Pinewood accused of banning photographers following 007 Stage fire

03-Aug-2006 • Bond News

Pinewood Studios' management has been accused of "behaving appallingly" towards the press in the aftermath of the fire at the 007 stage on the premises on Sunday (click for full coverage) - reports Press Gazette.

Paul Stewart, a freelance photographer working for the Daily Express, claimed that the studio refused entry to the site, even after Buckinghamshire fire and rescue service had declared it safe.

Stewart also alleged that initially Pinewood would not confirm it was the James Bond set that had been hit by the blaze, and wrongly claimed that Buckinghamshire fire and rescue service had said the media could not film or take pictures.

Stewart said: "It was complete nonsense. They behaved appallingly, to be quite honest. They allowed no access, no facilities and were about as awkward as you can get."

He added: "In my opinion it all looks very strange when they're trying to keep secret a fire you can see five miles away."

Stewart's son, Graham, IT manager and photographer for Retna photo agency, which is a tenant of the studios, said he was refused access to the site to check if the company's servers had been damaged until well after it was made safe.

Buckingham fire and rescue communications manager Fraser Pearson said: "It's completely at Pinewood Shepperton's discretion whether to invite the media into their property.

"It's not Buckinghamshire fire and rescue service's place to make that decision for them. If they aren't invited by the property owner, that's a matter for the property owner and the news organisations."