For Alice's home world, see Victorian England. For Cruella De Vil's homeworld, see 1920s England. |
London, England is a Land Without Magic location featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time. It appears in the twenty-first episode of the second season.
London is partially based on the location of the same name from the story Peter and Wendy, and the Disney film Peter Pan.
History
The Darling family, residing in London, own a home together. George and Mary Darling are parents to their three children, John, Michael and Wendy. Additionally, they own a dog named Nana. The Shadow, travelling from Neverland, comes to London in search of young boys to take with him so they can join the entourage of Peter Pan. Through a portal in the Enchanted Forest, a boy, Baelfire, persuades his father, Rumplestiltskin, to give up his powers and journey to a Land Without Magic with him for a fresh start. However, Rumplestiltskin chooses power over his son, who falls into the portal alone. Arriving in London, Baelfire spends the next few months on the streets scavenging for food. Upon sighting a construction worker climb down from a ladder at an open window, the boy breaks into a dining room, where he finds an enormous amount of food on the table. Wendy, believing he is a thief, cautiously regards him until she realizes he is just hungry. Feeling sorry for him, she hides Baelfire in her nursery cubby-hole and sneaks up food for him. Her parents eventually find out, but a sympathetic Mary allows him to stay as a guest. One night, while Wendy is watching the Shadow outside her window, Baelfire warns her to never involve herself with magic. She agrees, but later lets the Shadow to take her to Neverland. Wendy returns, with news that the Shadow wants her brothers, though Baelfire promises to protect them. When they counter the Shadow, Baelfire allows the creature to take him instead as a means to keep Wendy's family together. ("Second Star to the Right")
Fearing for Baelfire's safety, Wendy goes to Neverland in the hopes of rescuing him. Her brothers follow, but all three siblings are coerced into doing Peter Pan's bidding during his quest for the heart of the heart of the truest believer. ("Dark Hollow", "Think Lovely Thoughts")Trivia
On-Screen Notes
- London's Big Ben is featured in the title card for "Second Star to the Right".[1]
- This city is different and separate from Alice's England.[2] Similarly, it is not Cruella De Vil's England either. The latter two are different worlds stuck in specific eras, Alice's being Victorian England and Cruella's being the 1920s England. ("Down the Rabbit Hole" et al., "Sympathy for the De Vil")
- According to an interview by TVLine, Adam Horowitz had intended for London to exist "out of time", similar to Victorian England and the 1920s England.[3]
- The name "London" appears on a spa outside The Wizard of Oak furniture shop in New York City.[4] ("Heart of Gold")
Production Notes
- The CGI model for the Darling house drawing room[5] is recycled from the model created for the Frankenstein manor in "In the Name of the Brother".[6] The wall panels by the windows, the windows themselves, even the curtains, all have the same design, but the checkered window panes in Alphonse's home have been replaced with frosted window panes. The same model is used for the Lydgate house in "Strange Case",[7] where the model is more faithful to the original: The design of the windows, the fireplace, the doors and the bookshelves is exactly the same. ("Second Star to the Right")
- The CGI model created for the exterior of the Darling house and the neighboring building[8] are recycled and reused for the exterior of Dr. Jekyll's house and the surrounding buildings in "An Untold Story".[9] In the exterior shot in the Land of Untold Stories, the building in the middle and the one on the right are almost identical to the London buildings. ("Second Star to the Right")
Disney
- The time on Big Ben is 8:15,[10] the same time that is shown in the Disney film Peter Pan. ("Second Star to the Right")
Lost
- The time on Big Ben is also a reference to two of the numbers from Lost. ("Second Star to the Right")
Props Notes
- There is a stained-glass painting of a ship on the window in the Darlings' nursery room,[11] a reference to the Jolly Roger from the Peter Pan story. ("Second Star to the Right")
- John Darling's bed in the Darling house[12] is the same prop used for Cinderella's bed in the Tremaine manor in "A Pirate's Life".[13] ("Second Star to the Right")
Set Dressing
- A cart outside the Darling family's home says:[14] ("Second Star to the Right")
T. Jellicoe
of Somers Town
Painter & Decorator
117 Hampstead Street
- Three illustrations by the famous English book illustrator Arthur Rackham are hanging on the wall in the Darling family nursery room: ("Second Star to the Right")
- The first picture on the right hand side of the fireplace[15] is "The Dwarfs, when they came in the evening, found Snowdrop lying on the ground" from Grimm's Fairy Tales - Illustrated by Arthur Rackham (1909) (note that some pages, including this illustration, are missing from the digitized edition), later re-published as Snowdrop & Other Tales By the Brothers Grimm (1920) (the digitized edition is one single page; the illustration appears at the beginning). It shows Snow White surrounded by the seven dwarves after she falls into a coma.
