A PUB near Halesworth will be thrust into the limelight next week as filming for a new televisions series starring Hollywood actor Bernard Hill gets underway.

Mr Hill, who lives locally and starred in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, has signed up to a film production company to make a pilot for a forthcoming television series called Regulars.

The six part drama/comedy charts a friendship group of different ages living in Sticklehurst, a fictitious suburban village in East Anglia.

Filming for a ‘sizzle tape,’ a ten minute snippet of the series, takes place next week at The Queen’s Head in Blyford, which has just reopened. The pub’s owner Adnams has given its full support to use the pub for filming.

In the television series action focuses around the pub, which has been hit so hard by the recession, it is due to close.

Dean, an average guy hero learns of a national pub quiz tournament with a top prize of �50,000.

This will be enough to save Big Chris and Lesley’s beloved pub and keep it from takeover from Nick Fletcher, the local entrepreneur and owner of ‘Fletchers’ Wine Bars. The Regulars aim to win the tournament for the love of their local.

In a real life twist the pub recently reopened having been shut since December last year when the previous tenants left.

Bernard Hill stars in the series and is also supporting the venture by taking the role of executive producer.

Other cast members include Pirates of the Caribbean and Finding Neverland actor Angus Barnett, Sleepy Hollow and Calendar Girls actor, Marc Pickering, Waking the Dead, Silent Witness and Shameless actress, Julia Ford and former Eastenders’ actors, Scarlett Alice Johnson and Emer Kenny.

Writers Sam Massey and Paul Jibson will star and direct respectively.

The Queen’s Head has been taken over by husband and wife Lee and Marie Knight, who are serving up local produce.

Last night Mrs Knight described news of the filming as “very exciting” and added: “It is great for the local community.”

Mr Knight hopes his passion for food going ‘from gate to plate’ will prove popular at the pub.

“It’s really exciting and we’ve got loads of plans,” said Mr Knight, who began working for Adnams as a chef at the Crown in Southwold and more recently as head chef at Fritton House hotel.

“We’re using locally sourced produce and it’s going to be good traditional pub food. We’re hoping to get our own chickens too.”

The couple have lived in Southwold for 15 years.

For more about the Queen’s Head visit www.queensheadblyford.co.uk.