Where Was Goldfinger Filmed? Connery’s Best Spy Movie From 1964!!

Have you been scouring the internet for a captivating spy film? Then you can stop looking further, as you’ve come to the right place. Follow this article to know all about the classic spy flick, Goldfinger, starring Sean Connery in the lead role. Furthermore, I’ll also let you in on where was Goldfinger filmed.

The action thriller flick, Goldfinger, released in 1964, stands as the third installment to the James Bond franchise. This spy film became hugely popular amongst audiences, who enjoy watching exhilarating action movies with gripping storylines. While directing this film, Guy Hamilton took inspiration from Ian Fleming’s crime fiction novel published 5 years prior to the movie.

The basic premise of Goldfinger centers around the charismatic character of James Bond, a British special agent of MI6. The story gets interesting when Bond has to find and neutralize a crime lord, involved in the smuggling of gold.

The makers of Goldfinger were content with the overall commercial performance of the film. This action-packed film went on to gross over $125 million in worldwide collections against a nominal shooting budget. The audiences and critics positively reviewed the storyline of the movie and acclaimed the spectacular performance of Sean Connery in the lead role.

Now, without delaying any further, let’s explore where was Goldfinger filmed.

Where Was Goldfinger Filmed? Let’s Know This Action Thriller Flick Closely!

Like most other Bond films, Goldfinger too was filmed in different parts of the world. However, the makers of this Oscar-winning film decided to shoot the majority of the sequences in the UK. Thus, after the director auditioned some notable actors for the supporting role and selected the cast members, he started looking for filming locations.

The production members scouted a number of locations in and around America and Switzerland, as the director wanted to shoot a few sequences overseas. Hamilton then visited the scouted locations in person and arranged a special meeting with other heads of the project.

The team reviewed the filming locations in America and Switzerland for the second time and eventually decided to shoot a number of pivotal sequences there. Important to mention that, the majority of the film was shot in and around the county of Buckinghamshire.

The principal photography began in the middle of January 1964 and continued till the second week of July, of the same year. The production members reportedly ran into a major problem while filming some outdoor scenes in Switzerland. 

One of the co-actors was badly injured while performing a stunt sequence. This incident delayed the filming schedule for several weeks. But, thankfully the production members later picked up the pace and made up for the lost time. Other than that, there were no reports of any other incident which affected the filming dates.

So, without wasting any time, let’s discuss in detail, where was Goldfinger filmed.

Buckinghamshire, England | UK

The opening sequence of the film, where we see the character of James Bond inside the MI6 Headquarters in London, was actually filmed in Buckinghamshire. The production members arranged a vacant building and later turned it around to look like the special spy base of Bond.

A considerable amount of time and budget was spent on turning around the vacant space. Special equipment and technologically advanced gadgets had to be installed, to capture the interior sequences of the MI6 base.

Other pivotal sequences of the movie, such as the scene where Bond infiltrates the Auric Enterprises were actually filmed inside Pinewood Studios. This famous studio has been used by a number of British and American filmmakers who filmed in the UK.

Interestingly enough, all major interior sequences of the movie were filmed inside this well-equipped and famed studio, located in the village of Iver Heath.

The production members also captured a few additional outdoor sequences in London and Slough, before moving to Switzerland. The sequence depicting the main entrance of the Fort Knox Vault was captured in London.

Then finally, the production members traveled overseas and captured the remaining sequences of the movie.

Other Filming Locations

After filming the majority of the sequences across various locations in the UK, the filming crew arrived in Switzerland. Pivotal outdoor sequences of the film were captured near Andermatt, Uri. 

The sequences depicting the exterior part of the Auric Enterprises in the movie were filmed outside of an Airplane manufacturing company, located at Pilatusstrasse 1, Stans. The exhilarating car-chase sequence of the movie, where Bond drives the special Austin Martin car, were captured near the Swiss Alps.

Filming in Switzerland lasted for several weeks, then finally the production members moved to America and captured the ending sequence of the movie. The scene where James Bond finally catches the gold smuggler in the movie, after chasing him for a long, was filmed in Kentucky.

The production members then wrapped the entire shooting process and returned back to London.

Now, allow me to give you an overview of Goldfinger. In the meantime, you can look up Welcome to Valentine, My Secret Valentine, and Love at First Glance as well.

Plot Of Goldfinger | What’s It About

As mentioned, the basic premise of Goldfinger revolves around the character of James Bond, the special under-cover spy of MI6. At the very beginning of the film, special agent M briefs the lead actor about the recent activity of the notorious gold smuggler.

As the story gradually progresses, Bond starts pursuing the leads, to get hold of the international criminal. Other characters emerge from time to time, who try to distract the lead actor from his mission. But James Bond eventually ends up meeting the infamous kingpin. Watch Goldfinger to find out what happens when Bond finally meets the international criminal.

Final Words

Ok guys, now that we’ve reached the end, I hope you enjoyed the read and finally know where was Goldfinger filmed. If you’d like us to make any changes/add anything, do let us know in the comments section below.