Sherlockian Sojourns #40: As Seen On Screen 2 - Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich

Having booked to see a stage production of ‘The Valley of Fear’ at Greenwich Theatre, I decided to spend the afternoon at the nearby Old Royal Naval College, which is a well-known film location, including several Sherlockian productions such as the two Robert Downey Jr. films and ‘Enola Holmes’ (2020). (In fact, Empire Magazine once dubbed it ‘possibly the most popular filming location in the world’).

I had booked onto one of their regular Film and TV Tours, which promises ‘a fascinating insight into how some of the most spectacular scenes in showbiz were shot’. Making my way to Greenwich, and passing multitudes of people dressed as ‘Alice in Wonderland’ characters for an all-day treasure hunt that was going on in Greenwich, my first port of call was the ORNC Visitors Centre, where my ticket was scanned and I was given a tour wristband. The meeting point for the tour was over by a large display board featuring photographs from some of the productions filmed on site, including ‘Sherlock Holmes’ (2009).

The group having convened and spotted the two mistakes on the board (It states that it shows 9 movies and 1 TV production but all are movies, and radio Mrs. Hudson Dame Judi Dench’s name is spelt ‘Judy’), we followed our guide outside to the area usually used for make-up etc, as it would be impossible for filming not to be interrupted by passers by outside the College. After a few stops we reached the outsides of the Painted Hall and Nelson Room, where a carriage had had to be dropped into a courtyard for ‘Sherlock Holmes’ (2009), as it would not fit through the narrow doorway and could not be disassembled. Due to the historic contents of both buildings, the carriage had to be swung in over the small building between them.

Another courtyard served as Buckingham Palace in ‘The Crown’ with a particular drainpipe having a starring role as the drainpipe climbed by Michael Fagan (Tom Brooke – Bill Wiggins in ‘Sherlock’) in Series 4 Episode 5. 

Moving along to the Great Square, workmen were putting up large wooden columns in preparation for upcoming filming on a secret production. Here the guide told us was where a London Street was created for ‘Enola Holmes’ when Enola (Millie Bobby Brown) first arrives in London. This was a location that was not on the list I had prepared prior to my visit. It was also where the barricade scenes were filmed in ‘Les Miserables’ (2012), destroying the grass.

 

Next up was Queen Anne Court, where Sherlock (Robert Downey Jr.) and Irene (Rachel McAdams) walk amongst a travelling show in ‘Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows’ (2011). The guide highlighted the corridor used for Irene’s entrance, with a similar one the other side being used in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides’ (2011). My previous researches indicated that the courtyard was also used in ‘Murder By Decree’ (1979), being where Robert Lees (Donald Sutherland) follows Sir Thomas Spivey (Roy Lansford).

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The final stop on our tour was the impressive Painted Hall, built as a grand ceremonial dining room, and painted with English Baroque art. The main ceiling features William III and Mary II, the founders of the Royal Hospital, and celebrates Britain’s political stability, commercial prosperity and naval power. This was the only area visited that requires an entrance fee, but the tour price was the same as this entrance fee and allowed free return visits for up to 12 months. The Hall features as a dining room in both ‘Victoria and Abdul’ (2017) and ‘The Crown’, and is where Captain Jack Sparrow manages to escape in ‘PotC:OST’ seemingly jumping through one of the 300 year old windows, but it was its appearance as a lecture hall in ‘Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows’, where Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris) is giving a lecture, that meant that I attempted to take photos in the very low light.

The tour having come to an end, I exited the main hall, reaching what is now the café, but which, before being developed as such, featured in ‘Skyfall’ (2012) with M and the coffins of the dead agents. I then got my ticket endorsed to allow re-entry to the Painted Hall in future.

 

Back outside, I made my way to King William Court, which features in both Downey Jr. films – as the scene of the riot outside the Houses of Parliament in ‘Sherlock Holmes’ and where a disguised Sherlock meets Irene in ‘Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows’. It was to this courtyard that the carriage had had to be carefully deposited.

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Across the way was Queen Mary Court which doubled for Covent Garden Market in ‘Enola Holmes’ in the scene where Enola and Tewksbury (Louis Partridge) reunite.

Next up was College Way which features as Victorian streets in both Downey Jr. films, with the Grand Hotel in the first film and the Auctioneers in the second film being shot here. It was also here that Irene gets into a coach in the first film to meet with the unseen Moriarty, and where Enola walks on alighting in London in 'Enola Holmes'.

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It was then across the road to the Queen’s House, which was undergoing repairs. Home to an internationally renowned art collection, Inigo Jones’ architectural masterpiece was the first Classical building in the UK. It was here that the ambush and first fight scene in ‘Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows’ was filmed.

 

Returning to the Old Naval College, I took a few more photos as the light was beginning to fade, then finally exited the site, to waste some time in Greenwich, and have a meal that was a late lunch and early dinner combined.

 

It was then time to make my way to Greenwich Theatre, for my evening’s entertainment, an adaptation of ‘The Valley of Fear’, the final Holmes novel by the same production company (Blackeyed Theatre) that I had previously seen tackle ‘The Sign of Four’ in 2018. The same core trio were involved – Luke Barton as Holmes, Joseph Derrington as Watson, and adapter/director Nick Lane. I purchased a programme and playscript, and it was soon time to take my seat. The adaptation was excellent (click here for a full review), and all too soon it was time to make my way home.