The Fire That Destroyed Wallace & Gromit's History | Some Boi Online
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- Опубліковано 24 сер 2024
- On Monday the 10th of October 2005, Aardman’s second ever feature film had just reached the top of the US box office and celebrations were in order. However, this day would instead be remembered for a very different reason…
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Such a good video, bet you did your research for this one. We appreciate it.
Thank you! Yes, many hours of research and a bit of an investigation really, as the facts aren't laid out clearly online. Glad you enjoyed!
@@SomeBoiOnline and now they are thanks to you
Means a lot!
I do have to respect how the creator seemed to realize that it was just a bunch of stuff at the end of the day. But indeed it's like a massive chunk of his legacy just gone up in flames.
The archives may be gone but the memories will never fade.
Exactly 😊
Also some fan would just end up remaking those models
Well some like the rocket was rebuilt
If you ever seen the forgotten show
Actually, that’s exactly why historical archives are important. Memories DO fade, get distorted, time marches on and people die. It’s the complete opposite of what your said.
Can't they just create more of those things that they lost in the flames?
The fire in the Aardman warehouse was so incredibly sad, as so much Aardman history was lost but I suppose something positive to take from this is that the fire thankfully didn't occur during the production of any of Aardman's work so even though a lot of history was lost at least the different Aardman works will still live on and were still able to be made as intended and planned.
The best worst case scenario
I heard about this in the “Grand Night In Aardman” documentary, it’s so sad to think about most of the sets and figures up to 2005, are now gone, great video btw, keep up the great work bro
Thanks, means a lot! Yeah it's a massive shame that could've been avoided.
The museum diamond heist scene from The Wrong Trousers is on display at the Science and Media Museum in Bradford, complete with the original Wallace and Feathers McGraw figures featured in that scene, they also have Wallace and Gromit in the motorbike and sidecar from A Close Shave there as well, sadly I think they're some of the only Aardaman props from that era left in existence. If you're ever in Bradford (a great city in general, famous for its industrial history and delicious curry houses, as well as being the world's first UNESCO City of Film), I'd highly recommend you visit the museum to see these precious pieces of animation history.
@@twinsuns957 The woman wh owned the dog in A close Shave is still around too, although the model is very fragile and is almost completely destroyed.
same bro
@@twinsuns957Angry Kid’s faces were on display at an exhibition in recent years, Aardman did a video at one point on Feathers in the milk bottle Gromit caught him in and I also found a video of another Aardman exhibition in which the spoons from the Golden Syrup advert were on display! I also saw somewhere that in one of those exhibitions, the circus monkeys from Creature Comforts, and their cage, were also on display!
Such a sad moment knowing we will never see these props again, truly heartbreaking to the fans and creators
I remember as a child finding out about this via the Were-Rabbit DVD extras, and have also from time to time looked into this tragic event - great video on the subject!
P.S. I think the rocket from A Grand Day Out survived too, seeing as I saw a fairly recent article where it was pictured with Nick Park
Thank you! In regards to the rocket, I mentioned in another video that I thought the same prop was used for the "World of Invention" TV series.
However, in hindsight it has slight differences - meaning that it was newly constructed, with the original likely being part of the Japan exhibition that was in the warehouse.
@Some Boi Online Ay I discussed that with you remember
Yes I believe that's when I looked into it.
@@SomeBoiOnline According to a BBC article published on the afternoon after the warehouse fire as well as a 2017 interview with the AU Review, David Sproxton confirmed that the original moon rocket from _A Grand Day Out_ is part of Nick Park's personal collection and thus wasn't destroyed in the blaze.
Oh that's great if true, its always very hard to find solid information with stuff like this as it's often found sparingly online.
Loosing the grand day out figures is the most devastating because of how much work it took for Nick to make the short :(
although according to a comment I found earlier, it was known that the Rocket infact did survive according to a recent article. Otherwise I wish all the other props, including Wallace and Gromit themselves managed to survive.
