THE producers of the eagerly anticipated next instalment of the Star Wars story have said it will be made in Britain.
The official confirmation by Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy prompted Chancellor George Osborne to suggest the Force is strong with the British film industry.
The Chancellor met executives from Disney-owned Lucasfilm in London earlier this year to discuss the plans. The production is thought to be eligible for a tax break.
The seventh episode of the science fantasy saga is due to start production next year and is set to hit our screens in 2015. It is slated to be directed by JJ Abrams, who created TV show Lost and has overseen the reboot of the Star Trek film franchise.
Osborne revealed the decision on Twitter, saying: "Just confirmed: the next Star Wars film will be made in UK. Great news for our creative industries. May the force be with us-"
He said later: "I think it is a real vote of confidence in Britain's creative industries."
Warwick Davis, who played an Ewok in 1983's Return Of The Jedi – which also starred Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia, pictured left – said the announcement was great for the British film industry, and for British actors.
"I think that it's Star Wars coming back to its roots, it's where it started all those years ago," he said.
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