Film crews will be heading to a Huddersfield village to shoot scenes for movie about the golden era of British wrestling.
Location managers with American film giant 20th Century Fox have chosen the centre of Marsden as a backdrop for Walk Like a Panther, a feature film written and directed by Huddersfield-born writer Dan Cadan.
Residents have received letters from the film company to say that filming will take place in Peel Street, in the centre of the village, on on May 15, 16, 18, and 19, and on June 7, 8, 9, 13 and 14.
The letter, from location manager Alastair Don, says the film will feature actors including Stephen Graham (This is England, Boardwalk Empire), Stephen Tomkinson (DCI Banks, Brassed Off) and Jason Flemyng (Snatch, SS-GB).
Mr Don says: “The premise of the story is that a group of wrestlers from the golden age of British wrestling, when Big Daddy et al ruled the ring, reform in the present day to put on a wrestling show.
“Marsden has been chosen as the backdrop to our film and we have selected various locations around the village to serve as our locations.”
The film itself is about “community and friendship and is very much in the same vein as The Full Monty and Brassed Off,” he added.
Film crews will be working with businesses in Marsden to change the appearances of shop fronts. Shops will be open as usual during filming.
Mr Don added: “With the approval of Kirklees Council we will have intermittent Stop and Go Traffic Management in and around the village during filming days.
“This will be used sparingly and we hope for it to cause as little traffic disruption as possible.
“I understand that filming can have an impact on the day to day in your village and hope that we are able to work together in the coming weeks. We are guests in Marsden and will work respectfully and with consideration to residents and visitors alike.”
Residents said they now more than used to film crews descending on the village. Sigourney Weaver filmed scenes in 2014 in Marsden for Hollywood drama A Monster Calls. And Last of the Summer Wine also used Marsden as a backdrop for scenes.
One resident, who asked not to be named, said: “Sometimes filming is inconvenient, other times it’s fine. The film crews can be quite nice although Last of the Summer Wine were not so nice.”
She thinks a filming about British wrestling will be a big hit.
“I used to watch Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks and really enjoy Saturday afternoons when it was on television. I used to watch it at my grandma’s house in the 1970s.
“In my view it was proper wrestling and not the staged American wrestling that we have today.”
