Hooray for Hollyford! Bradford and district is experiencing a resurgence in attention from the big and small screen as the area becomes a mecca for film makers.

The latest production to wrap is set to put Bingley on the map as the setting for a new movie from Catherine Tate, famous for her sketch show featuring "am I bovvered?" schoolgirl Lauren, and set to star in the next series of Doctor Who.

Bingley may not be synonymous with Communism, but the town features in a true-life story of a family which moved from Britain to Stalinist East Germany in the 1960s.

The real family originated from Bolton, but the Warner Brothers film "Mrs Ratcliffe's Revolution", sets the family in Bingley, where dad Frank Ratcliffe heads Bingley Communist Party.

Of course, such a party never existed, but in the film Frank has managed to double the membership under his leadership to 12, with daughter Mary being the youngest member at aged 11.

Frank decides to move his family from the town to East Germany, including wife Dorothy (Catherine Tate), and daughters Mary and Alex. A bizarre chain of events leads Dorothy to unwittingly help a young boy called Otto to get to the West, which follows a great escape.

Although Bingley was the town chosen for the location, filming actually took place in Halifax a year ago.

The Lord Mayor of Bradford, Bingley ward Councillor Robin Owens, believes this was a mistake: "They have obviously tried to make Bingley look drab and so they have filmed in Halifax because Bingley is not drab. You can't have a film about Bingley without featuring Five Rise Locks, I would have thought the town would have been the perfect place to film.

"No publicity is bad publicity and I can't see this film being a bad thing for Bingley at all."

Screen Yorkshire donated £250,000 for the project.

Spokesman Rachel McWatt said: "Obviously, we are really pleased to be supporting the film, it is fantastic. Catherine Tate is a well-recognised and established actress, so it is great to have her on board.

"Bingley was chosen as the town because the production companies wanted to film in Yorkshire, where much of the landscape is unchanged, there is less traffic and production is cheaper than London."

The film premiers on September 28.

Screen Yorkshire is instrumental in "selling" the region to television executives and film-makers for all manner of productions.

Among the upcoming successes is the new production from Working Title Films, the company behind box office hits including Notting Hill, Four Weddings and a Funeral and Love Actually.

Filming has recently finished in Haworth for its latest film "Wild Child". The romantic comedy stars Julia Roberts' niece, Emma Roberts.

Filming is set to take place on a Great Horton estate for a project by writer Abi Morgan, and a drama series is set to be filmed in Bradford by Kudos Film and Television, the production company behind the film Boots.

And the life story of Haworth's literary sisters the Brontes is getting a proper Hollywood makeover.

Taking on the role of Charlotte, the eldest sister who wrote Jane Eyre, will be Michelle Williams, 26, who starred in Brokeback Mountain and long-running TV show Dawson's Creek.

Playing Emily, author of Wuthering Heights, will be 26 year-old Bryce Dallas Howard, who is currently starring in Spider-Man 3, and cast as Anne, who wrote The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, is the 19-year-old Evan Rachel Wood, who shot to fame in the controversial teen-drama Thirteen.

Bronte, due for release in 2009, has been written and is being directed by British filmmaker Charles Sturridge, who recently directed the Lassie remake. It is not yet known if actual filming will take place in the Haworth area.

Meanwhile, author Blake Morrison is returning to his roots for the launch of a movie based on his best selling novel And When Did You Last See Your Father.

He will be among the audience for a special showing of the film at the Plaza Cinema in Skipton.

It is being screened as a charity event to raise cash for Cancer Research.

Morrison, a former pupil at Ermysted's Grammer School, in Skipton, was born in the town and his dad was a local GP.

The novel explores his relationship with his father, who died of cancer and was treated at Airedale General Hospital at Steeton. The film is to be shown on Friday September 28 and the ticket price is £10. It is expected to go nationwide from Friday October 5.

Cinema owner Charles Morris said he was especially pleased that the the film maker, Disney, had agreed to the special showing because it coincided with the cinema's 95th birthday this year.

He had made the initial move by contacting the distributor who came to inspect the movie-house in Sackville Street and were impressed.

He said he hoped to be able to raise £2,000 for the charity through ticket sales.

He said: "A raffle will also be held to boost the donation and some local businesses have already donated some extremely generous prizes."

It is the second time that Mr Morris has persuaded movie-makers to use his cinema for a special showing.

In September 2003, the Plaza was chosen to be the first in England to screen the Calendar Girls film, which went on to become a worldwide blockbuster.

Taking the role of Morrison's father Arthur is stage and screen star Jim Broadbent and he is played at different stages of his life by Colin Firth, up-and-coming Matthew Beard and child actor Bradley Johnson.

Royal Shakespeare Company actress Juliet Stevenson plays Morrison's mother Kim, also a doctor.

A Disney spokesman said the Plaza showing would be one of the first and was special because of its role in raising cash for cancer research.

The film would be premiered on Sunday September 23 at Hampstead cinema.

l Tickets for the Plaza showing are on sale during opening hours or by post with cheque made payable to Plaza Cinema (Skipton) Ltd and with a stamped addressed envelope.