'All around the what?': Shropshire landmark name-dropped by Christian Bale in new Hollywood blockbuster
Film lovers going to see a new Hollywood blockbuster may be surprised by a reference to one of Shropshire's most beloved locations.
When Christian Bale started researching how to bring driver Ken Miles to life in the upcoming film Le Mans ’66, he wanted to make it authentic.
The star of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy started looking at the vernacular of the West Midlands, and he came up with a classic Shropshire expression.
Working with a dialect coach from Solihull, Bale worked to not only recreate Miles's voice, but to also use some of the sayings he may have used.
"They were giving me all sorts of expressions," Bale said. "I was chucking things in that even people in England aren’t all going to get unless maybe they live right near Birmingham — “Going round the Wrekin” and “Your mum works out back at Rackhams” and calling a sandwich a cob."
The film, which also stars Matt Damon, Jon Bernthal and Caitriona Balfe, tells the story of a team of American engineers at Ford who must create a new racing car with the potential to finally defeat the Ferrari racing team in the 1966 24 hours of Le Mans race.
The film is being released in the UK later this month.
