Have a merry Cally Christmas … in September!

Christmas comes early to a treasured south Cally street on Friday 6th September. Picturesque Keystone Crescent will be turned into a snow-filled scene in a TV advert for “a well known UK retailer”.

Production company, Merman, will close the street for two days, place a cellulose “snow” membrane over the entire street. The action is a simple scene showing an actress walking along the street greeting neighbours filmed from a camera crane. Residents will be financially compensated and the production company additionally has made a donation to Voluntary Action Islington. The producers have asssured residents and the Council that the “snow” is non-toxic, has no chemicals and is PH neutral.

Keystone Crescent has unsurprisingly been chosen because of its very traditional appearance. The Grade 2 listed terrace, completed in 1846, was built by Robert James Stuckey along with over 100 other nearby properties. Stuckey’s descendants still own some of those properties adminstered in a family trust. The Crescent is described as a “hidden gem” and the “smallest crescent in Europe” by London Living History.

Music videos, adverts and fashion shoots are increasingly regular in and around the Cally, not least because Islington Council’s Film Office actively markets the Borough to location-finding companies that scout places suitable for external and internal scenes. The Cally high street featured in scenes shot for “The Crown” whilst Thornhill Square has been in episodes of “Poirot”. Road closures, parking suspensions and other facility fees go directly to the Council and, over recent years, this type of income has helped the Council boost income and balance the municipal budget.

Cllr Paul Convery says “Islington welcomes and encourages film and TV in the Borough and we’re especially pleased to bring shoots to the Cally. The Council’s Film Office makes sure that the community benefits from productions and we have an apprenticeship ‘pipeline’ for local young people to get experience and a foothold in the industry. Our neighbourhood has many visually interesting locations but we’re also mindful not to get pigeonholed into ‘gritty’ scenes filmed to the west of Cally versus ‘leafy’ streets and squares on the east side.”