The Rocket Post
Encyclopedia
The Rocket Post is a 2006
British drama film
directed by Stephen Whittaker
and starring Ulrich Thomsen
, Shauna Macdonald
, Kevin McKidd
and Patrick Malahide
. It is set on a remote Scottish island
during the late 1930s. The arrival of a German rocket scientist
is not initially welcomed by the inhabitants of the island.
The film was shot in 2001, but its release was delayed by several years. Additional footage was shot in 2005, and the film was given a limited release in Scotland
the following year.
The story is very loosely based on experiments in 1934 by German inventor Gerhard Zucker
to provide a postal service to the island of Scarp
by rocket mail
. Another fictionalised account of the experiment formed the basis of a 2001 film, also called The Rocket Post, which was filmed on Taransay
. The film's original score was composed by Nigel Clarke & Michael Csanyi-Wills and recorded by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London.
Original Score by Nigel Clarke & Michael Csanyi Wills at www.moviefonics.com
2006 in film
- Highest-grossing films :Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top-grossing films that were first released in the United States in 2006...
British drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Stephen Whittaker
Stephen Whittaker
Stephen Whittaker was a British actor and director. He worked largely in British film and television.In 2001 he filmed his final project The Rocket Post, a romantic drama set on a remote Scottish island...
and starring Ulrich Thomsen
Ulrich Thomsen
Ulrich Thomsen is a Danish actor.Thomsen was born in Fyn, Denmark and graduated from the Danish National School of Theatre and Contemporary Dance in 1993, after which playing on several theatres in Copenhagen, such as Dr. Dantes Aveny, Mungo Park and Østre Gasværks Teater.His film debut was in...
, Shauna Macdonald
Shauna Macdonald
Shauna Macdonald is a Scottish television and film actress.-Biography:Shauna Macdonald was born in Malaysia and shortly after moved back to her family's native Edinburgh, Scotland, before moving to Glasgow to train at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.She and her husband, the actor Cal...
, Kevin McKidd
Kevin McKidd
Kevin McKidd is a Scottish television and film actor and director. Before playing the role of Owen Hunt in Grey's Anatomy, McKidd starred as Lucius Vorenus in the historical drama series Rome, and provided the voice of Captain John "Soap" Mactavish in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and the sequel...
and Patrick Malahide
Patrick Malahide
Patrick Malahide is a British actor, who has played many major film and television roles.-Personal life:Malahide, real name Patrick Gerald Duggan, was born in Reading, Berkshire, the son of Irish immigrants, a cook mother and a school secretary father...
. It is set on a remote Scottish island
Outer Hebrides
The Outer Hebrides also known as the Western Isles and the Long Island, is an island chain off the west coast of Scotland. The islands are geographically contiguous with Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland...
during the late 1930s. The arrival of a German rocket scientist
Aerospace engineering
Aerospace engineering is the primary branch of engineering concerned with the design, construction and science of aircraft and spacecraft. It is divided into two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering...
is not initially welcomed by the inhabitants of the island.
The film was shot in 2001, but its release was delayed by several years. Additional footage was shot in 2005, and the film was given a limited release in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
the following year.
The story is very loosely based on experiments in 1934 by German inventor Gerhard Zucker
Gerhard Zucker
Gerhard Zucker was a German businessman and rocket engineer. However, none of his machinations proved to be operational, ranging from outright fraud to total failure....
to provide a postal service to the island of Scarp
Scarp, Scotland
Scarp is an uninhabited island in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, west of Hushinish on Harris. Once inhabited, the island was the scene of unsuccessful experiments with rocket mail, since commemorated in two films.-Geography:...
by rocket mail
Rocket mail
Rocket mail is the delivery of mail by rocket or missile. The rocket would land by deploying an internal parachute upon arrival. It has been attempted by various organizations in many different countries, with varying levels of success...
