between London and Cornwall.
As the latest and last film from the king of romcom Richard Curtis who both wrote and directed About Time, it is being billed as the next Love Actually and Notting Hill. Following its UK release it will be rolled out internationally with a back-to-back distribution schedule until it reaches US cinemas in November.
Malcolm Bell, Head of Visit Cornwall, the Cornwall Development Company tourism service, comments: "With the Cornish coast starring alongside two great talents of the movie world; Richard Curtis as writer/director and Bill Nighy as cast headliner, About Time has all the ingredients of a box office hit. It offers unbelievable promotion for Cornwall across the world and with the DVD release following six months later, the audience potential is immense. Films have a significant influence on holiday choice and can introduce new markets to a destination."
Film producers from across the world have long been attracted to Cornwall by the scenic landscape and About Time is just the latest film to be shot in the county. It completes a hat trick of films starring Cornwall that have been released in the last three months. About Time follows in the wake of Summer in February, which tells a true tale of love, liberty and scandal amongst the Edwardian Newlyn artists' colony, and Falmouth's bit-part in Brad Pitt's zombie thriller, World War Z. Other credits to Cornwall's acting CV include Tim Burton's quirky Alice in Wonderland, which was shot at Antony House on the Rame Peninsula and Charlestown Harbour, and the James Bond action thriller, Die Another Day which recruited the Eden Project and Holywell Bay as location doubles.
Julian German, Cornwall Council Cabinet Member for Economy & Culture, said "Cornwall is well known for its stunning landscape and beautiful scenery, and it seems the film industry is recognising that appeal. Films like About Time offer a fantastic opportunity to showcase Cornwall on a local, national and international stage. Cornwall's superb environment, along with its heritage and culture, food and drink can be enjoyed throughout the year."
About Time is in cinemas from 4th September.
ENDS
Notes to editors
About Time synopsis
At the age of 21, Tim Lake discovers he can travel in time. The night after another unsatisfactory New Year party, Tim's father tells his son that the men in his family have always had the ability to travel through time. Tim can't change history, but he can change what happens and has happened in his own life, so he decides to make his world a better place... by getting a girlfriend. Unfortunately that turns out not to be as easy as you might think.
Moving from the Cornwall coast to London to train as a lawyer, Tim finally meets the beautiful but insecure Mary. They fall in love, then time travel means he's never met her at all, then they meet for the first time again, and again, but finally, after a lot of cunning time-travelling he wins her heart. Tim then uses his power to create the perfect romantic proposal, to save his wedding from the worst best man speeches, to save his best friend from professional disaster and to get his pregnant wife to hospital in time for the birth of their daughter, despite an unfortunate traffic jam outside Abbey Road. But as his unusual life progresses, Tim finds out that his unique gift can't save him from the sorrows that affect all families, everywhere. There are great limits to what time travel can achieve, and it can be dangerous too.
About Time is a comedy about love and time travel which discovers that, in the end, making the most of life may not need time travel at all.
About Visit Cornwall
Visit Cornwall is a service of the Cornwall Development Company, Cornwall Council's arms length economic development company Visit Cornwall undertakes destination marketing aimed at attracting first time visitors to Cornwall through appropriate promotions including targeted PR and through its award winning digital marketing Visit Cornwall coordinates, supports and promotes festivals and events across the county, providing advice to enhance the visitor experience, promote Cornwall and ensure the long term sustainability of events. Also responsible for the delivery of certain major events Visit Cornwall undertakes targeted research and market intelligence activities to drive Cornwall's marketing and product development
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Further information
Julia Hughes
Tourism Press & PR Executive
Visit Cornwall
01872 322800
