Pinewood Studio Fire in 1984 Sank Sets for Ridley Scott and James Bond

In the summer of 1984 Ridley Scott was shooting Legend at Pinewood Studios when a massive fire tore through the artificial forest set. Built across six soundstages to mimic Yosemite sequoias, the fake trees ignited after an unknown source reached a pile of leftover gas canisters while the crew was at lunch; flames reportedly climbed more than a hundred feet and smoke was visible for miles.

The blaze reduced Legend’s set to ashes and destroyed the adjoining James Bond stage, halting Roger Moore’s A View to a Kill just as it began shooting. The damage forced immediate changes. A View to a Kill shifted work to other stages while Pinewood began reconstruction and the studio took on the cost to rebuild; the facility remained closed until January 1985.

Legend reportedly lost about three shooting days but had to rebuild large sections of its fantasy world, compounding a production that had already grown far beyond its $25 million budget. Problems at Legend predated the fire.

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