Film Legends London

Two of the biggest giants of cinema history, Alfred Hitchcock and Charlie Chaplin were born and raised in London and the city has produced many more film talents since the birth of those two icons. In fact the first film ever to be shown in Britain was in Leicester Square and many famous directors, actors and actresses from across the globe have made London their home throughout the 20th century. Below are the ten most important London film related locations.

1.

517 High Road, Leytonstone, E11

Alfred Hitchcock, undoubtedly one of the world’s finest and most famous film directors was born here on August 13th 1899 to, William Hitchcock, a poultry dealer and fruit importer and Emma Whelan Hitchcock. As a child he was forever looking to explore and by the time he was ten he had managed to ride all of London’s Bus lines and explored every dock terminal. The black and white picture shown here is of Leytonstone High Road in 1900, exactly how Alfred would have know it in his childhood. Sadly the house where he was born at number 517 was bombed during the Second World War and the site is now occupied by a garage. Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Leytonstone

2.

East Street, Southwark SE1,

On the corner of East Street and the Walworth Road in a small terraced house on the 16th April 1889, Charles Spencer Chaplin was born to two music hall performers, Charles and Hannah Chaplin. Unfortunately for Charlie, his Father left them when he was five, leaving his mother to struggle to bring Charlie and his half brother up alone. Subsequently Charlie had to take to the stage at the tender age of 5 to help out and he and his family also had to endure spells in workhouses. It was on these hard working class streets though that Charlie observed many of the fascinating characters he would later mimic in many of his later celebrated films. Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Kennington Station

3.

38 Blenheim Crescent, Croydon, CR2.

One of the all-time giants of cinema and cited by Stephen Spielberg as a major influence, David Lean was born on 25th March 1908 at 38 Blenheim Crescent in Croydon. The black and white picture shows Croydon people queuing for trams in 1913 when David would have been 5 years old. Perhaps this was inspiration for the famous Tram scene in David’s blockbuster Doctor Zhivago. David’s Parents were both Quakers and frowned upon his early interest In Cinema. David was undeterred by their misgivings though and started at the bottom of the film industry as a Clapper loader and subsequently rose steadily up the ranks to go on to direct such great iconic films as Doctor Zhivago, Lawrence Of Arabia and Bridge on The River Kwai.   Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Kennington Station

4.

Empire Cinema, Leicester Square, W1.

At the time this black and white picture of Leicester Square was taken in 1880 the Lumière brothers were just 15 years away from shooting the first ever footage of moving film images on the 13th February 1895 in Lyon France. One year later in 1896 the brothers went on a European tour with their new filming device and displayed their short films to an awed audience at the Empire Cinema in Leicester Square London. The Empire Cinema in fact started life as a Victorian Music Hall on 17th April 1884 and is still showing films to large audiences today. Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Leicester Square

5.

8 Wildwood Road, Hampstead, NW3.

The screen acting legend Elizabeth Taylor was born here on the 27th February 1932. Her American parents Francis and Sara were residing in Britain at the time as Francis was an art dealer working in London. Elizabeth’s mother was a stage actress called Sara Sothern. From the age of 3 Liz was taking ballet lessons and was already keen to follow in her mothers footsteps. In 1939, keen to avoid hostilities, the Taylor’s left London as Britain entered the Second World War with Germany. Elizabeth Taylor went on to win two academy awards and was long considered to be one of the most beautiful actresses in the world. Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Golders Green

6.

155 Lauderdale Mansions, Maida Vale, W9.

The legendary Oscar winning screen actor Alec Guinness was born in a small flat in this West London building on the 2nd April 1914. His single mother brought him up and his father’s name was mysteriously left blank on his birth certificate. It is rumoured that his father was a wealthy businessman who he later once met. Alec made his acting debut at the Old Vic Theatre in 1936 and went on to make many classic films such as Oliver Twist and The Ladykillers. He is probably best know today for his portrayal of Obi-Wan Kenobi in George Lucas Star Wars. Alec Guinness died on august 5th 2000 from liver cancer. Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Maida Vale

7.

4 Cadogan Lane, Chelsea, SW1

This was sadly the last home of Judy Garland, which she shared with her last husband Mickey Deans. Judy died of an accidental sleeping pill overdose in this house on June 22nd 1969. Judy will be rightly best remembered for her portrayal of Dorothy in the 1939 MGM classic “The Wizard Of Oz” and her pure and innocent rendition of the song “Over The Rainbow”. Judy was amazingly just 16 when she played the iconic role. Beset by health and financial problems in her later years, Judy spent her last few months of her life in this small rented flat, she had just turned 47 when she tragically passed away. Her subsequent funeral in Manhattan resulted in an outpouring of New York City fans, with more than 20,000 people coming to view her body. Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Sloane Square

8.

213 Kings Road, Chelsea SW1

This was the home of British film director Carol Reed and the place where he died from a heart attack on the 25th April 1976. Carol was the illegitimate son of the great actor/producer Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree and his mistress May Pinney. Reed was born in Putney, South London and after a stint serving in the British army in world war two went on to become a producer/director creating such British masterpieces as “Kipps”, “Our Man In Havana” and most famously “The Third Man” with Orson Welles. The Third Man was recently voted by the British Film Institute as the best British film of all time. Carol moved into this fine Kings Road house in the early 1950’s with his second wife Penelope Dudley Ward. Judy Garland and her family stayed here for many years in the early 1960’s with Carol and his wife and it is said to be the place where Judy was most happy in the later period of her life. In 1953, Carol Reed became the first British film director to be knighted for his craft.   Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Sloane Square

9.

Poets Corner, Westminster Abbey, Westminster, SW1

Considered by many critics to be the greatest actor of the 20th Century, Laurence Olivier died on the 11th July 1989 and is buried in Poets Corner inside Westminster Abbey. He is only the second actor to be accorded such a tribute. He was born in Dorking Surrey on the 22nd May 1907 and was encouraged by his father, an Anglican priest, to become an actor. He attended the central school of speech and drama and got his first stage break in Noel Coward’s 1930 play Private Lives. His fist film breakthrough was as a Heathcliff in the 1939 film Wuthering Heights. He won the Best Actor for the film Hamlet in 1948 and was also famous for his torrid marriage to the actress Vivian Leigh. He was knighted in 1947 and became a life peer in 1970, the first actor to be awarded this distinction. Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Westminster

10.

St Olave’s Hospital, Rotherhithe, SE16.

The double academy award-winning actor Michael Caine was born here in the charity wing of the hospital on the 14th March 1933. He was originally named Maurice Micklewhite and only changed his name in the early 1960’s when his agent told him that another actor shared his new stage name Michael Scott. Michael looked around from the phone box that he was standing in at the time and saw across the road that the film “The Caine Mutiny” was showing at the local Odeon cinema. He later joked that if he looked the other way, he would have been called Michael 101 Dalmatians. After several minor roles, he first found fame as a British officer in the 1964 classic film “Zulu”. Caine’s natural London cockney accent was a breath of fresh air at the time, where posh accents where the norm in the acting world and he went on to star in many iconic 1960’s films such as “The Italian Job”, “The Ipcress Files” and “Alfie” Another famous address that nearly made this list was 64 Harley Street in Soho, where Michael shared a flat with the actor Terence Stamp. The painter JMW Turner previously occupied the flat. Fiercely proud of his working class roots, Michael touchingly remarked that unveiling a Southwark Blue plaque to mark his birthplace was better than winning an Oscar. Map - Click here Nearest Tube Station - Canada Water Sation