Call to promote Jersey for films

Bergerac was a big draw for tourism in the island while filmed in Jersey in the 1980s

More needs to be done to encourage film directors to come to Jersey, a politician has said.

Senator Lyndon Farnham said the States needed to get behind the idea of a big screen commission for it to work.

He said it would encourage not just film but television and documentaries to come to the island and help diversify the economy.

Hollywood movie, the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, is being filmed in Guernsey this spring.

Ten years ago, while he was a deputy, Mr Farnham called for States subsidies to set up a screen commission, with a film office and a film fund, but the idea never got off the ground.

Frank Toshack is working to showcase the island as a shooting destination and said the island had a number of benefits including how close it was to London.

BBC drama series Bergerac was a big draw for tourism to the island when it was filmed in Jersey in the 1980s.

A number of big names have come to the island as a backdrop for their catalogues, including Harrods and Laura Ashley. However, Mr Toshack said he wanted to attract even more.

Senator Farnham said it was time for the States to take the idea seriously.