Spotted: Derek Jacobi and Anne Reid filming Last Tango in Halifax

Last Tango in Halifax will waltz back onto the small screen for a two-part Christmas special.

Film crews were spotted in and around Calderdale as filming for the romantic BBC series got underway.

Steve Midgley sent us these fantastic shots of stars Derek Jacobi and Celia Dawson filming in Halifax over the weekend.

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Beauty spot Shibden Park, the picturesque Shibden Mill Inn pub and Halifax Vandals rugby club in Warley, are all likely to feature in the festive special of the popular drama.

The show was created by Sally Wainwright and follows widowers Alan Buttershaw (Jacobi) and Celia Dawson (Reid), who rediscover their feelings for one another when they reunite on Facebook.

Glen Pearson, general manager at the Shibden Mill Inn, said: “It’s really exciting as it’s a big event. It’s a nice boost - to see what goes on and all the workings of it all is fantastic.”

While he’s been sworn to secrecy on story lines, he revealed Sarah Lancashire, Nicola Walker and Derek Jacobi had filmed scenes there.

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Sally Wainwright revealed the upcoming Christmas special will see a “big story” for Nicola Walker’s character Gillian and her on-off partner Robbie.

Speaking at the Edinburgh TV Festival earlier in the year, she told screenwriter Russell T Davies that the male character, played by Dean Andrews, represents one of the first times she’s written a “man story”.

“The Last Tango Christmas special I’ve just finished writing, there’s a big story with Gillian and Robbie and Robbie’s quite big in it,” she said when asked about her range of female characters.

“I was conscious of thinking, ‘I’m writing a really good part and it’s about a man. It’s a man story.”

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It’s not the first time Wainwright, who grew up in Sowerby Bridge, has chosen Calderdale as a backdrop for her work.

Gritty police drama Happy Valley, which follows no-nonsense police sergeant Catherine Cawood (Sarah Lancashire) was both filmed and set in the borough.

And the spotlight could be on Calderdale once again - Wainwright confirmed earlier in the year that the multi-award winning show would return for a third series.

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