You'll be pleased to know that in fact few props from the wrong trousers and a close shave survived! The museum set used in the wrong trousers is on display at National Media Museum, Bradford And even features the Wallace prop used in the museum scene (Wallace in the trousers asleep with his helmet) glued to the ceiling showcasing how the techno trousers worked as well as a model of feathers McGraw new the window with the same pose he had in the short, it's the only set and models which survived the fire, the Wallace and gromit in the motorcycle prop from a close shave is also on display at some media museum as well as one of the members of the flock of sheep in a scared pose when Preston roars at the sheep and Wallace and wendoline, there on display at some media museum also but I'm not sure which, I also saw a photo of Preston's sniffing model alongside some other models from curse of the were rabbit and other stop motion films I don't know however when it was taken or where. Hope this info helps!
Wow, I've never seen any evidence of props surviving myself, but this is amazing if true. I always assumed that any models on display (such as the orange rocket), were recreations of what was lost.
Like I mentioned in the video, the fire isn't talked about a lot, so the exact contents of the warehouse and what was lost had to be worked out from any info I could find online. Nonetheless, thanks for your insight! I assume you've visited these locations yourself?
Nope I gathered this info myself through research and had known about it for quite some time I found out about the museum set through herecommons.m.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wallace_and_Gromit_The_Wrong_Trousers_set.jpg which visually showcases the set itself and models on it as well as info about it which I told you before, it was also shown on multiple other websites such as Reddit and Pinterest, as for the close shave stuff I found the photo of it on trip advisor for the location the models look very old and Wallace even looks a bit affected by sun, for Preston's case I found it while searching Wallace and gromit stuff I sadly don't have links for either now and they seem to be quite obscure.
That's great thanks for the info and reference image.
I can verify this is correct. I've seen them in person and they're screen used. They've been there since the 1990s in the animation exhibition.
@@techno8870 That must be why they survived, since because they were at the museum even before the fire, they wouldn't of been caught in the blaze due to them not being present in the archive.
Bruh... I've seen other sources covering this, and none have made me as close to bursting into tears as this one. From you addressing the specific props that went up in flames, to the music choices, I was ready to bawl my eyes out at 3 in the morning.
Honestly, I think the reason why there hasn’t been any articles or conversations about this incident is because nobody probably WANTS to remember it. In my opinion, it’s one of the worst tragedies in animation and film history to ever occur. Still, this is a great video, as always!
There's probably some truth to that, thanks!
I hear NOT ALL of Aardman’s figures were lost in the fire! It was thought ORIGINALLY that EVERYTHING pre-Were Rabbit was lost in the fire, except Hut 17 which was on display at a war museum, but since then, Angry Kid’s faces and the polar bears from Creature Comforts were displayed at an Aardman exhibition which also displayed figures from The Pirates and the Shaun The Sheep movie, I hear Nick Park adopted the rocket from A Grand Day Out into his private collection, Aardman once did an online video showing Feathers in the milk bottle, and apparently there was an exhibition in Australia where Feathers himself, as well as Rocky, Ginger and Fowler were on display! Maybe those were new models made, but still! There was also a figure of injured Rocky on display, but I bet that was a new one made because half of him shows what’s inside an Aardman figure!
Wow. Now this is a tragic tale I had not expected to find but honestly while the losses of so many assets is quite sad, I'm glad it didn't do much worse for the company overall. The studio luckily still lives on and is afaik doing well with newer projects and hopefully the props for those survive in a new and more fireproof storage. It truly would've been much worse if this fire would have lead to the complete downfall of Aardman as a company.
Yes, I agree that it could've been a lot worse. Luckily Aardman have never really stopped working on new projects since, as opposed to dwelling on the past. Ironically, the current storage facility is likely now just as full as the old one was.
You know what would be neat? If they made a movie where the claymation characters try to escape the fire
Traumatising for the poor Aardman team 😂
I absolutely love Aardman. My father introduced me to their films and I became as fascinated as he was with their animation. I can't believe I never heard about this, it is very sad and yet... it just makes me appreciate even more the amount of work this productions take, seeing all the props, the drafts, so much time and effort put into a single frame. It would've been incredible to one day see all of those assets. Thank you for sharing!
