One thing I enjoy is drawing movie locations - the more obscure the better. Of course in London there's plenty to discover. I'm also a big fan of Simon Pegg, so with Halloween on the way, I thought it would be a good time to finally sketch some locations from seminal Zom-Com ("zombie comedy")
Shaun of the Dead.
When I moved into the Haringay area 10 months ago, I was excited to learn that a lot of the
Shaun movie was shot near where I now live. The one that grabbed my attention was Shaun's house itself, a few streets away from Crouch End Broadway. The street features in two great identical long takes of Shaun walking from his house to the shop and back, the first time when things are normal, the second when the zombie outbreak has begun.
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| there's a different gate now... |
There were no zombies in sight when I started sketching, but I did feel a bit odd to be drawing a purely residential view with no obvious landmark or attraction - still, no one looked twice at what I was doing. It started raining by the end, but I persevered under an umbrella.
The most well known location of the movie is The Winchester, which in actual fact was filmed down in South London, in New Cross, coincidentally near where I previously used to live. However, I was intrigued to discover the
real Winchester pub on Archway Road, less than 5 minutes from my current house. Although no filming was done here, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost used to be regulars and it was here the idea for the film was born.
Built in 1881, I especially love the original iron scrollwork above the door. The pub's been closed for a few years now it seems, but lately there's been signs of its ...re-animation ...ha ha ha ..sorry, zombie joke. Anyway, yes, over the summer, there was some concerted building work going on with the 'luxury' flats above, the brickwork was all cleaned, and the pub was given a brand new paintjob. While I was there sketching, I could see some activity inside, suggesting it's grand re-opening is imminent. I'll probably pop in for a pint to see what it's like, although no doubt the days of Frost and Pegg drinking in the corner are long gone...
Drawn of the Dead
