A forthcoming film starring Meryl Streep and Carey Mulligan as pioneers of the campaign for women's voting rights is to be the first commercial project to shoot at the Houses of Parliament.
Suffragette, from Brick Lane director Sarah Gavron and The Iron Lady screenwriter Abi Morgan, which features Streep as famed historical campaigner Emmeline Pankhurst, stars Mulligan as an early member of her Women's Social and Political Union. MPs have approved plans to film in the Palace of Westminster, a move which will bring in revenue and save producers the high cost of mocking up the chamber elsewhere.
"This unique location promises to attract more production to the capital, and by working with the industry and our partners, we will help ensure it can get the most out of filming, while protecting the integrity of this very special building," said Film London and British Film Commission chief executive Adrian Wootton. "And I look forward to seeing it on screen in the star-studded Suffragette, which will be a fantastic showcase of British talent, behind and in front of the camera, and this very special new location."
The Iron Lady, for which Streep won an Oscar two years ago, also featured scenes set in parliament. But these were in fact filmed elsewhere. Conservative MP Alan Haselhurst, chairman of the cross-party administration committee, told BBC Radio 4: "This is a test case to some extent. We are putting our toe in the water.
"Nobody is disadvantaged. It is taking place in a way that absolutely does not affect the normal operation of parliament, and if it helps the bottom line, then I would have thought the public would say, 'You are being prudent.'"
Suffragette, which also stars Helena Bonham Carter, Romola Garai, Anne-Marie Duff and Ben Whishaw, will chart the efforts of early activists for women's liberation and their run-ins with the government. Streep, who lost out to Blue Jasmine's Cate Blanchett for the best actress Oscar on Sunday night, was revealed to be taking a role in the film last month. She will reportedly feature in a keynote rally scene in which Pankhurst makes a speech.
