Bray Studios
The Home of Hammer Films
Hammer learnt early on that it was far more cost effective to rent a country house and shoot films in its rooms and grounds, than it was to use established studios like Shepperton and Pinewood.
Dial Close
Dial Close was the first of these houses. It was an unfurnished 23-bedroom property at Winter Hill, Cookham Dean, Maidenhead which Hammer rented for £25 a week. Whilst there they filmed Dr Morelle – The Case of the Missing Heiress (1949), along with other early post-war productions, The Adventures of PC 49, Celia and Meet Simon Cherry.
On 12 February 1949, while operating out of Dial Close “Hammer Film Productions” was officially registered as a company.
In August 1949, local resident complaints regarding excessive noise during night-time filming forced Hammer to vacate Dial Close.
Oakley Court
Following their abrupt exit from Dial Close, Hammer Film Productions moved into Oakley Court in August 1949. Situated on the River Thames at Water Oakley near Bray, Berkshire, this spectacular 1859 Victorian Gothic Revival country house became the visual anchor for British gothic cinema. It served as a temporary studio headquarters and later as the ultimate exterior location for countless horror masterpieces.
Hammer rented Oakley Court for roughly one year. They quickly adapted the main building and its outhouses into fully functioning support spaces—converting rooms into a makeshift screening theatre, storage facilities, and production offices. During this twelve-month residency, Hammer utilised the house’s interiors and immediately surrounding grounds to film five early thriller and comedy productions
Hammer produced 5 films, all released in 1950, at Oakley Court
The Man in Black
Room to Let
Someone at the Door
What the Butler Saw
The Lady Craved Excitement
Gilston Park
Hammer moved to Gilston Park Country Club in Harlow, Essex for their next 4 productions. They felt that the Gothic mansion, Oakley Court, was rather limited, although they kept a presence there for the studio sequences of productions made on location. Gilston Park continued to function as a residential country club whilst Hammer used it for their films. Two large rooms were used as stages and the building could accommodate workshops. Some construction was also allowed.
Hammer produced 4 films, all released in 1951, at Gilston Park.
Black Widow
To Have and to Hold
The Rossiter Case
The Dark Light
Down Place
Down Place
Hammer, in search of a permanent base to make their films, had identified Down Place, an estate situated on the banks of the river Thames, close to the village of Bray. By the end of World War 2, Down Place had become derelict and Hammer approached the then owners, the Davies family, to arrange a year long lease to use the property as their next base. They felt it was an ideal location that would not have the construction restrictions that had prevented them from customising their previous locations.
In that first year Hammer produced 5 films:
Cloudburst and A Case for PC 49 – released in 1951, and Death of an Angel, Whispering Smith Hits London and The Last Page – all released in 1952.
As the lease expired, production of their next 4 films moved elsewhere – Wings of Danger, Stolen Face and Lady in the Fog were filmed at Hammersmith Studios and Never Look Back at Manchester Film Studios.
In 1952, as the Davies family were looking for new tenants for Down Place, James Carreras made an offer to purchase the freehold of the property. So, in 1952 Hammer moved back to Down Place and renamed the estate Bray Studios, after the nearby village. The Gambler and the Lady (released 1953) would become the first production at the newly named Bray Studios. The studios became Hammer’s permanent home for the next 14 years – their final full production there being The Mummy’s Shroud, released in 1967. They used the studio for model FX work on two further films, Moon Zero Two and When Dinosaurs ruled the Earth.
Hammer sold Bray Studios in November 1970.
