Have you ever seen the film Bunny Lake Is Missing?
I'm sure I'd heard of it, and I can't believe I've never seen it. It's got Laurence Olivier in it and it's a lightweight tale about a woman whose daughter disappears. But the crux is, did she ever exist? I'll leave that one for you to work out. The best thing about it though is that it's British. Moreover, it's London.
I can't get enough of old British films, purely and simply for the locations. And even better if they're in London because you're likely to see the very place you live preserved on celluloid as it was forevermore.
Recent examples I've seen of this are Brannigan, starring John Wayne as this longhorn cop who's on a mission in London. There's a scene in which he steals someone's car and it's right outside our old flat. In 1974! The street was rundown and all the buildings had that black coating from industrial soot. Also - and I've noticed this a lot - all window frames seem to be painted this maroon colour. It seemed to be the colour of everyone's window frames. Does anyone know why?
Another is The Optimists, starring Peter Sellers as an eccentric who attracts he attention of two local children (not in that way). That's actually got scenes in my current road. Fascinating stuff if you sit wondering what things used to be like. There's also a glimpse of it in Up The Junction.
I hear there's a film called All Neat in Black Stockings, which is possibly as saucy as it sounds, starring a nubile Susan George as a swinging Sixties flat sharer and that's filmed entirely around my manor. Shame it's not on DVD, unless you know different...
While I'm here, if you're as obsessed with Old London as I am, you might like this link. Some great shots here.