You're very welcome, glad you enjoyed!
god, this is just... incredibly depressing. thinking about those assets, models, set pieces, storyboards, everything that had months, even years of so much care, love and effort put into it just burning and melting to the ground absolutely breaks my heart. it's even more painful hearing about it happening to models that represent beloved characters that many of us remember enjoying in our childhoods, and knowing that all that effort was burnt away so quickly by one small appliance fault and the fire couldn't have been stopped if the people at Aardman tried. it's absolutely devastating, i can't even imagine the amount of pain the people who worked on those pieces of art had to go through and probably still go through. luckily no one died or got injured that day, but i still send my condolences to everyone who worked on those assets because the death of any piece of art is still a tragedy in my book.
This is probably the saddest video on your channel. And of course, it would be, the loss of the assets of such an iconic franchise is a sad thing. Not just the figures, but the storyboards were irreplaceable, and knowing that they're lost forever makes my heart sink.
Indeed 😞
@@SomeBoiOnline But like you said, those models will still live on in the recordings and the minds of the people who viewed them.
Hearing about the fire through one of COTW's DVD features honestly tore me up when I was younger and all this time I thought all the stuff from COTW was also lost in the fire.
Well I'm glad to have cleared this up for you! I for one was certainly relieved to hear those particular props were safe.
I really do appreciate your efforts to keep Aardmans name alive! Coming from a life long fan :)
Thank you, that's really nice to hear!
It's sad that the props were lost, but the films survived and that's what the public sees. Most props from classic films have been lost because nobody cared enough to save them.
Although choosing a fragile old building as an archive might not have been the best idea.
Love how much effort and info you pack into a short video. Great work!
Thank you, great to hear such positive responses!
As someone who is heavily into preserving lost media and holding surviving props/animatronics from an old dark ride.
Stories like this crush my soul and to think that all the work done by a bunch of talented individuals is forever lost from that fire. Man....
The fact that Nick Park mentions that this wasn't as bad as it could have been adds a rather dark perspective on things in hindsight. Considering the Kyoto Animation Arson in 2019, which did have a very human cost. Not just a human cost in the sense of the deaths, but also the psychological after-effects of loss (for example, to this very day, Naoko Yamada is traumatised by the loss of her co-workers and friends in the arson, despite not being present at the site during the time of the fire).
Wow, I never knew about the fire, that's really sad. Also, you really do your research.
Thanks! There was a great deal of research to do on this one - glad to inform you.
I sometimes imagine going back in time to save whatever I can from the fire and having the company’s respect.
Wouldn't that be great! Maybe a time machine did land there just before the fire broke out and saved them, but we just don't know it... 😉
@@SomeBoiOnline I’m an American fan of Aardman Animation, especially with Wallace And Gromit.
Love to hear it!
@@tavvyprods1275 i would go back and tell the builders to add sprinklers
@@batbat4043 Marvelous idea!
Truly saddening. Wallace and Gromit holds a big piece of my childhood. Actually made me tear up. Beautifully made video.
Thank you!
I just realized the majority of Wallace’s robots are based off the Cooker
(The L.A.D, Shopper 13,The arms that come out of the Anti-Pesto Van, etc)
True, I suppose the Cooker was the original, so forms a template for what Wallace's robots should look like.
Shame the only thing the cookers been involved in other than the original film is the AR game
The anti pesto van was used as the bakery van in a matter of loaf and death
Dude, those music pieces you included definitely replicate to how Aardman went through that travesty, cracking job lad
Thank you! Really glad to hear it.
0:33 that gif you used for the fire is actually a gif a friend of mine named airtooth uses for his villain defeats videos
I had watched the Wrong Trousers and A Close Shave when I was a little kid and I still remember these legendary short films today.
I remember the set for the museum in The Wrong Trousers was saved and is on display at the National Media Museum in Bradford. But that's awesome that the props for Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit and Chicken Run were saved, along with the reels of the original films! And at least Nick had his films finished, with the props no longer in use.
The Creature Comforts circus monkeys and their set also survived, and have been on display at an exhibition in recent years, as have Angry Kid’s faces, Aardman did a video on Feathers McGraw in the milk bottle and another exhibition in recent years even had the spoons from the Golden Syrup advert on display!
