Anniversary Film Night
Double Bill
Friday 26th June 2026, 7:00pm
To celebrate the contribution Film has made to the success of the Heron Theatre we have a double bill. Our first film was produced by South Westmorland Stage and Screen Society. It
was filmed in Beetham and starred members of the society.
The second film was the most successful British film from 2001, the year the Heron theatre was formally opened by Princess Alexandra.
SWWW Film: More Than A Match (1951)
South Westmorland Stage & Screen Society founded the Heron Theatre. In addition to performing plays at Heversham School they also made short films. ‘More than a Match’ is the only film that survives from the 1950’s. It was filmed in the grounds of Ashton Hall in Beetham and in other local locations. Local historian Roger Bingham stars in the film as a small boy.
Perhaps you will spot other people you know. We are delighted to have a pianist on stage providing a live soundtrack.
About The Film
‘More than a Match’ was the first film produced by SWSSS. The script was written by Mr B. Morley who was a master at Heversham Grammar School. It is set in the local village where the Major is keen to organise a game of cricket, and raises a team of locals to play another X1 from a neighbouring village.
The film opens with shots of Beetham Village – Parsonage Farm, the old church, the village inn, Ashton House and Beetham House. The local squire, Mr. Charles Nickel, is shown writing a letter to a friend and one by one the characters and the cricket team are introduced. They include the blacksmith, the grocer, the local ‘poacher’, the village policeman and various others.
The cricket match which follows has some exciting moments and ends with the heroes of the match – the Major’s son and the local grocer, being carried from the field in triumph and some of the company rounding off the day in the village inn.
The film captures the true village atmosphere. Though not flawless, it was seen as a very creditable first film for the new society.
Gosford Park (2001)
Gosford Park is a 2001 satirical black comedy mystery film directed by Robert Altman and written by Julian Fellowes. The film follows a party of wealthy Britons plus an American film producer, and their servants, who gather for a shooting weekend at Gosford Park, an English country house. A murder occurs after a dinner party, and the film goes on to present the subsequent investigation from the servants and guests perspectives.
Co-produced in the United Kingdom, the United States and Italy, the film has an ensemble cast including Eileen Atkins, Bob Balaban, Alan Bates, Charles Dance, Stephen Fry, Michael Gambon, Richard E. Grant, Derek Jacobi, Kelly Macdonald, Helen Mirren, Jeremy Northam, Clive Owen, Ryan Phillippe, Maggie Smith, Kristin Scott Thomas and Emily Watson.
The film was successful at the box office.Widely acclaimed by critics, Gosford Park was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Supporting Actress for both Mirren and Smith, and won Best Original Screenplay. It was also nominated for nine British Academy Film Awards, winning two.
The TV series Downton Abbey – written and created by Fellowes, was originally planned as a spin off of Gosford Park, but instead was developed as a standalone property inspired by the film.