New Zealand

• Floating in a South Sea bubble - Cook Islands
• A Fling with Fiji - Fiji
• On Location - New Zealand
• Wonder Walk - Roaring Burn
• 6 of the best - New Zealand
• Stein on wine, Kiwi style - New Zealand
• Singing the Praises - New Zealand
• No frills? Not us! No expense spared - New Zealand
• Geyserland! - Rotorua
• A perfect 10 for Polynesia - Tahiti

THE LAST TIME I'D SEEN SEAN BEAN he had three arrows sticking out of his chest after being attacked by Orcs in the first part of Lord of the Rings.

Now, here he was, sitting directly across the aisle from me on our flight across the Atlantic.

He seemed to enjoy the 20 minute documentary shown by Air New Zealand, the official airline to Middle-earth, about the making of the Oscar winning trilogy. His fellow actors raved about their time spent in New Zealand and all said what a wonderful country it was.

And there’s no doubt that Peter Jackson’s film has done more to stimulate interest in New Zealand than a hundred promotional documentaries ever could.

Film directors dream

It’s a film director’s dream with its wide variety of landscapes; isolated mountaintops, lush forest, crystal clear lakes, dramatic gorges and endless plains without a pylon in sight (The Last Samurai starring Tom Cruise was also shot here). Uniquely, all three parts of the trilogy were shot at the same time at more than 100 locations around the country and broadcast back to the studio in Wellington.

We had saved seeing the final episode Return of the King until we reached New Zealand and it was a good decision.

We watched the film at a wacky cinema at Lake Wanaka lounging around on sofas with food being shipped in from the cafe next door. Run by Scotsman Callum McLeod, Cinema Paradiso has an old style projection room and the reels needed changing during the film.

The following day we visited Twizel, near Mt Cook, where the final Battle for Pelennor Fields was filmed, and booked a battlefield tour with Vernon Reid through the information centre. It’s the only way you can get onto the private land where the filming took place.

Almost the entire population of Twizel, various passing backpackers and two brigades of soldiers from the nearby barracks, all gathered to play Orcs in the most spectacular battle scene in movie history.

‘It was hard and sweaty work,’ said Vernon. We started at 4.30am each day donning latex masks, arms and hands, then lots of layers of clothing and finally armour and weapons. The 600 or so Orcs (computer graphics turn them into the hundreds of thousands you see on the screen) then had to practise their evil growling noises and stooped postures. Often they didn’t finish until 10pm, for which they were paid £40 a day!

Apparently, a 20,000 crowd at a cricket match in Auckland were also asked to shout and holler specially for the film and this noise was later added to the battle scene.

Word went out across New Zealand that riders were needed and 220 shepherds, polo players, jockeys and equestrian riders arrived with their horses to play the Rohan and Gondorian Riders.

Thousands of rabbit holes had to be filled in and for the horses safety four vets were on hand to decide if any needed resting or retiring. American rodeo riders were used to capture any runaways. Not one horse was injured.

The difficulties, however, in getting 220 horses to gallop in a straight line had been underestimated and it took 52 shoots and 12 days of filming to capture the one amazing scene of the Rohan and Gondorian riders in perfect formation charging across the field.

Gandalf’s horse, Shadowfax, which was brought over from Spain was specially trained to be ridden bareback and Sir Ian McKellen did most of his own riding.

Each night the combatants, still with remnants of make-up on their faces, could be seen in the local bars discussing the day’s attacks over a beer.

And then it was finished. Their five minutes of fame were over and it was back to their day jobs.

Guided tours of hobbiton

In most locations across New Zealand the land used for shooting has been returned to its natural state but at Matamata on the North Island you can still take a guided tour of the set used for Hobbiton.

In Wairarapa you can stay at Fernside, a beautiful home whose private grounds and lake were used as the setting for Galadriel’s home Lothlorien.

You’ll find all the other locations detailed in the Lord of the Rings Location Guidebook by Ian Brodie which is available from www.amazon.co.uk

And Sean Bean? He got off the plane in Los Angeles where he’s presumably also gone back to his day job - working on the next movie.