Red Eye series 2 filming locations including Premier League football club and weird link to swimwear
We go behind the scenes...Red Eye series 2 has a quality cast, brilliant twists and a string of surprising filming locations.
The six-part series largely splits its scenes between the US Embassy, a private jet and the headquarters of MI5. DS Hana Li (Jing Lusi) again finds herself at the heart of a major international conspiracy as a mysterious figure starts a killing spree in the US Embassy.
She is forced to team up with head of American security Clay Brody (Martin Compston), a man she’d had a terrible experience with in her past. Meanwhile, MI5 boss Madeline Delaney (Lesley Sharp) is stuck on a government jet with a bomb on it.
If the plane drops below 20,000 feet, the bomb will go off killing her and her fellow passengers, including the defence secretary.
There are some fascinating locations used during the making of Red Eye series 2. Executive producer Lachlan MacKinnon tells us where they filmed the show…
*** Warning: Spoilers for Red Eye series 2 ahead ***
Where did the Red Eye 2 team shoot the inside scenes at the US Embassy?
Weirdly, the makers actually shot the inside US Embassy scenes in Speedo’s former headquarters. Yes, there’s a strange link between Red Eye and swimming trunks!
Executive producer Lachlan MacKinnon tells us that finding a site to double as the US Embassy was a huge challenge. “The US Embassy is said to have cost in excess of $1 billion to build, so it’s therefore extremely difficult to find locations with that aesthetic grandeur and scale within the budgetary parameters of this show,” he says.
But the Speedo building was perfect. “It’s a truly stylish and contemporary space, very in keeping with the look of the real US Embassy.
“It spans over eight floors and has a maze-like feel… we probably filmed every square foot of it, from the machine rooms to the staff canteen. And from the on-site nature reserve to the swimming pool that was once used to test the Speedo swimwear!”
This was the first time a TV crew used the building in the middle of Finchley in London.
Throughout the series, the embassy is the prime location. Hana and Clay desperately chase the killer around the building, but it turns out to be a labyrinth. At one point, the murderer even uses the inside of the walls.
Red Eye series 2 filming locations: which Premier League club did the makers use?
The production used Tottenham Hotspur’s stadium for filming. But they didn’t use the pitch. Nope, they used its car park!
“Don’t laugh, but we really struggled to find suitable underground car parks that could double as the one beneath the US embassy, where we could film a number of complex stunt sequences across the series,” explains Lachlan.
“Most of the sites we visited looked quite tired and not as glossy as you’d expect for a building that cost in excess of $1 billion. I am glad that after a bit of persuasion with its management, we managed to secure the car park of Tottenham Football Stadium, which is very new and stylishly designed.”
They also shot a scene at a multi-storey car park in Watford. The glamorous world of television!
Did Red Eye series 2 makers use the real US Embassy for outside shots?
Yes, the team used the real US Embassy for the exterior views. Not surprisingly the crew weren’t allowed to use the actual embassy for the interior scenes as it’s top secret. But they could film the building from the outside.
The striking embassy in Vauxhall, south London, opened in 2018. The old US Embassy was in Grosvenor Square in Mayfair. However, the Americans took the decision they wanted a more modern headquarters.
The amazing building has even won architecture awards but not everyone is a fan! American President Donald Trump in 2018 described the embassy as being “lousy” and “horrible”.
In Red Eye we often see the real embassy building before going inside to see Hana chasing after the killer.
Where were the government jet scenes filmed?
A key part of the plot is MI5 director general Madeline Delaney being trapped on a government private jet with a bomb. Also onboard is British Defence Minister Alex Peterson.
The crew filmed the plane scenes at an airfield near Maidenhead in Berkshire. As for the inside of the jet, Lachlan says they worked with a company that specialises in building all things aeronautical for television.
“They have fuselages and cockpits in stock, so it’s a little like playing with life-size Meccano!,” he enthuses.
One challenge was that actor Nicholas Rowe, who plays Defence Minister Alex Peterson, is over six feet tall. “Some creative licence was required when it came to the actual height of the cabin of our private jet, as they tend to be rather small,” says Lachlan.
In the end, the team had their own private jet to play with.
Red Eye series 2 filming locations: is it the real exterior of MI5?
Yes, the building you see in Red Eye is Thames House, which is the headquarters of MI5. The Grade II listed property is in Westminster, near the Houses of Parliament.
The makers didn’t shoot inside the building, instead using a set. This isn’t surprising as Thames House is one of the most secretive places in the country. MI5 states that there are no public tours and says if you want to have a look around the best way is to get a job there!
Don’t confuse Thames House with the more famous headquarters of MI6 at Vauxhall Cross. The MI6 building is legendary because it’s been in several James Bond films.
Read more: Everything we know about After the Flood series 2
