ILKLEY children can be seen on the silver screen after winning parts in the new Dad's Army film which was released in cinemas across the country on Friday.

Filmed on location in Yorkshire, the film features a stellar cast including Bill Nighy, Catherine Zeta Jones, Michael Gambon - and the students of Articulate Speech, Drama & Casting (Ilkley)!

Last year the students, who attend drama classes at Ilkley Grammar School, spent time filming with Universal Pictures for the highly anticipated film, which sees Bridlington's old town transformed into the fictional Walmington-on-Sea.

They play a range of support artist roles and filmed on set in a host of locations including the East Coast, Pickering, and Leeds Town Hall.

Stacey Burrows, principal at Articulate Speech, Drama & Casting (Ilkley) said: "It's wonderful when I see my students in theatres, adverts and on television, but seeing them in a hugely exciting feature film, on the scale of Dad's Army, is really something else.

"I'm very much looking forward to seeing the film, not just to see the Articulate kids, but also the star-studded cast and the familiar Yorkshire locations that were used"!

Articulate student Amy Harrison, 16, who attends Skipton Girls Grammar School, said: "One of the most exciting things was meeting the huge crew and seeing the scale of the production. One minute my hair was being styled by a man who won a BAFTA for Downtown Abbey and then the next the runners were putting blankets around us, to keep us warm in between takes.

"It was incredible to be on such a huge production and yet it still felt so friendly.

"We had to do several different shots with the camera in different places and different improvisations. We invented stories for our characters and were given direction; sometimes you'd buy a paper, sometimes you'd be meeting your mum and then other times you'd be flirting with soldiers. It was so much fun to play so many different roles! Filming at Leeds Town Hall with the 1940s costume and hair automatically made you forget about the cameras and be fully immersed in the era."

Ava-Edith Malin, aged ten, said: "I had to go to Scarborough to get my outfit fitted, which was a genuine 1940s outfit, that an evacuee would of worn - that was really cool! The next day I went to Leeds to film, I got my hair done in plaits and my fringe was put in a beret. Then we filmed outside the Leeds Town Hall and there was loads of cameras, it was so exciting and the best day ever! Everyone looked so amazing in their 1940s outfits! I loved being with my Articulate friends whilst we were filming. It was a fabulous experience and I am really looking forward to seeing the film!"

Dad's Army was released in cinemas on Friday, February 5. Directed by BAFTA award-winning director Oliver Parker and written by Hamish McColl, it was filmed on location in the Yorkshire region following investment from Screen Yorkshire through its Yorkshire Content Fund.