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Mel Gibson, "Braveheart"

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What's your favorite movie filmed in Ireland?

Circle of Friends

The Committments

Michael Collins

The Quiet Man

My Left Foot

Ferocious Mel Columbkille Gerard Gibson, bedecked in a bit of tartan kilt and his face painted blue, led the charge across the Curragh Racecourse into ancient battle.

The blue ‘woad plant’ dye on Gibson’s face was his war paint and he was playing the role of the legendary 13th century Scottish hero William Wallace. Rubber arrows flew through the air and plastic swords clashed as extra warriors from the Irish Army Reserve on mechanical horses recreated the historical battles of Wallace with the English at Stirling and Falkirk.

No local seemed to mind the director’s use of poetic license when the Irish switched sides to fight with their Scottish cousins at Falkirk even though they were, in fact, historically, somewhere else. The movie was Braveheart and most of it was filmed on location in Ireland on the plains of Kildare, and in the scenic hills and valleys of Wicklow.

Trim Castle, the largest Anglo-Norman castle on the island, and the nearby medieval Cistercian Bective Abbey in Co. Meath, also feature in many scenes. Braveheart won five Oscars and made it for heartthrob Mel and those knees that made grown women swoon in the aisles.

The highland desert of Wicklow has captured the imagination and been inspirational for many a film director. There are driving tours and a map that takes you round the sites of three major films that were made in Wicklow (Braveheart, Excalibur and Michael Collins).

The film sites are dotted around the county and you will experience some amazing vistas of barren stark landscapes and verdant valleys, which have been used as backdrops for many fine epics on the silver screen.

The Arthurian landscape of Sally Gap was the setting for the filming of Excalibur, and King Arthur himself tossed the famous sword into the dark and serene lake at Loch Tay.  Ireland’s largest waterfall at Powerscourt near Enniskerry also appears in John Boorman’s Excalibur.

For the recent futuristic movie Reign of Fire, a mock medieval fortress popped up overnight at the site of an old lead mine at Wicklow Gap. Fire breathing dragons roamed through the misty heather only to disappear with the castle overnight without a trace when filming was done.

The real Hollywood is not far away in the west of Wicklow (the Hollywood of California was named after this small rural town). The Hollywood Inn has been a popular haunt for filmstars waiting for low mountain fog to lift, and for wannabes waiting for a role as an extra. Some scenes of Dancing at Lughnasa, starring Meryl Streep, were shot in the town.

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