One of the stars of ‘Yesterday’ is a Gorleston ‘convert’, it was revealed at last night’s East Anglian premiere of the film.
Director Danny Boyle and writer Richard Curtis, as well as actor Kate McKinnon and musician and co-star Ed Sheeran, gathered on Friday night (June 21) at the Palace Cinema in Gorleston, where the film was projected simultaneously on four screens to a packed house of 400 people ahead of its general release next week.
The movie follows unsuccessful musician, Jack Malik, played by Himesh Patel, who wakes up after a global electrical storm to realise he is the only person on earth who remembers The Beatles.
Some 6,000 people were recruited to appear in scenes shot on Gorleston beach in June last year, with Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Southwold and Halesworth also featuring.
Before the screening the movie's makers and stars spoke to an audience of local people who had taken part in the shooting.
Ed Sheeran, who plays himself in the movie, joked he hadn't read the whole script so did not know the full story until he had seen the film.
Danny Boyle said the cast and crew had enjoyed an "extraordinary" day during the beach scene filmed in Gorleston last summer.
The director hailed the goodwill of local people whose spirit had infused the film.
Over 6,000 people gathered on the beach last June to watch Jack play a punk-rock version of The Beatles song 'Help!'.
It was the biggest cast call ever in the history of film-making in the UK, a fact about which Mr Boyle is proud.
Then he and writer Richard Curtis outed Kate McKinnon, who stars in the movie as Jack's money-hungry manager, as a Gorleston "convert", saying it was her favourite place in the world.
During the beach scene there were ripples of excitement from the audience.
People also had fun spotting local scenes, like a shelter at North Denes and the seafront amusements.
At the end of the film the audience applauded.
Wife of Richard Curtis, Emma Freud, later posted a video of the night on Instagram.
She said after the screening they had fish and chips and went to the pub.
"It was the loveliest night," she wrote.
Another post, showing Sheeran and her husband, said: "Suffolk people are excellent."
The film goes on general release on Friday, June 28.
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