SMOKE billows and litter rustles across a suburban street. Unearthly moans break the eerie silence. The mist parts as a tank and a humvee roll into view, greeted by a crowd of blood-drenched undead.
Such was my Thursday; the day I became a zombie.
The call went out that morning on social media and immediately my ears pricked up.
A new zombie action-horror movie, Redcon-1, would be shooting in Brownsover; a perfect opportunity to write about something exciting, something a bit different.
And if they wanted extras to join the walking dead then, well, who was I to argue?
Eyebrows raised when the Scorpion tank and armoured humvee rolled into Copeland.
As more crew members arrived and spread out a lorryload of litter, apocalyptic signs, shopping trollies and detached doors, more intrigued residents gathered and began excitedly texting and phoning their friends.
Within minutes the road was transformed into a post-apocalyptic wasteland – and hundreds of locals had lined the pavements, snapping photos, queuing for the chance to be an extra, and marvelling at the size of the crowds.
I lost count of the number of times I was told the Brownsover community hadn’t gathered like this in many years.
Copeland resident Louise Miller looked slightly bewildered to see her front garden turned into the aftermath of a zombie outbreak – but was delighted to be involved.
“I’m looking forward to seeing my house on the big screen,” she said. “I think it’s pretty cool, and the kids seem to think so too.”
They did indeed: Brandon Taylor, 11, said: “There’s a tank outside my house. When does that happen?!” While his brother Curtis, 12, simply stated: “All my friends are going to think I’m absolutely sick!”
Neighbourhood Police Community Support Officer Amy Langstone was there on duty – and extended her shift so she didn’t miss any of the action.
“It’s all very exciting, isn’t it?” she said. “We were due to be going home soon but we’re going to stay on because it’s not every day you get something like this going on!
“It’s good for the community, it gets everybody out. We haven’t seen this many people out in a long time.”
The filmmakers ended up in Rugby thanks to Dunchurch mechanic-turned-army-vehicle-collector Andrew Baker – whose fleet of tanks is aired every year at the village’s Tanks, Trucks and Firepower Show, and which has appeared in the likes of Children of Men, Captain America and The Hustle.
He said: “I met the director at a military show and since then he’s been at our place every couple of months, sorting film work out.”
Tired from a hard day’s shoot, he added: “I feel like a zombie! But it’s fun to be a part of. It brings something to the town.”
The film itself is described by director and co-writer Chee Keong Cheung as a ‘men-on-a-mission’ movie, in which eight soldiers head into a UK quarantine zone tasked with grabbing the scientist responsible for the outbreak.
Chee said: “I was always a fan of films like 28 Days Later, early George Romero films, and war films like Saving Private Ryan and Black Hawk Down. I thought a fusion of the two would be interesting. I think the zombie phenomenon is growing and its great to be part of that community.”
He told me he wanted his film to offer a different take on the undead. “We try to give more awareness to the ‘infected’, and get a sense of character from them,” he said.
“It helps us create this interesting, crazy world our team enters, with all sorts of different, individual zombies.”
Which is where your intrepid reporter stepped in.
I joined a throng of thrilled Rugbeians of all ages in the make-up queue. Everyone, from toddler to pensioner, was exhilarated. Wide-eyed teens exchanged zombie method-acting tips gleaned from playing Call of Duty on their Playstations. “Look into their eyes,” they say; “there’s nothing there. Totally blank.”
Then Chee and his assistant sauntered over with a camera and the crowd fell silent as – in a scene almost plucked straight from Shaun of the Dead – they asked us to demonstrate our best zombie impressions.
Whether it was decided on acting ability alone, or a suspicion they could save a few quid on gruesome prosthetics, the filmmakers chose me as one of their six ‘featured zombies’.
And with that, I was whisked off to make-up, covered in fake blood, dressed in Royal Mail garb (with logo hidden to avoid potential lawsuits) and reborn as Zombie Postman.
It was around this time the lead actors were ushered on set. While none could be described as household names, a few familiar faces were spotted. Chief among them was Carlos Gallardo, familiar to fans of Robert Rodriguez’s Desperado and Planet Terror, and Martyn Ford – a tattooed man-mountain whose He-Man dimensions might have seemed like a special effect were he not there in the flesh – who appeared in Kingsman: The Golden Circle.
Also among the camouflage-clad clan were Katarina Leigh Waters (better know under her American wresting alter egos of Katie Lea and Winter), Marc Baylis (formerly Coronation Street’s Rob Donovan), Akira Koieyama (Rush) and Mark Strange, a martial artist who appeared in Batman Begins.
But the last thing they had time for was an interview with a gore-drenched local newspaper reporter. And besides, I was needed on set.
So ‘action’ was called and our community of zombies – a policewoman, a paramedic, a woman in a dressing gown, another on her mobility scooter – wobbled down the street as the tanks chugged by, prop guns pointing at our bloody faces.
Many takes were shot from many angles, each time with more zombies added, until – as daylight failed and my jaw seized up from gurning – the assistant director announced: “It’s a wrap!”
And with that, the hundreds lining the streets burst into rapturous applause.
As Chee later reflected: “People in Rugby have brought a really great community spirit. People have come out on to the streets to get involved, from residents, to the police – they’ve been amazing. It’s been really welcoming to have the community involved.”
As the street was restored to its former state and the trucks rolled out of view, residents lined up to shake Chee’s hand and return his sentiment. It’s been a funny sort of day – and one which will live long in the memory.
