Worzel at the vintage waltzers
White Waltham: Carters Steam Fair in festive TV show
Eagle-eyed TV viewers watching Worzel Gummidge on the BBC over the festive period spotted that the show had a helping hand from a popular White Walthambased steam fair.
Filmed in early July at Pedestal Field in West Wycombe, the episode – aired on Wednesday, December 29 – shows
Carters Steam Fair from the opening credits and throughout the episode.
Titled ‘Calliope Jane’, the episode features a friend of Aunt Sally who helps Worzel with his dream of visiting the fair with his scarecrow friends while the humans sleep.
On social media, Carters Steam Fair fans were quick to recognise the traditional yellow and red rides and fairground art during the episode, which stars actors Mackenzie Crook and Bill Bailey.
Fairground owner Joby Carter and his team also made several appearances in the show as ride operators alongside the cast.
Joby said: “We often hire the fair for film and TV productions, we have previously featured in Paddington 2 and Elton John’s Rocket Man, but it is always exciting when filming takes place at the fair itself, with our rides and living wagons on site too.
“It’s not often you can look out of your bedroom window onto a film set.”
The production team created signs to rebrand the fair to ‘Peregrine’s Fair’, and used computer-generated imagery to cover other bits of the fair that displayed ‘Carters’.
Joby added: “The build was incredibly hard as the ground conditions were very soft – you may have noticed the Ford County tractor and also some brown patches from ruts in the ground. Luckily, it’s a forgiving farmer’s field and we are good at doing ground repairs.
“A few of us from the fair did our bit of supporting acting which was fun, and it included 10 of us in a big ‘bed’ with Bill Bailey.
“Mackenzie Crook directed the episode and was fantastic to work with, he took a genuine interest in our vintage fairground rides and equipment and even took the time to pose with my book ‘Signwriting tips, tricks and inspiration’.”
The Carters team have just finished their
Christmas mini funfair at White Waltham and are now planning their 2022 tour.