. Another fictionalised account of the experiment formed the basis of a 2001 film, also called The Rocket Post, which was filmed on Taransay
Taransay
Taransay is an island in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. It is famous for being the host of the British television series Castaway 2000. Uninhabited since 1974, except for holidaymakers, Taransay is the largest island in Scotland that lacks a permanent population...
. The film's original score was composed by Nigel Clarke & Michael Csanyi-Wills and recorded by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London.
Cast
- Ulrich ThomsenUlrich ThomsenUlrich Thomsen is a Danish actor.Thomsen was born in Fyn, Denmark and graduated from the Danish National School of Theatre and Contemporary Dance in 1993, after which playing on several theatres in Copenhagen, such as Dr. Dantes Aveny, Mungo Park and Østre Gasværks Teater.His film debut was in...
as Gerhard Zucher - Shauna MacdonaldShauna MacdonaldShauna Macdonald is a Scottish television and film actress.-Biography:Shauna Macdonald was born in Malaysia and shortly after moved back to her family's native Edinburgh, Scotland, before moving to Glasgow to train at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama.She and her husband, the actor Cal...
as Catriona Mackay - Gary LewisGary LewisGary Lewis may refer to:* Gary Lewis , son of Jerry Lewis and lead singer of Gary Lewis & the Playboys* Gary Lewis , Scottish actor...
as Jimmy Roach - Kevin McKiddKevin McKiddKevin McKidd is a Scottish television and film actor and director. Before playing the role of Owen Hunt in Grey's Anatomy, McKidd starred as Lucius Vorenus in the historical drama series Rome, and provided the voice of Captain John "Soap" Mactavish in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and the sequel...
as Thomas McKinnon - Patrick MalahidePatrick MalahidePatrick Malahide is a British actor, who has played many major film and television roles.-Personal life:Malahide, real name Patrick Gerald Duggan, was born in Reading, Berkshire, the son of Irish immigrants, a cook mother and a school secretary father...
as Charles Ilford - Eddie MarsanEddie MarsanEdward Maurice C. "Eddie" Marsan is an English actor.-Early life:Marsan was born in Stepney, London to a working class family; his father was a lorry driver and his mother a school dinner lady and teacher's assistant...
as Heinz Dombrowsky - Clive RussellClive RussellClive Russell is a British actor.Clive was born in Reeth, England and brought up in Fife, Scotland.He is a familiar face on British television and has appeared in numerous television series including Boys From the Black Stuff ,Hope And Glory, Neverwhere, Great Expectations, The Mists of Avalon,...
as Angus MacKay - Jimmy YuillJimmy YuillJimmy Yuill is an actor, born in 1959, in Golspie, Scotland.He is a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and later joined the Renaissance Theatre Company. He has appeared in many of Kenneth Branagh's films, most recently as Corin in the 2006 As You Like It...
as James MacLeod - Ian McNeiceIan McNeiceIan McNeice is a prolific English screen, stage, and television character actor.-Early life:McNeice was born in Basingstoke in Hampshire. McNeice's acting training started at the Taunton School in Somerset, followed by two years at the Salisbury Playhouse...
as Alex Miln - John WoodJohn Wood (English actor)John Wood, CBE was an English actor.-Biography:Wood was born in Derbyshire and studied law at Jesus College, Oxford where he was president of the Oxford University Dramatic Society. Changing to drama, Wood became known as a stage actor, appearing in numerous West End productions as well as on...
as Sir Wilson Ramsay - Niall Maclennan as James Maclennan
- Alasdair Maclennan as Paul Maclennan
- Tim BarlowTim BarlowMichael John Leigh Barlow , whose stage name is Tim Barlow or sometimes Timothy Barlow, is a British actor who has performed many small roles in a variety of films, television programmes and plays....
as Hector McDougal - Iain MacRae as Islander 1
- Lewis Iain MacNeill as Islander 2
External links
Original Score by Nigel Clarke & Michael Csanyi Wills at www.moviefonics.com