Filming locations for the latest flick in the “Star Wars” franchise, “The Force Awakens,” (also referred to as Episode VII) have been shrouded in secrecy.
Its director, J.J. Abrams, has opted not to leave behind set pieces, unlike George Lucas, who did so in Tunisia for the first “Star Wars.” A recently released video set to Pharrell’s “Happy” shows the abandoned Tunisian locations and features a dancing C-3PO, a Stormtrooper and other characters popping into Luke Skywalker’s home, Obi-Wan Kenobi’s cave and the famous cantina on the desert planet Tatooine.
Nevertheless, filming locales for the most recent “Star Wars” installment have inevitably leaked — and luckily you can drop by all three before the flick is released on Dec. 18.
Take a look:
Skellig Michael, County Kerry, Ireland
The larger of two Skellig Islands, eight miles off the rugged western coast of Ireland, its sheer, 700-foot cliffs have remained uninhabited since the 12th century, when a Christian monastery abandoned it because there were too many storms. An ideal bit of location scouting, it’s where Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), now a recluse, has been holed up.
The film crew had a tough time keeping things under wraps as they carried equipment, by boat and air, from the mainland out to the island. Once sightings of Hamill became more frequent around Kerry, locals jumped on the “Star Wars” bandwagon. A local entrepreneur created a “Skellig Wars” T-shirt.
And two Irishmen, dressed as Stormtroopers, made this clever video, hitching a ride out to the remote chunk of rock.
Several tour companies can ferry you out to the islands. It takes about 50 minutes, weather permitting, and you have several hours to explore the remains of the monastery, a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site — to look for signs of master Luke’s presence.
Puzzlewood, Gloucestershire, England
Though it hasn’t been confirmed, it’s likely that Puzzlewood, in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, was used as a set for the new film. Photos from the UK’s Daily Mail show equipment that was left behind by the film crew, including wires, cables and floodlights on the forest’s perimeter.
And a letter written to the crew on the last day of filming mentions the Forest of Dean.
The lush 14-acre woodland was supposedly J.R.R. Tolkien’s inspiration for the forests of Middle Earth — and today, Puzzlewood is a popular spot for BBC television productions, including “Atlantis” and “Dr. Who.”
Visitors can hike along Puzzlewood’s rocky pathways and over bridges among ancient trees; it’s also famous for its scowles, shallow depressions in the land formed by the erosion of underground caves.
Greenham Common, Berkshire, England
Formerly a Royal Air Force Station that was used as a military airfield and storage area for nuclear weapons until 1993, the decommissioned site is has now been turned over to the public as a nature and wildlife refuge.
Remnants of its original use are still evident, though, from an air-control tower to huge bunkers used to house cruise missiles.
Those bunkers appear to be where a Millennium Falcon and a tarp-covered X-wing fighter were parked.