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The Winchester Tavern
“Grab Liz, go to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint and wait for all this to blow over.”
Shaun (Simon Pegg)
It is on the series Spaced that the first-time director Edgar Wright and the actor Simon Pegg develop the plot that will give birth to Shaun of the Dead. One episode in particular, focused on the video game Resident Evil II, co-written by Jessica Stevenson, another actress of the show, plants the first seed. Thereafter, with the complicity of Nick Frost, a friend of Simon Pegg, the latter and Edgar Wright exploit their common admiration for zombie films and more particularly for George A. Romero. They write the story of a man trying to get his girlfriend back in a London city plagued by a terrifying zombie epidemic. When the shooting starts, while the script has been largely refined, the team still leaves room for some improvisation. In London, the director set up his cameras at Ealing Studios but also insisted on shooting on natural sets. The Winchester Tavern, the headquarters of Shaun and Ed, the two friends at the center of the story, takes a prominent place. The Duke of Albany, south of the Thames, was chosen for the production. Given carte blanche to remodel the establishment to their liking, Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright drew much of their inspiration from The Boogaloo, a Highgate bar whose tables they used extensively in their youth. Even the musical choices, with a preponderance of Queen songs, are inspired by the songs then available in the pub’s jukebox.
A perfect mix of pure horror and comedy, managing to impose touches of drama and romance, burlesque and gore, Shaun of the Dead revives a dying genre. When he saw the film, the master George A. When he saw the film, the master George A. Romero was so enthusiastic that he contacted Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright in order to offer them a cameo in his new feature film, Land of the Dead, the fourth part of his saga started in 1968. Then the two of them play zombies in a sequence that looks like a thank you from a veteran to two particularly talented representatives of the new guard. And this time, no question for them to taste an ice cream cone.
First part of the Cornetto Trilogy, preceding Hot Fuzz and The Last Pub Before the End of the World, Shaun of the Dead was first released in Great Britain on March 29, 2004. Benefiting from excellent word-of-mouth, especially in the United States, where it was distributed on a small scale, the film was a success in theaters but really gained its cult status on video.
The production recruited 200 extras to play the zombies: 150 adults and 50 children.
The Winchester (Shaun of the Dead)
This typical London pub has since closed and turned into an apartment complex.
When Shaun of the Dead‘s Edgar Wright, Nick Frost and Simon Pegg took over the Duke of Albany to shoot some of the most important scenes in Shaun of the Dead, the pub was a hit on this side of the Thames. Renamed The Winchester Tavern for the purposes of the script, the pub did not enjoy its newfound popularity for long and closed its doors for good after filming. It has since been remodeled into an apartment complex. Nevertheless, the entire upper part of the building remains identical to the one seen in the film. As for the zombies, they are no longer part of the picture.
The Fantrippers Buying Board
London's guide to the 1000 cult locations for films, series, music, comics and novels
Are you going to LONDON?
Are you fans of series, movies, comics, music, novels?
This guide is for you!
Harry Potter, James Bond, Bridget Jones, The Persuaders!, Black Mirror, The Crown, Dr Who, Mister Bean, Monty Python, Sherlock Holmes, Blake and Mortimer, The Beatles, David Bowie, The Who, Amy Winehouse, Dracula, Oliver Twist…
With more than 1000 cult locations for movies, TV series, music, comics, novels, the London Fantrippers Guide offers an unusual and unique travel experience through more than 1000 places of cult fiction specially selected for you.
It’s the bible of pop culture in the British capital!
With its three ways of consulting, discover London:
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After New York and Paris, this third book in the collection is enriched by a new model, a revised pagination (640 pages) and for the first time original film journeys (Harry Potter, James Bond, Alfred Hitchcock, romantic comedies, superheroes), series (God save the Queen, detective series, humor series, Dr Who), music (The Beatles, the Britpop, Icones 60-70 , pop, punk), comics (Blake and Mortimer, From Hell, superhero), Victorian London, thriller, Jack The Ripper, Sherlock Holmes.
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Interest for fans
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Discover all the places Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy on our map
By Gilles Rolland
Passionné de cinéma, de rock and roll, de séries TV et de littérature. Rédacteur de presse et auteur des livres Le Heavy Metal au cinéma, Paroles de fans Guns N' Roses, Paroles de fans Rammstein et Welcome to my Jungle : 100 albums rock et autres anecdotes dépareillées. Adore également voyager à la recherche des lieux les plus emblématiques de la pop culture.