Down Cemetery Road role was ‘dream come true’

A West Country actor said it was a “dream come true” to appear alongside Hollywood stars in a major new TV show.

The Apple TV thriller Down Cemetery Road, starring Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson, was filmed in Bristol and Somerset.

Connor Raithby from Taunton appeared in the first episode and said being able to work near his home was “really exciting”.

He said: “To actually work with such professionals on such a high profile set was really a dream come true.”

Other locations in the county featured in the adaptation of the Mick Herron book included the West Somerset Railway in Bishop’s Lydeard and The Wessex Hotel in Street.

Mr Raithby, who is also a writer and director, filmed for a day in Bristol alongside Ruth Wilson for a key scene in the first episode which involved knocking into the Luther star.

He said: “It took the whole day, because obviously we were filming from different perspectives, different camera shots, close-ups, establishments, so there was many times I had to bump into [Wilson].

“It was a fantastic day on set, interacting with a lot of the cast, and there were quite a few extras as well from the local area.”

Somerset Council’s lead member for economic development Mike Rigby said that when the production rolled the cameras in Bishop’s Lydeard, it became a “circus”.

The railway station was converted into a more contemporary set, with about 100 crew on site.

Councillor Rigby added it became a local effort, with “a bakery shipping in hundreds of pasties a day” and contractors helping to create a realistic looking film set.

“So all of that money feeds into the local economy,” he added.