Category: Golden Age Diary

7th of July 2006 - Raleigh announced to the Queen today that he wanted to return to the colony. The Queen displayed a great deal of vulnerability during this scene but I won’t give it away entirely! I would just like to note the way Shekhar chose to shoot this scene as I thought it [...]

6th of July 2006 - One thing that became apparent in today’s scene with the Queen, Bess and Raleigh is the tentative nature of all of the Queen’s relationships. It made me think…is it possible that someone with so much power can have true and intimate relationships with those around her? In some circumstances the [...]

Saturday 8th July. 2.30 PM – ‘A’ Stage, Shepperton Studios. Elizabeth and Bess Throckmorton discuss Raleigh and his plans for the New World. We’ve set this scene in Elizabeth’s wardrobe, a room not based on the historical wardrobe but designed from scratch in which the Queen’s finest dresses stand in mannequined ranks under silk sheers. [...]

Thursday 6th July. 11.30 AM – ‘A’ Stage, Shepperton Studios. Raleigh tempts the queen with tales of the open ocean – a place she knows she will never see but can imagine in the pages of the books and charts that lie scattered on the floor.. For this scene we find Queen, Raleigh and Bess [...]

5th of July 2006 - Today I watched the rushes and appreciated even more the shots chosen by Shekhar yesterday. In particular I noted the opening and beginning shots and what was common to them both – they were both focused on the Queen. The first shot was of her looking at “something” which was [...]

4th July 2006 - When I woke up this morning and hurried to set the last thing I would have expected was to be standing right in the middle of the dancing scene with Queen Elizabeth, Bess and Sir Walter – as an extra! Indeed for seven or so hours I was a courtly lady [...]

3rd July 2006 - During the short time I’ve worked with Shekhar (I once assisted him on a commercial in 2002), I’ve always been aware of his commitment and connection to his actors. Today, the same commitment was apparent. During the scene in the dungeon today, I watched Shekhar sitting cross-legged on the ground with [...]

Wednesday 5th July. 11.00 AM – ‘J’ and ‘B’ Stages, Shepperton Studios. Geoffrey Rush’s last day filming with us so a final chance to make sure we have all the coverage we need. Picking up lots of small sequences today and finishing the coverage of scenes that we were unable to complete on location. This [...]

Tuesday 4th July. 9.40 PM – A Stage, Shepperton Studios. A return to the atrium of Elizabeth’s private chambers where Bess Throckmorton and Raleigh dance the volta under Elizabeth’s watchful eye. We couldn't make another movie about Elizabeth without a dance sequence and this is also a chance to reference the ‘volta’ scenes from ‘Elizabeth’. [...]

Monday 3rd July. 2.30 PM – J Stage, Shepperton Studios. Back in the dank dungeon on J stage where Walsingham returns to interrogate the traitors. A whole weekend off has given everyone a chance to watch the football and get a couple of good night’s sleep. And considering England’s performance in the World Cup it’s [...]