007 Stage

The Albert R. Broccoli 007 Stage (commonly just 007 Stage) is one of the largest silent stages in the world. It is located at Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, and named after the famous James Bond film producer Albert R. "Cubby" Broccoli.

The stage was originally conceived in 1976 by production designer Ken Adam to house the set he had designed for the interior of the Liparus supertanker in the James Bond film "The Spy Who Loved Me". The stage was christened the "007 Stage" on 5 December 1976 during a ceremony attended by former British Prime Minister, Harold Wilson. In contrast to the volcano crater set Adam had built for "You Only Live Twice" in 1966, the 007 Stage would be a permanent structure that could be rented out to other productions.

The 1976 stage measured 102 m by 41 m (334ft by 136ft) and was 12.5 m (40ft 6ins) high. It had a maximum 4,220 m² (45,424 sq ft) floor space. The stage featured a tank measuring 91 m by 22.5 m by 2.7 m (297ft by 73ft by 8ft 10in). According to 007stage.com the water tank was an existing studio feature and the stage was created by constructing a building to completely enclose the tank. Technically, because it had no soundproofing, it was a "silent stage", the largest ever built.

The 007 Stage burnt to the ground in 1984 after gasoline canisters leftover from the filming of Ridley Scott's "Legend" exploded. It was rebuilt 4 months later and renamed The "Albert R. Broccoli 007 Stage" just in time for filming to commence on "A View to a Kill" (1985).

Another fire occurred on 30 July 2006. [cite news | title = Fire wrecks James Bond film stage| publisher = BBC News|date= 2006-07-30| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/5228794.stm| accessdate =2006-07-30] The fire occurred just after production ended on the then-recent James Bond film "Casino Royale" while the Venetian piazza set was being dismantled. The damage to the building was extensive causing the roof of the building to collapse.cite news | title = Bond film stage 'will be rebuilt'| publisher = BBC News|date= 2006-07-31| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/5231392.stm| accessdate =2006-07-31] On 31 July 2006, Pinewood issued a statement indicating that the stage "will need to be demolished and rebuilt" and that there were no casualties in the incident.cite news | title = Bond film stage 'will be rebuilt'| publisher = BBC News|date= 2006-07-31| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/5231392.stm| accessdate =2006-07-31] The fire damaged stage was demolished on 13 September and 14. Construction on the new stage began on 18 September and was completed in under 6 months. [cite news | title = 007 Stage construction completed | publisher = Pinewood Studios| url = http://www.007stage.com| accessdate =2007-04-10] The new stage was redesigned and includes a number of new features including an increased working floor space area, enclosed stairwells to the gantry, a vehicle ramp into the tank, aircraft hangar style loading doors, increased electrical power and better insulation. The new stage is convert|374|ft|m long, convert|158|ft|m wide and 41 to convert|50|ft|m high (114 x 48 x 12-15 m). The stage is the biggest in Europe around convert|59000|sqft|m2|abbr=on.

Filmed in the 007 Stage

* "The Spy Who Loved Me" (1977): The Liparus supertanker
* "" (1978)/"Superman II" (1980): Scenes inside The Fortress of Solitude.
* "Moonraker" (1979): Special effects model work for the space battle.
* "Clash of the Titans" (1981)
* "For Your Eyes Only" (1981): The underwater wreck of the St. Georges.
* "Krull" (1983): Swamp.
* "Octopussy" (1983): Kamal Khan's palace courtyard.
* "Arena" (1984): Concert film and the video for "The Wild Boys" by Duran Duran
* "" (1985): Santa's workshop.
* "A View to a Kill" (1985): Zorin's silicon mine, scenes of flooding.
* "Aliens" (1986): The Sulaco's cargo bay.
* "Legend" (1986): Forest scene.
* "Little Shop of Horrors" (1986)
* "Alien³" (1992): Blast furnace.
* "" (1994): Theatre of the Vampires.
* "" (1996): Channel Tunnel chase sequence.
* "Event Horizon" (1997): Engine room.
* "The Fifth Element" (1997): Interior of spaceship, scene of the big shootout.
* "Tomorrow Never Dies" (1997): Interior of Elliot Carver's stealth boat. Also, the HMS Devonshire underwater set.
* "The Avengers" (1998): Sir August de Wynter's weather machine.
* "Still Crazy" (1998): Indoor concert.
* "Entrapment" (1999): Petronas Towers skywalk.
* "The World Is Not Enough" (1999): Russian nuclear testing facility.
* "" (2001): Stage divided into two: First tomb built on one side, second tomb built on the other side.
* "Die Another Day" (2002): Gustav Graves' Ice Palace.
* "" (2003): Stage divided into two: Greek temple built on one side, African caves on the other side.Alexander (2004): Babylon Palace on one side, Indian Palace on the other side
* "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (2005): The chocolate room / chocolate river.
* "Casino Royale" (2006): Recreation of Venice for film's finale.
* "The Da Vinci Code" (2006): The Louvre gallery.
* "Mamma Mia!" (2008)
* "Quantum of Solace" (2008): Sienese art gallery, cisterns and MI6 safehouse

References

External links

* [http://www.007stage.com/ 007stage.com]
* [http://www.pinewoodgroup.com/gen/z_sys_infoFacility.aspx?intFacilityId=36&intFacilityTypeId=1&Folder=2 Pinewood Studio's page on 007 Stage]
* [http://www.pinewoodgroup.com/gen/z_sys_StageProductions.aspx?stage=&id=36&type=0 Pinewood Studios 007 Stage filmography]
* [http://www.pinewoodgroup.com/gen/z_sys_stageAdditionalImages.aspx?intFacilityId=36&intFacilityTypeId=1&folder=2&s_id=34 007 Stage images]
* [http://www.pinewoodgroup.com/gen/z_sys_storyNews.aspx?intNewsId=1 Pinewood Studios - July 2006 fire latest news]