The way I first found out about this was when they mentioned in a bonus feature on the Wallace & Gromit The Curse of the Were-Rabbit DVD. Still one of the most heartbreaking things regarding one of my favorite childhood series.
I remember seeing it on the news, I cried so much seeing it all ablaze like that. Still breaks my heart now. 😔 I was absolutely devastated for Aardman Animations, as that was the company’s history gone and there was nothing that could be done. It really sucks that the archive prior to 2005 is gone forever, but at least nobody died because of that fire, and there was some surviving models, sets and props. Let’s hope nothing like this ever happens again.
Me and my brother loved Wallace and Gromit, We watched them when we were just kids and it's really a tragedy that their legacy went down to hell. But it would of been a greater tragedy that the films would have been lost if not had been recorded, Or that the new movie would have gone down with them if not for their relocation. Wallace and Gromit, Thanks for being apart both me and brother's my childhood ❤️
a lot of the models in that blaze were made by a university mentor of mine from my days at Sheffield Hallam... he worked for Aardman as model and set builder on Creature Comforts, Sledgehammer and made sets and models for adverts like Chewits and Lurpack. A LOT of that stuff went with the blaze too... but thankfully there's still the Aardman stuff still in Bradford Media Museum (a fantastic museum btw, great sections on Animation with cels from Cosgrove Hall and Bob Godfrey, as well as the W&G stuff... they even have a good TV section with a fan built Dalek, the Screen used Zippy and George from Rainbow, Gerry Anderson puppets and even one or two of the Smash robots)
Wow, that's fascinating to hear!
what's even sadder is if those storyboards were among the destruction that means we won't ever get an the art of wallace and gromit book.
We have gotten art of Aardman books since then, so maybe old Wallace & Gromit concept art has been rediscovered since?
That Aardman Fire was so sad.
Indeed, a real shame.
Great video!
I really like your usage of the Wallace & Gromit music. Apart from the obvious good fit for such a video, you've also put it to great effect, making the whole video feel like a real experience. Love this kind of dedication ^^
Thanks so much, really glad to hear that! 😊
Your video was very interesting and I've never known that the Wallace and Gromit things went up in flames
I'm glad you mentioned the IWM as I saw the Chicken Run models there in Jan 2005 (and took pics) so it's good to learn that they were clear of the fire still in Oct
Good grief. 19 years after the fact and I'm just now hearing about this. Such a shame to have lost all those treasures.
I never even knew this happened, and I loved Wallace & Gromit as a kid. Sad story, but it could've been a whole lot worse if people were hurt or killed from this.
This makes me so sad. Chicken Run was my first introduction to go Ardman Studio and I found it hysterically funny.
I do love the British humour in Aardman productions! Fortunately at least one prop that we know of survived from Chicken Run.
I do believe half of the Rocky prop with the other half missing exposing the armature is on display somewhere in world's end in some aardman display with some were rabbit sets, world of invention ones complete with the characters to along with Shirley from Shaun the sheep
probably one of the worst things (in my opinion) is probably that you could never do a shot-for-shot re-do of any short films that weren't in widescreen. it would be time consuming, yes, but i think it would've been interesting had the fire not wiped almost everything from anything before 2005
for the size of your channel the quality of your videos are insane, thanks fo covering this kind of topic, as much as i am a Wallace and Gromit fan i didn't even know about the fire till this video
That means so much to hear, thank you!
It is very sad that the original props were lost... but yeah, in context with what you're trying to achieve with animation i.e bringing them to life of film, once they've been given life through all that hard work, that becomes their true legacy, and the fact the original film stock is still around is perhaps far more valuable than the props themselves.
Another good video and very thoroughly researched.
Do we know if the building itself was restored.?
Thank you! The final image that the video ends on is the "shell" that remained after the fire. There was no concrete information as to what became of the building; there was some mention of plans for it to become student accommodation. However, it's unclear whether this has been carried out, or if the building remains abandoned thus far.
If I could time travel, stopping this fire would be on the top 5 things I would do
The original cooker model from a grand day out survived
This definitely shows why I often fear disasters, other than losing loved ones. There are plenty of things that could be repaired or replaced… but sadly, our very creations are not one of them, especially historical relics of our creations from its very beginning. While I am doing my best to learn to move on from those kind of incidents, the fear still haunts me, especially in my dreams.
