Thank God for Southby....!
Anybody know where in the UK "Southby" is located? I think the church and graveyard must be somewhere on the SW Coast.
shareYes, it's St. Ives in Cornwall. Both the UK scenes are filmed in St. Ives, despite them pretending that "Southby" is somewhere near Southampton.
The cemetary is Barnoon Cemetary, overlooking the Atlantic. The pier that Richard Jordan and Alec Guiness walk along is called Smeaton's Pier and the pub they visit is called The Sloop Inn (I've never been in there so I've no idea if the pub interior is the actual one or not.)
UPDATE: I went in The Sloop last week and can confirm that the movie was filmed inside it.
Do n't know about the churchyard but I rather fancy the other scene was filmed in Brixham, Devon, England.
The harbour wall upon which the characters talk is at the exact angle of the one in Brixham.
However Brixham today does not resemble either of the scenes in the film, does anywhere ?
It was most definitely not Brixham. I've been visiting St. Ives since I was born, and I've stood on the very spot Jason Robards and Richard Jordan did when they filmed that scene.
Do a Google Image search for "st.ives harbour" if you're in any doubt :)
Church is n't Brixham. I was refering to the earlier scene in the harbour. Mole has a distinct angle to the shore.
Cannot find one on the map of St. Ives. Does n't surprise me with the accuracy of maps and charts I have had the misfortune to use over the decades.
Brixham has changed so much since that time. The harbour has been spoilt by a marina.
It is a pity they did n't find a location closer to Southampton which would have been more in keeping with the original story. Little towns and villages around there are so picturesque. Almost as good as those in Kent and Sussex.
It also detracts from the urgency of the plot to suggest the character was anxious to catch the sailing but found time to travel to the West of England. But there again, it is only a story
Both England scenes were filmed in St. Ives - they just pretended the final scene was "Southby." The earlier scene was referred to as "somewhere in Cornwall."
St. Ives has changed very little since 1980 on the whole. If they were to re-shoot the harbour/pier/pub scene it would almost be identical; if they re-shot the cemetary scene it would be completely identical.
Here's a fairly recent picture of the harbour - the pier is the one they walk along (the tide is out on this one - if I recall correctly, the tide is in in the movie): http://www.cornwallpictures.co.uk/html_st_ives/8.htm
And here's one of the pub they go in - with the addition of picnic tables and parasols: http://www.cornwallpictures.co.uk/html_st_ives/42.htm - the interior is the same as in the film.