Dr Challoner's High School became the backdrop for a new TV thriller starring Robson Green and its pupils were involved in the filming. Lindi Bilgorri finds out what happened.

THE summer holiday came two days early for 400 students of Dr Challoner's High School and Dr Challoner's Grammar School last July.

The children went to school as normal but they found themselves playing extras in the television drama Like Father, Like Son, starring Robson Green and Jemma Redgrave, which is to be shown on ITV next week.

Nick Laughland, the director of the thriller, says: "We filmed at the girls' school, but they imported 200 boys from the grammar school, as we had to make it into a mixed school for the drama.

"The children were fantastic. They filmed on the last two days of term, and then they all came in again on the first two days of their holiday. It was remarkable."

Nick chose Dr Challoner's High School in Little Chalfont because of its architecture.

"It fitted the script. I had one little thing which I always had in my head right from the beginning. There is a scene in the drama when the main character, Jamie (a schoolboy), is looking at three schoolgirls. I wanted them on a walkway and looking down below."

Dr Challoner's High School had the perfect location.

In the four days' filming most of the buildings and grounds of the school acted as a backdrop. Vans, cars and winnebagos were parked in the car park. Cameras and lights were put up the class rooms and halls, and when the teachers and students moved from classroom to classroom they passed the crew and cast along the corridors.

Headteacher Hilary Winter says: "It was quite interesting. They created a little village bringing their own changing rooms, canteens and toilets, and erected enormous marquees where the girls and boys were shepherded in between shots."

The TV production company and the school worked in harmony over the four days.

Hilary continues: "We had them right at the end of the summer term so the disruption was not an enormous issue, and they were very good at keeping out of our way when we needed them to. Before the end of term they were filming outside, in the dining room and the main entrance area. But they were very good, they went into the dining room during lesson time rather than lunchtime.

"When the girls had broken up after the last day of term, they did a lot of filming in the hall, and they took over four or five classrooms and created a head's office. They also used the gym. They were very good at accomodating the needs of the school.

"There was a little bit of disruption in terms of cars but when we wanted the corridors to be available for general school use they were available. There was never: "Oh you can't go down there, they are filming"."

Nick praises Hilary Winter at the high school.

"The headmistress of the school is an extraordinary woman who got behind the project and offered us all the help she could."

The biggest scene was when Nick and his film crew had to gather all 400 children into a school assembly.

"I think that is the most we had at one time, and that was on the last day of their term.

"The school was fantastic and hugely cooperative."

The two part thriller is about a mother, Dee, (Jemma Redgrave) who has rebuilt her life with her son, Jamie, (Somerset Prew) after her husband was jailed for the brutal murders of four girls 11 years before. Dee has fallen in love with Jamie's teacher, Dominic (Robson Green), and life seems to be blossoming for her. But she has never told her son that his father is a serial kille. Instead she lied and told him a story that his father had been a pilot. Then her life is threatened when 15-year-old Jamie is accused of stalking a girl at school and he accidentally discovers the truth about his dad.

Winter says: "To be fair we were a little concerned about the subject. The company was extremely cooperative in letting us know what it was all about. We saw the script beforehand and saw the issues it would raise. We decided, in the end, it was a fairly standard drama, the sort of issues were those that would crop up on any TV drama.

"Because it was about sensitive issues we made sure the parents knew exactly what was going on. If they didn't want their daughters to be involved, they needn't be."

Filming wasn't as glamorous as the youngsters thought it was going to be, though.

Hilary explains: "They were constantly doing the same shot time and time again. I remember on the last day of term, they wanted to do shots of crowds of youngsters coming into school. My office is directly above the main entrance, so I was able to watch.They must have spent two hours filming for what probably amounted to 10 seconds of film. It was just phenomenal the amount of time they took, doing it time and time again. It really showed the girls how tedious and boring making a film actually is."

But the youngsters and the staff weren't really complaining.

"They were taking part in this filming, something that they had never done before, the experience was exciting. And being part of something with cameras, microphones, make-up, a director and having important people around was a whole new experience for them. It was great."

And in some ways it was educational.

"They had to work under instruction as well, so they were learning. Also they learnt it was the same as school, they had to be at a certain place at a certain time. The producer and director said the girls were so easy to work with because they were where they were needed to be at the right time.

"It was just fascinating watching this sort of fiction taking place in front of our eyes, creating a fiction out of a reality."

There was, however, one person who was a little hesitant about filming at a girls' high school, and that was Robson Green.

Robson says: "I was a bit nervous about walking into a girls' school because I thought there was going to be so much attitude. But we couldn't have had a more helpful set of young people. It did take me back and it was nice when they asked me to do a little chat on their awards day."

The girls and the teachers were over-awed when Robson Green agreed to hand out the awards on their Celebration Day.

Hilary says: "He came and gave out cups and certificates to the sports' teams. And all the girls melted when he gave them a handshake and a little kiss. It was so lovely he was willing to do that and gave up one hour and a half of his time."

She was also impressed with Robson.

"There was no I-am-an-important-person side to him. He was so charming and very easy-going. They were all very easy to work with."

All the hard work the girls and staff gave was well rewarded financially, and the head made sure it was invested back into the school.

"Part of it will go towards the refurbishment of the dining room," she says.

Like Father, Like Son: ITV on January 24 and 25 at 9pm