Highly anticipated British comedy drama The Duke was released in cinemas in the UK on 25th February 2022. The comedy drama, starring Academy Award winners Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren, is a moving true story that celebrates a man who was determined to live a meaningful life. Directed by BAFTA Award Winner Roger Michell, from a script by Richard Bean and Clive Coleman, The Duke filmed in Leeds, Bradford and London with finance, crew and locations support from Screen Yorkshire. The Duke garnered 5 star reviews from The Guardian and The Daily Telegraph and has proved to be a number one box office smash since its release in the UK.
In UK cinemas now!
Filming locations....
The Duke filmed in Leeds and Bradford supported by Screen Yorkshire’s Film Office. Filming locations in Leeds included: Millennium Square, Holbeck Cemetery, Whitelocks Pub and Hyde Park Picture House. Filming locations in Bradford included: Cartwright Hall, Little Germany, Upper Piccadilly, Bradford City Centre, Cannon Mills, Bradford. Filming in Bradford was supported by Bradford Film Office.
Synopsis
In 1961, Kempton Bunton, a 60-year old taxi driver, stole Goya’s portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London. It was the first (and remains the only) theft in the Gallery’s history.
Kempton sent ransom notes saying that he would return the painting on condition that the government invested more in care for the elderly – he had long campaigned for pensioners to receive free television.
What happened next became the stuff of legend. Only 50 years later did the full story emerge – Kempton had spun a web of lies. The only truth was that he was a good man, determined to change the world and save his marriage – how and why he used the Duke to achieve that is a wonderfully uplifting tale.
Starring alongside Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren, the cast also includes Fionn Whitehead, Matthew Goode and Anna Maxwell Martin.
The Duke is a Pathé, Ingenious Media and Screen Yorkshire presentation of a Neon Films Production. Nicky Bentham is the Producer and the Executive Producers are Cameron McCracken and Jenny Borgars for Pathé, Andrea Scarso for Ingenious Media, Hugo Heppell for Screen Yorkshire, Peter Scarf and Christopher Bunton. Filming in Bradford took place with support from our filming partners Bradford Film Office.