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Last week, I enjoyed the movie Empire of Light so much that today I’m exploring the town where it was filmed.

I loved the location of Empire of Light, the film that I reviewed last week. The beautiful seaside town in the movie is Margate, England, on the north coast of Kent in southeast England.

When I visit a new place, I always like to start in the town museum, if one is available. The Margate Museums are only open on weekends and holidays, so I’ll want to time my trip accordingly. There’s an exhibit about the Borough Police from 1857, which is appropriate since the museum is housed in the former Magistrates Court and Police cells, a Grade II listed building. There are several exhibits about the maritime and seaside history of Margate, including model ships and a sea bathing machine.

It’s currently under renovation, but the Margate Museums also include Tudor House. Here’s the description from the website:

This article details the Margate sites that were transformed and used for the fictional plot of Empire of Light.

Dreamland is a 100-year-old amusement park in Margate. The Dreamland cinema complex was built in 1934. It’s art deco exterior played the role of the Empire theater in Empire of Light and some of its other features are enjoyed by the characters in the movie.

Dreamland had its ups and downs over the years. After closing in the early 2000s, it was expected to be redeveloped, but a local campaign succeeded in restoring it as a heritage theme park and music festival venue. The center piece is the wooden roller coaster called Scenic Railway.

The weirdest tourist site in Margate is the Shell Grotto. The story is that this underground series of rooms decorated with shell mosaics was “discovered” in 1835. It was opened for tours in 1838 and, ever since, has been in private hands that collect money for tours. Given that 4.6 million shells were mounted on the walls, the grotto was constructed, presumably by a team of people. The cynic in me feels like this is the ultimate tourist trap. If it is, the hoax has been going on for almost 200 years and that, in itself, makes it a fascinating bit of history. Also, it’s pretty.

Photo credit: Martin Hearn, 2014 (CC BY 2.0)

Photo credit: Barney Moss, 2011 (CC BY 2.0)

My accommodation for this fantasy trip is No. 42 Guest House, a boutique hotel overlooking the beach and bay. No. 42 occupies one of the Victorian buildings between High Street and Marine Drive that provides some of the aging beauty of this re-emerging seaside town. I’ll spring for a room with a balcony to enjoy the view and look forward to walks along the sandy shoreline right from the door of my hotel.

What do you think? Would you like to join me for a few days in Margate?