Huge Hollywood premiere to draw A-listers to tiny Dales town

A concept image of the live action performance inside the stadium which could be built at Pateley Bridge

Nidderdale Chamber of Trade revealed in an exclusive to the Advertiser that it has been in negotiations with ‘major Hollywood film producers’ making a World War Two film, to host the weekend event at a currently unconfirmed location in the summer of 2020.

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The site will be transformed, with a stadium constructed to host guests, numbering into the thousands. It's currently estimated 20,000 people could be drawn to the area during the premiere.

An A-list cast and thousands of visitors are expected to flock to Nidderdale

Featuring an ‘A-list’ cast of celebrities the film is believed to be the first with a premiere that will see the cast perform live action scenes to accompany the movie that will be screened to the audience. Concept images show elaborate sets, depicting crumbling cities of Europe which have become fiercely contested battlefields, that are to be built inside the stadium for these performances.

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With plans already underway to see Spitfires fly overhead during the event, Chairman of the Nidderdale Chamber of Trade, Keith Tordoff MBE, said that if support is thrown behind the volunteers of the COT it could be a significant moment for Nidderdale.

He said: “The world’s spotlight is going to be shone on the area, and clearly it’s going to have an impact on every business, who will hopefully benefit from what will be a massive influx of visitors.

“Clearly there will be a knock on from this as well, film companies will look to the area and want to come here to film afterwards. It’s really going to put us on the world map. The effect is going to be massive if we take the opportunity.”

He added: “Hopefully Nidderdale will build on this, just as people did when Sir Gary Verity was bringing the Tour de Yorkshire to the area. They will have first wondered what it was all about, and in a way this is of a similar ilk. It’s bringing something which is difficult for someone to imagine, a Hollywood film maker doing something like this in Pateley Bridge, in the middle of Nidderdale. It’s not somewhere like London, where a premiere might naturally happen, instead it’s in Pateley Bridge.

“It’s phenomenal, and beyond comprehension at this stage that it could happen, but when it does. people will realise the enormity of it.”

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Thanks to the work of the Chamber earlier this year, when it hosted a screening of a historic silent film of life after the First World War, during 1940s Weekend, Mr Tordoff was able to build ties to figures in the British Film Industry involved in the movie.

Mr Tordoff said: “This is really exciting news, that the Nidderdale Chamber of Trade could bring something truly unique, and a first in the world of film, a World War Two film premier, which will also be acted out on the night.“I think this will be the biggest event in the recent history of Nidderdale, possibly in a century. It’s on such a scale that it will truly help add to Pateley Bridge’s reputation as a tourist destination for a long time. “People follow things like this long afterwards.”

With the draw of the event pulling in potentially thousands of visitors to the area Mr Tordoff said: “I believe the event will result in a boost for restraunts, BNBs and hotels in local area, and wider district if we can pull it off.”