Steve McQueen’s Blitz: Filming begins in Hull’s Old Town as actors and crew spotted on streets

Steve McQueen's Blitz, to be released by Apple, will tell the story of how Londoners survived the German bombing campaign. Saoirse Ronan will star alongside Josef Altin, of Top Boy, along with Stephen Graham and Kathy Burke.

But once again, Hull’s Old Town is standing in as a historic version of the capital. Several shops in the city's Victorian Hepworth Arcade are being refitted to turn the clock back to the 1940s. On Monday (Feb 6) several streets were closed as some scenes were shot, while others were being prepared by other members of the crew.

Pictures from the city centre show one building turned into a second hand shop, while extras can be seen milling around in 1940s clothes.

McQueen, 53, is best known for his Oscar winning ’12 Years a Slave’, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor as Solomon Northup, which told the story of a free black man in the US who was kidnapped and sold into slavery.

Blitz is his first feature-length film since Widows in 2018, though he also created the award-winning TV series ‘Small Axe , which aired in 2020. The Old Town has been an increasingly popular location in recent years, with Netflix's "The Crown" shooting scenes last October. The Personal History of David Copperfield and Victoria also used it as a location, with Screen Yorkshire saying its listed buildings, pubs and cobbled streets and alleyways “make the area a perfect double for period London”.

Meanwhile businesses have been warned about street closures including High Street, Bowlalley Lane, Land of Green Ginger and Silver Street. The last filming is scheduled on February 14.

A letter thanked locals for being “so accommodating”, adding: "It is incredible to be able to bring productions to Hull and show off the beautifully historic architecture the city has to offer.”