Bray Studios, the House that built Hammer: An Obituary

 

Bray Studios, the home of Hammer during its heyday has recently been closed by its current owner after the local Windsor and Maidenhead council agreed to plans to convert the sacred site into housing. Citing a lack of demand for future projects and the closeness to powerhouses such as Pinewood Studios, the fate of this greatly historic little studio has been sealed. Next to Bray Studios is Oakley Court, a Victorian Gothic manor which became home to many Hammer films during a period of 14 years while it lay uninhabited. Bray joins a list of many Studios and sets lost over the years and yet neighbouring Oakley Court is now a luxury hotel, its derelict charm which captured so many imaginations of the audiences watching those films, all put gone, however it still stands. A visual and very real monument to a period of British cinematic genius, okay the rooms have been altered, the grounds manicured, but its essence is still alive. Fans from all over the world can and still do visit this site, eager to just catch a glimpse of the location where their favourite movie was shot, eager to feel close to the giants of early British Horror, the pioneers who revolutionised low budget cinema. For me it is an opportunity to immerse myself in a bygone world of filming brilliance, where dreams could so easily become reality and a 2 hour escape from reality could so easily be achieved. I am grateful for Oakley Court in its modern capacity because at the very least it is a preservation of such an important film set which can now be shared with generations to come. 

If only the owners of Bray Studios could have found a way to make their plans for modernisation more accessible for the public like Oakley Court did. To embrace the past and bring it with them into the future, to celebrate the impactful role such a past has had on our community.  If this reality was a movie, then no doubt in the nick of time Hammer, now heading back to the top of the production world, would come to the rescue of its beloved spiritual home and restore it to its former glory. A gift to say thank you for all that Bray Studios and its creative souls did for the company, alas I fear this is just another dream, another form of escapism so I and countless genuine film fans the country and world over won’t have to contemplate the sad facts that life moves on, money conquers all and sentiment is left for the heroes in our Hollywood silver screen heydays.