A NEW use has been found for a vacant restaurant site in St Ouen’s Bay – as one of the backdrops for the new Bergerac series.
Residents near the former Nude Dunes restaurant at La Pulente received letters the week of 12 August to let them know that Blacklight Ltd, one of the production companies behind the reboot of the classic 1980s show, will be filming at the site next Saturday and on Wednesday 28 August.
The letter stated that filming would take place both inside and outside the former restaurant, on the beach and on the Five Mile Road – involving “action vehicles” and a drone shot.
Islanders gathered at La Pulente last month to demonstrate over plans, first revealed in the JEP, to turn the site into self-catering accommodation. The protest, which was organised by St Brelade Deputy Montfort Tadier, was called to protect the bay and the wider coastline from privatisation and over-development.
Less than six months after opening Nude Dunes, Nude Food ceased trading, meaning both of its restaurants – at La Pulente and St Aubin – were forced to close.
Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel previously confirmed that filming for outdoor sequences would take place in Jersey, while some indoor scenes would be shot in UK studio space.
Announced earlier this year, the new six-episode series – commissioned by BBC-owned broadcaster UKTV – will be directed by Peaky Blinders director Colm McCarthy and offers a contemporary twist on the popular detective drama created by Robert Banks Stewart.
Irish actor Damien Molony, who has starred in several BBC shows, will take on the reimagined role of Jim Bergerac in the show.
The JEP reported yesterday that hundreds of Islanders stepped forward as potential extras in the show, and a casting-call session took place at the Town Hall with 300 local people invited.
The letter to La Pulente residents informed them that the production company has applied for parking suspensions on the slipway and at the site’s car park to allow technical vehicles to “service the filming”.
“We do ask that where possible beachgoers limit pedestrian and vehicular use of La Pulente (slip road) for access during our shoot hours as we will be seeing out of the windows,” it stated, adding: “We will work with members of the public to ensure day-to-day activities are not disrupted.”
The second day of filming will feature the exterior of Nude Dunes, the beachfront and the slip road.
It added that residents and business owners “will always have access to their properties, they may just be politely asked to wait whilst the camera is rolling for two to three minutes”.
Islanders are requested to “enjoy the beach outside of our filming areas during our shooting hours”.
At the bottom of the letter, it read: “We are fully aware that we as a production are guests here in Jersey and so much of what we do is only possible with the cooperation and understanding of residents. We hope that we can demonstrate that filming can be carried out in a professional and courteous manner with as little disruption to usual operations as possible during our time here.”
