BAFTA glory for Scottish film shot at Scotland’s oldest purpose-built cinema

Scotland’s oldest purpose-built cinema, The Hippodrome in Bo’ness, has played a starring role in I Swear, the film based on the true story of Scottish Tourette’s Syndrome campaigner, John Davidson, which won three awards at the 79th British Academy Film Awards last night.  

The film, which won the Casting BAFTA and the Leading Actor and Rising Star BAFTAs for Robert Aramayo, follows John’s extraordinary journey living with Tourette’s Syndrome, a neurological condition that was widely misunderstood when his symptoms first emerged aged 15 in the 1980s and was often mistaken for unruly behaviour.  

While much of the film was shot in East Dunbartonshire, North Lanarkshire and Glasgow, a pivotal early scene was filmed at The Hippodrome, the 113-year-old cinematic landmark often described as Scotland’s first picture palace and a premier example of pre-art deco architecture. Film location scouts were searching for an authentic period cinema to match the film’s early 1980s setting. The Hippodrome’s vintage interior, distinctive frontage and atmospheric balcony provided the perfect backdrop, offering a look that modern multiplexes simply could not replicate.  

 The key scene sees John on his first date with his girlfriend, closely monitored by her watchful mother, as they attend a screening of the 1982 film, Tootsie. As John’s anxiety builds, he experiences a series of Tourette’s outbursts, leading to outrage from his date and intervention from the cinema usher, who ultimately ejects him from the screening.  

Filming took place both on the balcony inside The Hippodrome and on the street outside, making full use of the venue’s distinctive historic façade. Adding to the cinema’s connection to the production, Hippodrome Venue Supervisor Kieran Ferguson makes a cameo appearance in the film, playing the cinema usher who removes John from the screening.  

 Alison Stauss, Arts Development Officer (Film and Media) at Falkirk Council said: “We’re absolutely delighted that I Swear has won this BAFTA award. It is a powerful and important film which raises awareness of this widely misunderstood condition. We were thrilled when the production team chose to film at The Hippodrome, its historic character made it the perfect setting for this key scene. To see Scotland’s oldest purpose-built cinema appear on screen in such a significant Scottish film, and now to share in its BAFTA success, is very special.  

“When we previously screened I Swear, audiences responded incredibly strongly, with full houses for every showing. There is a real appetite for powerful, homegrown storytelling experienced together on the big screen and our audiences in Bo’ness felt particularly proud to see their much-loved cinema in the spotlight.  It was wonderful to be in the auditorium and hear the murmurs of recognition and delight when the Hippodrome appeared on the big screen.”  

According to Tourette’s Scotland around 1 in 100 people in Scotland live with Tourette’s, about 1% of the population, though many may never receive an official diagnosis for a variety of reasons. Around 10-15% of the Tourette’s population experience tics such as coprolalia, copropraxia and coprographia which include inappropriate language like swearing or shouting racist or homophobic words, as illustrated in the story of John Davidson, or inappropriate hand gestures, text, or pictures. All of these are involuntary.  

The Hippodrome, which first opened its doors in 1912, underwent a major restoration in 2009. Each March it hosts the internationally renowned HippFest, Scotland’s festival of silent film with live music.