Well, Its Father Geek again, this time with a little report from the set of The Abduction Club sent to us by our Dublin Editor/reporter Ozymandias. I love hanging out at castles, I guess it comes from reading the old Prince Valiant newspaper comics constantly as a kid combined with the fact that there were damn few castles to visit in Texas when I was growing up. Of course I did visit the Alamo in San Antonio all the time as a squirt... its sort of like a castle... well... its stone, and it was laid siege to. Here's Oz...

Hey guys Ozy here,

This is a first report from one of my UK spies and a set visit to boot! I hand you over to my man in the field, Fieldman!!

Hey Ozy,

I spent last Friday at a place called Ballygart Castle about an hour outside of London. The movie is called 'The Abduction Club' and is a based-on-a-true-story tale of Irish noblemen who kidnap girls in order to marry into their fortune and avoid becoming priests or soldiers.

Stefan Schwartz who made a film I loved: 'Shooting Fish' is the director, it's produced by Neil Peplow (Waking Ned).

It features Britstars Matthew Rhys, Alice Evans & Sophia Myles plus an Aussie actor called Daniel Lapaine who was the very funny Olympic Swimmer in Muriel's Wedding. Sophia Myles is the kind of woman you want to run through fields of poppies with and love and cherish forever whilst chewing on a piece of grass in rural bliss. Sophia has a small but significant part as Johnny Depp's wife in 'From Hell'. She only appears in flashback as in the film's storyline she is dead. It's obvious they are trying to make Abberline (Depp's character) more sympathetic by only having a dead wife, rather than an alive one, for him to betray. Not sure how I feel about that.

Back to 'Abduction Club - The words 'light' and 'romp' were being bandied about, as well as references to Errol Flynn. I think this will make it a hard sell to the masses but I am a big fan of 'charming' films. Everyone seemed to be having a lot of fun on the movie and I do believe this can seep into the enjoyment potential of the film itself. If my theory is right the movie will be a joy to watch. Certainly better than the rather ugly 'Plunkett & Macleane'. I don't see it breaking any box office records but then they probably said the same about 'The Full Monty'.

I hope this is of some use to you and if you get the chance to go there (maybe you already have) I advise it as it seems to be a nicely cheerful set. Also you might meet Sophia Myles which is something I advise - just remember she's my fiancee - not yours.

Fieldman No.1

L8r,

Ozymandias

Euro AICN Ireland/UK Office, Penthouse Suite, Ozymandias Towers, Dublin, Ireland.

If you're involved in the Irish or UK movie industries I want to hear from you!

Mail me at ozymandias@dublin.com