WHEN a major American film company was looking for locations for the life story of Argentinian legend Eva Peron - starring Madonna - you might have thought the last place they would look was Lancashire.

But David Nelson, head of the Lancashire Film And Television Office, was not particularly surprised to get a call from a location scout looking for places to film.

The producers were looking for interior shots that might recapture the style and glamour of the Peron era and David thought he might find what they were looking for amid the bejewelled ballrooms of Blackpool.

In the end, the film company did not take up his offer but the producer suggested to another film company that David might help them with their current quest.

He explained: "They are looking for a room fit to stage an Anglo-Soviet banquet for between 250 and 500 people. It has to be suitably grand." That was why David and his locations assistant Lynda Bannister, who together make up the Film Office, were recently busy examining the photographic potential of Accrington Town Hall and King George's Hall, Blackburn.

They will pass on the details to the film company, which is currently producing the movie at Elstree Studios, and wait to see what develops.

"One of the problems is that people come and you send them details, then they disappear," said David.

"You can spend days or weeks putting together information that comes to absolutely nothing and, more often than not, you don't find out why."

But it is not just grand locations like a ballroom or a castle that David is interested in. Film and television companies are looking for everything from country houses to terraced cottages, from dark satanic mills to hi-tech factories.

The Film Office, which is based in Preston, is financed by Lancashire County Council and the European Regional Development Fund through Lancashire Enterprises Ltd.

"The whole purpose is to increase economic activity throughout Lancashire," said David. "We want the spin-offs from film and television in terms of jobs, increased tourism and raising the whole profile of the county. If you get a good feature film made in Lancashire you could be talking about injecting £2 million into the local economy."

The Lancashire office is one of around 21 offices in the UK, co-ordinated by the British Film Commission and, as it approaches its first birthday, it has already established a computer database full of locations, people and facilities available to filmmakers in the county.

David is convinced that Lancashire has plenty to offer with its industrial and architectural heritage and its mix of urban and rural scenery.

His office recently handled enquiries from the producers of the TV series Sharpe, who are about to film part of an episode of the swashbuckling adventure at the Helmshore Textile Museum, where they will re-create the gruelling conditions endured by workers at the start of the Industrial Revolution. There has also been recent interest from the Indian film industry - the so-called "Bollywood" - in filming in Lancashire.

And a joint North West film office initiative will soon see a number of top Hollywood executives coming to the region to scout for locations.

"One of the things we may do is put them on the steam train from Bury to Rawtenstall," David added.

Playing host to filmmakers can be financially rewarding but it also has its drawbacks.

"If you were talking about an office, people would expect to pay perhaps £400 or £500 a day," he said. "A shop that was used for a couple of days for a TV series would quite easily bring someone the best part of a £1,000.

"Film and television companies are prepared to pay handsomely to get what they want. It can be very lucrative but it can also be very frustrating.

"Film makers are not normally noted for their patience and tact and they can be quite demanding and even rude sometimes.

"I would say don't get involved if you can't be flexible or you haven't got a sense of humour."

Anyone wanting to know more about the Lancashire Film and Television Office or who thinks they may have a location or facility to offer should contact David or Lynda on 01772 203020.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.