Dexy's "Come On Eileen" video - Then and Now

[Sam Tyler]

In addition to the "Music videos - locations" thread >>> HERE <<< while watching the Now 80s channel Dexy's Midnight Runners  came on with Come On Eileen. As Annie and I were watching it with our youngest daughter she asked me if I knew where it was. Now there are a few clues in the video itself but fortunately it was one that I'd already known a handful of the locations due to a couple of long walks back from Elephant & Castle to Waterloo on a number of occasions when the Bakerloo Line was down.

To start off with here is the video itself for reference:


Now the first one minute and twenty seconds are taken up with black and white film of Johnny Ray, images of Kevin Rowland's mum and dad, and more of Kevin and the real Eileen (the 'Eileen' in the video being an actress)

So from when it starts in colour and the band out on location:


We start off with an aerial view of Brook Drive SE11 looking towards Lambeth from Walworth, the image centred on the corner shop at which the band are playing: >>> Google View <<<



A closer view of the shop which is 151 Brook Drive on the corner of Hayles Street: >>> Google View <<<



Here we see Kevin and the band giving it large outside of the corner shop, again the junction of Brook Drive and Hayles Street: >>> Google View <<<



Now we come to the banjo player and it is amazing how he's keeping time with the rest of the band as he is 220 metres away in Holyoak Road (via Dante Road) and hanging his leg out of the second floor window. We'll be returning to this one a bit later in this post. The building has now been demolished but this is the approximate view today - he'd have trouble getting his leg through that! >>> Google View <<<



Now we come to 'Eileen' and her friend walking along Brook Drive. They are now outside 115 Brook Drive approaching the junction with Austral Street 150 metres away from the corner shop: >>> Google View <<<



We may be 150 meters from the shop but Kevin and the band are still giving it large and showing their armpits to the world while we look further down Brook Drive: >>> Google View <<<



Turning around to get a flash of grubby ankles we see in the other direction down Brook Drive and past the Two Eagles pub. Sadly the Two Eagles rang last orders for the final time back in the 1990s: >>> Google View <<<



I've no explanation for what they're up to here, taunting maybe, but the young ladies are making their way in to Austral Street: >>> Google View <<<



Finally escaping their clutches 'Eileen' makes a break for it into Austral Street giving us a view back to Brook Drive again: >>> Google View <<<



We get a few more shots back at the corner shop again before Kevin finally catches up with 'Eileen' barely 52 metres away from the shop where they are further down Hayles Street. This, what appears to be, waste land is on the corner of Lamlash Street and surprisingly has not been built on but has now been reworked as Lamlash Gardens: >>> Google View <<<



As mentioned with the banjo player earlier, we now return to Holyoak Road - just a minor clue in the smudge. Here the building appears to be extremely run-down and just awaiting its sad fate with the bulldozers. Still the old building had a bit more character than today: >>> Google View <<<



Up the camera pans and there we see Mr Banjo with his feet out of the window again - the matching window and sill that was supposedly above the shop earlier. No point in repeating today's Google View of a bare and nondescript brick wall that I posted earlier.



Kevin is now back on the corner of Hayles Street and Lamlash Street as the rest of the band come striding down Lamlash towards him. Now Lamlash is closed off to vehicular traffic and punchy pop groups and the waste ground on their left is also  part of Lamlash Gardens: >>> Google View <<<
Although this was the view back up Lamlash in 2009 before being closed off: >>> Google View <<<



As 'Eileen' walks away from Kevin down Hayles Street she can't help but glance back at Kevin - or is she looking back to the corner shop and wondering whether to nip back for some Spangles and a Marathon? New houses on the right and also further past the corner shop appear to be the main changes: >>> Google View <<<



Now the male members of the band are clearly on the prowl, punching as they walk and looking Oh so macho. Today it is just a bloke in a van although I think he may have moved on by now: >>> Google View <<<



In one fell swoop Kevin whisks 'Eileen' off of her feet while all the neighbours are out to witness this monumental event - nothing to do with watching the filming of course. Today very little has changed - the distant chimney as been felled and the new residences back down Hayles Street but in this section very little change apart from some paint: >>> Google View <<<



And now to close and we're back at a corner shop but not the same corner shop, that was 151 on the corner of Brook Drive and Hayles Street. Now we're outside 106 on the corner of Brook Drive and Sullivan Road, 162 metres away from the other shop. Perhaps this shop owner is a bit more receptive to late evening busking? Today the shop has gone: >>> Google View <<<


I will say that Dexy's aren't a "must listen" favourite of mine, I'm happy to listen to one or two tunes from them but there's something cult or maybe iconic about this song that made it a big hit back in '82 just before Annie and I got hitched. Having now researched the locations fully I was expecting to see the ground on either side of  Lamlash Road as new developments and it was a surprise to see it as gardens. It has certainly been an interesting evening of research on Google Maps and one that I wouldn't necessarily have done if our youngest hadn't asked me in the first place. I probably could have Googled it all to find someone had already collated the locations but where would the fun in that have been?

Sam.

[Dirty Epic]

Brilliant stuff Sam thanks for putting this together.

[Del Boy]

I enjoyed looking through this thread as I remember seeing this tracks video many times over the summer of 1982, It was number one for ages. The video although hardly an expensive master piece really does the job well and sticks in the mind. I remember having the conversation about this video's location earlier in the year. We did consider having a look at some of these locations when we went to The Sweeney event at the nearby Cinema Museum in early march but alas we didn't have time in the end. This Then And Now has finally allowed me to see where it was filmed. Thank you Samuel. 

I am sure I won't be alone in feeling that It all looks far worse now with its mish mash of architectural styling and ubiquitous modern street furniture, than it did in its run down post 70s state.  Brook Drive looks terrible with one set of horrid modern buildings on one side of the road and the original three story Victorian ? houses on the other. The ugly sky scrapers look awful as you continue down the road.  If you go to the other end of Brook Drive it still has the original building both sides so you can see what it looked like.  Was the reason for the demolition and rebuild WWII bomb damage ? Its possible and a lot of London unfortunately has these awful looking replacements. There was a similar thing going on in the Freeze Then and Now you did.  

[Lord Emsworth]

Superb research and intel Sam.

I had no idea that vid was filmed round Elephant. I always assumed it was in Birmingham.

[Vienna]

Brilliant stuff Sam! It's always interesting to see where these videos were filmed 

Thanks for posting this info. 

Vi

[The Saint]

Absolutely superb Sam, thanks for taking the time to put this together

An interesting and well researched post of an iconic 80s music video 

The Saint

[Gene Hunt]

Marvellous thread Sam with some great location shots 

I mentioned where Vi's Stores was in Brook Drive when a few of us were at the Cinema Museum back in March for the Sweeney gig, as it is just a stones throw away.

Great to see all the angles now covered in this thread - nice one mate 

Gene.

[D.C. Burtonshaw]

Well done on the research and the time and trouble Sam, always interesting to hear about new discoveries of where things were filmed including another famous 80's pop vid! Seen the vid a few times, so it's interesting to know where it was filmed now. The song is a well known and played regular, that's for sure!