The Handmaid’s Tale returns
Filming for second season of the Emmy-winning show has cast and crew back in Cambridge
CAMBRIDGE —
Queen’s Square in Cambridge was red with handmaids.
About 150 cast and crew of the hit television series, “The Handmaid’s Tale,” were filming in the city on Wednesday.
Actresses dressed in the signature red smocks could be seen walking near the Main Street bridge and in front of the Central Presbyterian Church while pedestrians passing by stopped to take photos with their phones.
Emily Lessard, who lives in the Preston neighbourhood, took the bus to Galt with her eight-month-old son just to watch the action.
The two were sitting in the Grand Café, overlooking the square when she met the star of the series, Elisabeth Moss.
“When she came in, I was a little star struck,” said Lessard. “I thought I’d be one of those people who’s really cool when you see someone more famous but I wasn’t.”
Lessard wasn’t allowed to take a photograph with her, but she said Moss came over to chat with her briefly.
“She was just really, really nice,” said Lessard, adding that she also met and chatted with Margaret Atwood, the author of the 1985 novel the series is adapted from.
For Michelle George and her staff at the Grand Café, it was a busy day serving regular customers along with cast and crew.
The coffee shop has a history with the show and was used to film part of a protest scene in an episode in the first season.
“Our very large window was blown out with special effects,” George, who owns the café, said in an email.
“The blast was impressive in person and
even more impressive to watch in slow motion in one of the episodes.”
“This year, that kind of incredibly dramatic excitement didn’t happen inside the café but we did have a number of handmaids just outside our doors and a big camera crane in action over the Main Street bridge,” she said.
Most of the day’s filming was near the bridge and at the Cambridge Farmers’ Market.
“They’re reaching the end of filming for the second season because that does premier in April,” said Devon Hogue, business information officer for the City of Cambridge. She said the crew arrived to film at 11 a.m. and were expected to be in the city until midnight. The series is also filmed in Hamilton.
Cambridge has become a popular setting for television and film productions and interest seems to be growing.
“Our inquiries, already for this year, are up 60 per cent over last year,” she said. “So I’m anticipating it’s going to be a busy year.”
Those interested in knowing more about where “The Handmaid’s Tale” and other films and television shows have been filmed in the city, can check out the interactive online map the city created on its website last August.