A couple of models from The Wrong Trousers have actually been confirmed to have survived the Aardman fire, those being Feathers McGraw in a bottle and Wallace wearing the Techno-Trousers during the bank robbery scene.
The entire museum set survives as it was on display at the science and media museum at the time of the fire, that’s where the model of Wallace in the trousers comes from, there was also a model of feathers holding the controls as part of that display.
The fire must've happened right as I was getting into Aardman's stuff. I woulda been 4 at the time and my parents would've gotten the original trio on DVD for us.
They seem to have thrived since I first got into them, so I'm happy to presume the fire wasn't too catastrophic in the long run.
I never knew this :( . it adds an element of saddness now rewatching those older Aardman productions. Such wonderful history lost 😞
I got a question may it be worth making a video on Wallace and gromit props on display at the national science and media museum or heck even props on display in general a breakdown of where you can see different props and sets?
Perhaps, but it would take a lot of research and wouldn't be for some time. Thanks for the suggestion though!
I miss them so much, I feel sorry for the Aardman studio. Wallace & Gromit is one of my favourite british franchises 😔
I'm so sad now.... 😭
😢
This was a very interesting video! I find stuff like this fascinating and appreciate the time you put into telling it alot!
Thank you! 😊
Rip Wallace and gromit old short movies 1989-2005 and brought back
If I had a Time Machine, I’d prevent this from happening
Same here in all honesty.
I wish the original or should I say classic Wallace and gromit props could have survived, if that fire didn't happen.💔😢
But luckily I'm glad that the three classic Wallace and gromit movies survived, but have never been lost from that fire.
Otherwise we wouldn't have got those films completely restored years later, and we released on DVD. And hopefully if they might be released on Blu-ray very soon
Yeah it's sad, but the original films surviving is a positive thing at least.
@@SomeBoiOnline that is so true, and just to let you know I'm not British. But I am an American who appreciates the amazing stop motion animation of Wallace and gromit.
Another sad thing is, is that a lot of people in America nowadays don't know about Wallace and gromit anymore.
But of course there are those Americans, that are the loyal and big fans of Wallace and gromit. And I should say those fans in America are giving all of the Wallace and gromit movies cult followings
Great to hear there's a following of W&G in America, I always think of it as unheard of outside the UK. They're still featured on TV adverts over here, so I think most British people are still familiar with them.
4:19 I’ve never seen this photo before. The crossovers that we always wanted, haha.
That’s made my day, I’m screenshooting that.
I know right? It's kinda trippy seeing the modern Shaun design reunited with W&G.
if you haven't already you should do a video on the darker side of Aardman, like angry kid, Babylon and Pib and Pog
I have always been a huge fan of Wallace and Gromit my whole life but unfortunately I never knew about this occurrence. This is extremely depressing.
I had no idea that this had taken place. I love the movie Chicken Run I have it on DVD as well as the Wallace and Gromit movies as well. I wonder if there will be more to be seen. That fire was such a tragic thing to happen. I'm grateful nobody was hurt and my heart feels for those who lost so much.
I can't believe half of my childhood went up in goddamn flames by the way great video my dude
Thanks!
Part of the museum set from The Wrong Trousers is on show at the Media Museum in Bradford, so at least that survived due to not being in the warehouse.
That's brilliant 😊
I saw Curse of the Were Rabbit in theaters just two days after the fire broke out in the storage facility, completely unaware of what happened until I got the movie on DVD.
OMG DUDE, I just realised who you are! I remember commenting on your Kermit video back in the day and saying you'd go far on UA-cam. Glad to see I was right! Congrats on all your success, keep up the good work. I loved this video!
Haha that's amazing 😆 really glad you've found the channel again and thanks for the support. Wouldn't be where I am today without such comments!
I realized how Nick Park cared more for the employees's lives and security than the puppets.
If it's not wholesome then what is it?
