Mum slams film crew for digging near son’s grave
AMUM-OF-THREE from Rochdale has slammed a film crew who dug up a cemetery plot just feet from her son’s grave.
Sky comedy Brassic is currently filming its third season in Lancashire and was given permission by Rossendale Council to shoot at Whitworth Cemetery last week.
The crew filmed seasons one and two largely in Bacup and have continued to use locations across the county with stars Joe Gilgun and Michelle Keegan spotted by residents on a regular basis.
But the TV crew has been branded a ‘disgrace’ by Tracy Goldie-Auxilly after production members started digging a hole for a fake grave just feet away from the plot where her son Gareth had been laid to rest just two weeks before.
Gareth’s plot was still decorated with memorial wreaths and flowers when the crew were filming.
Tracy said her autistic daughter Chloe had gone to visit the grave but was confused and devastated when she saw cast and crew gathered about a freshly dug hole just feet from Gareth’s final resting place.
“It’s a disgrace, you’re filming graveyards, a place where you lay people to rest,” said Tracy.
“At the end of the day it’s not a playground. The crew could have used a farmer’s field with some props.
“I want the council to go away and delve into their conscience. What they have done has devastated my family.”
Tracy, from Rochdale, and her family were shocked when Gareth, 39, died suddenly on September 11. The father-of-two, who leaves behind an eight-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son, experienced some kind of seizure and died almost instantly as he stood in his mum’s kitchen.
Tracy says the family chose the idyllic graveyard specifically because of its beauty.
On Thursday, October 14 Gareth’s autistic sister Chloe went to visit the grave on her own for the first time. But the 31-yearold was distressed to find cast and crew milling around an open grave close to her brother’s.
“Initially she thought she had wandered into a funeral,” said Tracy. “She was just devastated, they were still filming when she was at his grave.
“They were swearing and shouting, Chloe couldn’t get her head around it. Some of the language they were using really wasn’t nice. When she found out the grave they had dug wasn’t real it upset her even more.”
Rossendale Council gave permission for the film crew to attend the graveyard on October 14 and 15.
A council spokesperson said: “The council would like to apologise for the upset this incident this has caused the family at this very difficult time.
“The production company were granted permission to do the filming several weeks ago. The council do take every precaution to ensure a considerable distance between filming and any existing graves, and we did not intend to cause any upset.”
Sky have also offered their apologies to the family. A spokesperson for the network said: “We’re very sorry for any distress we caused when filming scenes on location at Rossendale.
“While our production team had received permission to film scenes on location, we understand the impact this had on the family member and we would like to offer them our deepest sympathy and condolences.
“While filming was taking place the production was conscious someone was visiting and, out of respect, a crew member reached out in person to offer apologies for any disruption caused.
“The series is postwatershed and plays out after 10pm. As a result, it contains adult language and we offer apologies for any sensitivities cause by this being overheard during filming.”