- The second illustration on the right hand side of the fireplace[15] is called "The ring upon thy hand— ... ah, be implored! For Wotan fling it away!" and is from Siegfried & the Twilight of the Gods (1911) (link to page), an illustrated edition of Richard Wagner's opera Twilight of the Gods, which is the last in Wagner's cycle of four music dramas titled The Ring of the Nibelung. The illustration shows Brünnhilde being visited by her Valkyrie sister Waltraute.
- The third illustration is only seen from far away and is hanging over one of the beds.[16] It is called "Brünnhilde slowly and silently leads her horse down the path to the cave" and is from The Rhinegold & The Valkyrie (1910) (link to page), an illustrated edition of The Rhinegold, which is the first music drama of The Ring of the Nibelung.
- The illustration can be seen more clearly on a set photograph by production designer Michael Joy.[17]
- It can also be seen in Edwin's house in the Once Upon a Time in Wonderland finale "And They Lived...".[18] However, it is too far away to make out the details.
- Two illustrations by the nineteenth century British artist and illustrator Randolph Caldecott can also be seen in the room: The first one,[19] which is hanging by the door, shows the the titular character from Caldecott's children's book The Queen of Hearts (1881) (link to page). The other one,[20] which is hanging over the fireplace, shows three living playing cards and is from the same book (link to page).
- The first illustration by Caldecott can also be seen in Henry's room in "Pilot".[21]
- The second illustration by Caldecott can also be seen in Henry's apartment in "Flower Child". The frame is the same as well.[22]
- There is a mini hot air balloon over one of the beds in the Darling family nursery room.[23] The same toy is sitting on a shelf in Emma's nursery room in "Pilot",[24] "The Stranger",[25] "Going Home"[26] and "The Tower".[27] It can also be seen at the market that Jefferson and Grace visit in "Hat Trick".[28] ("Second Star to the Right")
Filming Locations
- The scene where young Baelfire arrives in London was filmed on the forest trails above the Third Beach in Vancouver's Stanley Park.[29] ("Second Star to the Right")
Appearances
Once Upon a Time: Season Two | ||||||||||
"Broken": | "We Are Both": | "Lady of the Lake": | "The Crocodile": | "The Doctor": | "Tallahassee": | "Child of the Moon": | "Into the Deep": | "Queen of Hearts": | "The Cricket Game": | "The Outsider": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"In the Name of the Brother": | "Tiny": | "Manhattan": | "The Queen Is Dead": | "The Miller's Daughter": | "Welcome to Storybrooke": | "Selfless, Brave and True": | "Lacey": | "The Evil Queen": | "Second Star to the Right": | "And Straight On 'Til Morning": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Three | ||||||||||
"The Heart of the Truest Believer": | "Lost Girl": | "Quite a Common Fairy": | "Nasty Habits": | "Good Form": | "Ariel": | "Dark Hollow": | "Think Lovely Thoughts": | "Save Henry": | "The New Neverland": | "Going Home": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Mentioned | Absent |
"New York City Serenade": | "Witch Hunt": | "The Tower": | "Quiet Minds": | "It's Not Easy Being Green": | "The Jolly Roger": | "Bleeding Through": | "A Curious Thing": | "Kansas": | "Snow Drifts": | "There's No Place Like Home": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Specials | ||||||||||
"Magic is Coming": |
"The Price of Magic": | "Journey to Neverland": | "Wicked is Coming": | "Storybrooke Has Frozen Over": | ||||||
Absent | Absent | Archive | Absent | Absent | ||||||
"Secrets of Storybrooke": | "Dark Swan Rises": | "Evil Reigns Once More": | "The Final Battle Begins": | |||||||
Archive | Archive | Archive | Archive |
Other Appearances | ||||||||||
|
Note: "Archive" denotes archive footage.
References
Land Without Magic Locations | |||
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