I still get a small pain in my heart every time o remember their happened as I was 11 when it happened and still love this stuff
The only surviving stuff from that fire is the Museum from the Wrong trousers and the lady who owns the robot dog from A Close Shave. Unfortunately, the lady (I can't remember her name) is almost completely destroyed as the model was in the building when it caught fire. The Museum set however is still fully in tact and is on show in the National Science and Media museum in Bradford.
@moxxieisgay ok thanks.
The Props may be gone but the Shorts are still here, we can still Enjoy the Shorts for what they are
The thought of British icons surrounded by flames is so sad especially morph for me as I loved morph when I was younger and the props don’t exist anymore
Sad to hear about Aardman lost. I hope none of the Chicken Run sets were in that fire
I feel like they did all chicken run model and setting was destroyed and melted
And I have a feeling that they have to start over the model again for the sequel
@@michaelanguiano5528 I seen Ginger, Rocky, Fowler, The plane, and one of the chicken huts are safe in a museum.
This song “Gromit Leaves Home” almost made me cry.
It is very sad that this happened to the building.
6:34, in the wake of the Kyoto Animation (KyoAni) Arson that claimed the lives of more than 30 people, I would have to agree with Nick Park's assessment of the Aardman Fire. Devasting but a comparatively small loss to that of artists that made their productions let alone the original film reels. Models can be remade and I would wager most people likely prefer the smoother, more refined models of Wallace and Gromit we see in later productions anyway. Though I would agree that the loss of concept art and other pre-production materials was probably the biggest loss
I really hope that at least on set of the wrong trousers we’re somewhere safe as it’s my favourite Wallace and gromit film and in my opinion the most iconic
Found out that a set from the wrong trousers survives, as does their motorbike (which is confirmed). Both of these are on display at the Bradford Media Museum.
Yeah it's slowly coming out over time that bits and pieces did survive, would be nice to know a definitive list.
@@SomeBoiOnline just went in and saw them. Both in great condition. Never knew Wallace's bike was a Triumph! The more you know.
That's brilliant, love little details like that and glad you got to see them!
Yeah but it’s just sad we still lost the grand day out and wrong trouser sets that’s important history of Wallace and gromit just lost forever
The tenth of October, 2005 was the day that humanity was set back a million years
That was terrible, I can't believe by the time Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the WereRabbit premiered in USA, Aardman studios caught fire! What about the Model train from "The Wrong Trousers" (that Wallace and Gromit rode the model train chasing Feathers McGraw who tries to escape with the Diamond)? I guess it was destroyed by the fire too.
I've never seen it since so I'd have to assume so 😢
Well, that's depressing. I'm just glad that none of the employees were in that building when the fire occurred.
It really doesn't help that not only does Plasticine melt when exposed to high temperatures, but it also becomes flammable at those same temperatures, so it's almost no wonder the fire was outrageous. (It gets really sad when you imagine the models slowly melting while on fire.)
Smoke detectors and fire sprinkler systems should always be mandatory when it comes to structures that can easily catch fire and burn down.
This is just so sad :(
I know, so much hard work goes into all of Aardman's projects, shame it had to happen to them 😔
RIP Peter Sallis
"Someone, 'Arson around'!" - PC Albert Mackintosh
This feels like the claymation version of the Library of Alexandria burning down.
Oh I am sorry about your studio is fire and very sad
This really hurts I never knew such a tragedy occured
And thats why we install sprinklers everywhere
Aardman is such an iconic animation company I found it so heartbreaking that fire incinerated everything that was in that building.
I remember when I lived in Bradford, the media museum had the wrong trousers set where the penguin was making Wallace steal the diamond and later, it was labeled as the only surviving set
Aardman is such amazing work, but it's sad to hear that, and things got recover for the 4th Short movie, A Matter of Loaf & Death
If anyone here has a time machine
There was nothing left
You could save all the figures
You'd think that a building full of stuff that can melt would feature better insulation and fire precautions.
I really hope there’s more Wallace and gromit in the future
There is a W&G movie coming out in 2024.
So sad. Great vid. Thanks
If alternate universes exists there might be a universe where the props survived
All of that hard work done to these props, only for them to be burned down!
You deserve this subscription.
Thanks! 😄