Tamara Dreweshire: Tour the beautiful Dorset countryside
There are no major attractions. And hardly any minor attractions either. Youll find no cities to visit and no motorways to get you there. The county doesnt even have a tourist board.Some people must wonder why anyone would want to spend a few days in the Dorset countryside.Well, those people obviously havent seen Tamara Drewe. This charming film - said by some to be the best British film of 2010 - is set amid the most gorgeous West Dorset countryside. It sometimes seems like one long commercial for holidays there. Who needs a tourist board with films like this?
Bewitching location: Gemma Arterton as Tamara Drewe in the filmTo celebrate the release of Tamara Drewe on DVD this month, I spent a few days deep in Tamara Dreweshire. My plan was to capture some of the spirit of the film by following in the footsteps of the cast and crew.I called the films location manager, Jonah Coombes, who scours the globe for exotic, glamorous backdrops for blockbuster movies.He suggested the best Tamara Drewe locations and advised me to prepare for something special. Jonah confessed that six months filming in these wonderful spots left the entire team lifelong fans of Dorset.It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for everyone, he said. I was really touched by the countryside there. The landscape is dramatic but the atmosphere is very pure, gentle and peaceful. I didnt want to leave.In the film, Tamara Drewe is a ravishing brunette who returns home to beguile the men of a small Dorset village. Its a story loosely based on Thomas Hardys Victorian novel Far From The Madding Crowd - a piece of blatant advertising for Dorset tourism.The film was made by another big fan of the county - Oscar-nominated director Stephen Frears, who lives near Shaftesbury in Dorset. It stars sexy former Bond girl Gemma Arterton as Tamara - so I thought the best place to begin my tour was in her bed.Let me a! ssure my wife and the rest of you that Tamara wasnt actually there at the time. The truth was that, after a tip from Jonah, I stayed in Gemmas room at the lovely old BridgeHouse hotel in the quiet little town of Beaminster. The stars stayed in this 13th Century former priests house during the six months of filming.I even found a photograph of the stars relaxing together on the sofa in the hotel bar. I noted that Gemma Arterton was sitting next to dashing Luke Evans, who plays the man who wins her love in the end... not Roger Allam, whose sneaky character she dallies with beforehand.
Time out: The cast of Tamara Drewe relax in the hotel loungeAfter wallowing in Tamaras enormous four-poster bed in Room 3, I lounged on that sofa too, trying hard to look as cool as the Hollywood actors in the photograph.Finally admitting defeat in the coolness stakes, I set off for a wonderful drive around the winding little lanes. I found Tamaras gorgeous wisteria-clad farmhouse just around a bend in East Chelborough, overlooking a pretty valley and much further from the madding crowd than the film suggests.In nearby Yetminster I spotted several locations from the film as I wandered down what must be Britains least appropriately named High Street, which has just one small shop. Later, I pottered around the vigorously hilly countryside near Salwayash and Holywell that helped decorate many scenes in the film. I walked across the lushest grass fields to a prominent hilltop and gazed at tranquil swathes of Dorset in all directions.
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Far from the madding crowd: Fishing boats in Lyme Regis harbourBut rural Dorset is not really about ticking off major attractions, its about meandering about quietly and letting the relaxed lifestyle soak in.Most holiday agendas around here involve scenic country walks, browsing quirky independent shops and popping into friendly old country pubs.
One of the timeless honey-coloured stone buildings in Yetminster is the White Hart Inn, which also plays a major role in Tamara Drewe. Inside it has dark beams, horse brasses and an old wooden bar.My chat with the barmaid was friendly, although not quite in the same saucy league as Lukes in the film. Watch the movie to see what rumbustious behaviour he and the barmaid got up to...I settled for the local lamb shanks in mint sauce instead.
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