Kirkcudbright

The vast majority of The Wicker Man's location shooting was done in Dumfries and Galloway.

Kirkcudbright (pronounced Kircoobry ) is a town in Dumfries and Galloway and a number of key scenes from The Wicker Man were filmed here.

The 'Harbour Gallery' can be found near the town's seafront. The building served as the exterior of the Summerisle bakery and can be seen in the film shortly after Howie arrives on the island. It can also be seen during the house search for Rowan.

The building immediately next door to the harbour gallery is the house which once had the distinctive 'fanged' door knocker as also seen during the search for Rowan sequence.

Kirkcudbright's High Street contains a number of locations of interest to Wicker Man fans. The 'High Street Gallery' is now situated in the building where interiors and exteriors of May Morrison's sweet shop were filmed.

The archways and lanes where Oak lured Howie through the streets can also be found in the High Street as can Kirkcudbright toll booth, which is where we see the villagers gather for their may day parade.The archways are unchanged since the time of filming. The old toll booth, as it stands today, can be seen below. The small metal suns seen on the steps of the toll booth were not movie props and still exist today as they did at the time of filming. Needless to say, the large sun prop is no longer there. Note that the related courtyard scene was filmed some miles away at Lochinch Castle, despite what you may read elsewhere.

The only major change to the area in respect of this scene is the cobbled fenced area where we see both Oak and Howie run along. This area has since been redeveloped, however the old railings have been utilized as can be seen in the picture below.

Across the road from the 'High Street Gallery' is Kirkcudbright police station. Although this was the site of the mainland station seen in the opening scenes of the film, that particular building has since been destroyed and rebuilt.

The current police station situated in the same spot can be seen below.

Also of interest to completists is 'The Steampacket Inn' bar. This was the filming location of a scene which never made it to any cut of the film.

The interior of Greyfriars Episcopal Church in Kirkcudbright was also seen in The Wicker Man.

The building served as the mainland church seen near the beginning of the film. Despite recent restoration work, the building is largely unchanged since the time of filming. The 'skull and crossbones' motif ( that can also be seen in the film's other kirk ) was not a prop and is a feature of churches of that period and geographical location. Thanks are due to Rev Peter Taylor for allowing us access to his parish church.

For more reading on Kirkcudbright, please visit www.kirkcudbright.co.uk