Filming Testament of Youth in Oxford

Walking through Oxford this week, one couldn't help but notice the trucks and film crews scattered about in various locations setting up for and filming the BBC Film's production of Testament of Youth.  

The film locations included Merton College, Exeter College, Brasenose Lane, and Radcliffe Square.  It is Easter break in Oxford so the students are gone and the colleges are mostly empty for the next few weeks making them perfect and very private places to film.  

A Testament of Youth is Vera Brittain's 1933 autobiography which chronicles her experiences during World War I. She put her studies at Oxford on hold to become a nurse in the war, which claimed the lives of both her fiance and brother.

After the war ended, she tried to get her life back on track, but found herself as part of a lost generation. She later returned to Oxford to become a feminist and a writer.  Alicia Vikander  is portraying Vera Brittain, with Kit Harington playing her fiance.

There were old carriages, cars and props scattered about by the Bodelian Library.

Any pavement around Radcliffe Square was covered in sand and gravel to make it look more like it must have in 1915. 

Some of the actors and extras looked rather hot in their lovely wool coats since it was a warm spring day. 

According to Wikipedia: "Testament of Youth has been acclaimed as a classic for its description of the impact of World War I on the lives of women and the middle-class civilian population of Great Britain. 

The book shows how the impact extended into the postwar years. It is also considered a classic in feminist literature for its depiction of a woman's pioneer struggle to forge an independent career in a society only grudgingly tolerant of educated women."

James Kent (The Thirteenth Tale, The White Queen) is directing from a script by Juliette Towhidi.  David Hayman is producing.

 Unfortunately, I didn't have a lot of free time and so couldn't stick around to watch more scenes being filmed. Even so, it was fun to see all the horses, props, and actor's dressed in period costumes roaming about.

The movie will be in theaters in 2015 and is part of the BBC's commemoration of the 100 anniversary of WWI.