Dame Judi is a lady as stars descend on town

Dame Judi is a lady as stars descend on town

21 November 2012 - by BY JOANNE FLEMING

CURRENTLY reigning as ‘M’ in the new James Bond blockbuster Skyfall, Dame Judi Dench left MI6 behind her this week for a Killyleagh pub and life as an unmarried Irish mother.

The Academy Award winning actress caused a stir as she unexpectedly arrived at the village for a scene in the Dufferin Arms alongside actor Steve Coogan for the film Philomena.

Philomena is the real-life story of an unmarried mother’s painstaking search for the son she was forced to sell to rich Americans by the Catholic Church.

Owner of the Dufferin Arms, Austin McCullough, said there was a healthy amount of curiosity outside his pub as the film crew moved in.

“The pub scene was a conversation between Judi and Steve Coogan, and they wanted an authentic Irish pub,” he explained.

So why the Dufferin Arms? “Well they wanted the best one,” joked Austin.

“Their location people found it. Perhaps it was because Dani’s House (the popular CBBC show) was filmed at Killyleagh Castle in the summer.

“Steve Coogan has a pint of Guinness at the bar, however they used an acting prop as they were there all day.

“I was needed to keep the fire lit and get stuff done and it took an hour-and-a-half for three lines.

“They must have done the scene 30 times. I could not tell the difference between the first time and the last time.

“It was a long tedious process for them.”

After a “hello and how are you” with Dame Judi, Austin said the relaxed star went shopping and enjoyed a cup of coffee in Picnic.

“She actually had her own photo taken in front of the castle,” he said.

“They were filming in Rostrevor earlier in the week and I think after Killyleagh they were to split between Inch and Tollymore.

“It was good for Killyleagh, and a bit of good constant nosiness all day.”

Philomena is based on the book The Lost Child of Philomena Lee, researched and written by Martin Sixsmith, a former BBC TV foreign correspondent.

Eight years earlier Sixsmith, played by Steve Coogan, was introduced to a woman called Philomena, who revealed that in 1952 when she was young and unmarried, she gave birth to a son in a home run by nuns in Tipperary. Later she was forced to sell him to a wealthy American couple.

The film proceeds as a detective story as Philomena and Sixsmith go in search of the missing child.

Backed by Pathé UK and BBC Films, Philomena is directed by Stephen Frears (The Queen, Dangerous Liaisons) and on location in County Down, London and Washington. It will be screened next year.