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From stunt doubles to costume designers, we talk to the people who've helped make some of London's most iconic films. For costume designer Lindy Hemming, Richard Curtis’s iconic romcom 'Four Weddings and a Funeral' involved sourcing a fair few wedding dresses. But she also happened to pick up a raincoat, which came in handy for that famous final scene.
What was your favourite place to shoot in London?
‘The Church of St Bartholomew the Great for the non-wedding of Anna Chancellor [Duckface] to Hugh Grant [Charles]. It falls apart with a punch-up and ends with her distraught and him unconscious. It was also the beginning of a very long friendship with the fabulous Anna Chancellor. The church is so beautiful inside. I have been to another wedding there, which thankfully ended in the promised way.’
How did you go about choosing the wedding dresses?
‘Some of the dresses were bought and altered. I made and designed Andie MacDowell’s dress for her Scottish wedding, with the pearl-beaded bolero.’
Did you get any costumes from shops in London?
‘Yes, often from wonderful second-hand shops and markets. Our costume budget was minimal. A hat manufacturer in Soho sold us damaged hats very cheaply and we mended them. There were lots and lots of hats in the film, obviously.’
How did you decide on the clothes for that final scene in the rain?
‘When I found the raincoats for Andie MacDowell’s end kiss [with Hugh Grant], we had no idea that it would be a pouring-rain sequence. By luck I had borrowed two. After two takes we had to keep her in wet [clothes] for all the next takes. She was a trouper and didn’t complain. Neither did the lenders, who never got their raincoats back: they were pretty ruined.’
Want more iconic London films? Check out our top 30 list.