Famous Scripts, Fact & Fiction - King Street - Thetford, Norfolk - UK Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

An information board on the side of The Bell Inn with information about Thomas Paine (Fact) and Dad's Army (Fiction).

"Thomas Paine was a radical thinker and one of democracy's biggest champions. His work was hugely influential in both the American and French Revolutions and he earned a reputation as the greatest political figure of his day.
Paine was born in Thetford on 29 January 1737, the son of a corset-maker. The family lived at the top of White Hart Street and Paine was educated at Thetford Grammar School.
He left the town at 19 and moved around London and Kent before becoming an excise-man in Lewes, Sussex in 1768. He was sacked from his job after writing his first political piece, The Case of the Officers of Excise - a plea for better wages and conditions. He returned to London where he met the American scientist and statesman, Benjamin Franklin, who suggested he try his luck in America."

"Most people recognise the actors and the catch phrases from the TV series Dad's Army, but not many realise that the location shots for Walmington-on-Sea were all filmed in Thetford and the surrounding area.
The Dad's Army series was commissioned in 1967 and filming for the first series was scheduled for April 1968. The question was where would they find a suitable outside location?
The Stanford Training Area to the north of Thetford fitted the bill. It is used as an army training ground, so apart from the occasional bomb going off or overhead jet aircraft, filming could go ahead undisturbed. Thetford itself had hotels to accommodate everyone and several streets with neat rows of grey brick and flint houses to give the right period feel."

SOURCE - info board.

Type of Historic Marker: Information board Historical Marker Issuing Authority: Breckland District Council Give your Rating: Age/Event Date: Not listed Related Website: Not listed

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Date Logged Log   10/23/2021 fm1906 visited it