As I approach Birmingham New Street by train, past Millennium Point and Curzon Street, where a new HS2 station is being built, I wonder how Tom Cruise got into town.
Did he land and fly in his £ 32 million superyacht in Cornwall? Maybe a limousine? I suspect he didn’t use the West Midlands Railway.
Still he did it. Eagle-eyed shoppers and diners in a crowded Grand Central saw none other than the man strolling around on Saturday, July 31st.
Continue reading: Top humming! Tom Cruise spotted in Grand Central Birmingham
Flanked by an entourage of half a dozen people as he overlooked Grand Central, he was caught at a restaurant as he stopped to look over the balcony and down at the train riders.
Now maybe we know why.
BirminghamLive went to Grand Central on a slightly less manic Monday afternoon. Workers spoke of quiet hysteria when buyers realized they had a superstar among them.
Tom Cruise, at the Pho Restaurant in Grand Central
(Image: Lee Ambler)
Other staff members were devastated when they had to admit they didn’t even realize during Saturday’s usual rush that Cruise was the latest arrival in Birmingham.
And two employees revealed the reason they believed Cruise was strolling around town, with management reportedly being told to sign nondisclosure agreements and keep quiet about what they know.
We found that out during our visit.
Why was Tom Cruise in Birmingham?
Although this has not been confirmed by Grand Central or the film’s production company, staff claimed that filming would soon begin on John Lewis’ now vacant property.
We know that Cruise is currently shooting the latest Mission Impossible film at Warner Bros Studios in Hertfordshire and is on location across the UK.
Some scenes were filmed in nearby Derbyshire, so it cannot be ruled out that Birmingham could become a filming location soon.
The now empty John Lewis was touted as a possible location
(Image: Josh Sandiford / BirminghamLive)
John Lewis’s theory was already making the rounds on social media, with some speculating that the empty unit in the latest film might look like an airport.
The store was Grand Central’s flagship store when it opened above Birmingham New Street in 2015. But after the employee-owned company suffered heavy losses during the lockdown, it was one of many that didn’t survive and shut down.
A person speaking to BirminghamLive, an employee of a well-known Grand Central restaurant, said the property owners had been forced to sign nondisclosure agreements, which another employee at the store believed was the same.
The restaurant worker said there was a lot of “talk” and said he was told that filming should begin between August 24th and 26th.
And this was apparently supported by another retailer who claimed that there would be filming between John Lewis and the escalator across from Joules in the coming weeks.
Both sources asked not to be named but said they were confident in their predictions.
BirminghamLive reached out to Mission Impossible production company Skydance Media for a response.
‘Surreal’
When I arrive at Grand Central, I go to Pho Vietnamese restaurant first.
This is where Cruise was originally caught, which resulted in his appearance spreading like wildfire on social media.
But BirmignhamLive can now confirm that Cruise didn’t sit down for a slap-up meal.
The cruise was recorded in the Vietnamese restaurant Pho?
(Image: Josh Sandiford / BirminghamLive)
Aimee Attard, a waitress at the street food restaurant, said he hadn’t stopped trying any of her famous dishes.
She was on shift when Cruise came in with his team. She worked at the bar in the crowded restaurant and didn’t even notice that one of the most famous faces in the world had walked in.
She claimed Cruise was in business mode and was looking out the window of the restaurant that overlooks the New Street Promenade.
“It was surreal,” said Aimee. “I was at the bar and he was just coming in. There was no food or drink.
Aimee continued, “I didn’t hear what they were saying. I can only guess that they were filming or something.
“It was very strange to see Tom Cruise in the middle of Birmingham.”
And while Cruise was on a mission in more ways than one, he still had time to stop and greet the kids from Star Trucks that were at the restaurant.
Aimee described how everyone started pulling out their phones to film the megastar.
“It’s been a long time. Five or ten minutes. But we were busy, ”she said.
“There was a little girl there and he was taking care of her. It was very cute.”
‘Very busy’
It’s not clear if Pho was the first destination on Cruise’s agenda or how many times he walked around Grand Central.
But staff said Cruise continued towards the Mowgli and Comptoir Libanais restaurants.
The manager of the latter restaurant said he heard Cruise was nearby but did not see him.
But Ariadne, a clerk at Tapas Revolution nearby, said she had a look at the Hollywood icon.
“Customers got up and took photos,” she said. “But some hesitated because they didn’t know if it was him.”
Cruise was in Grand Central when it was claimed that filming could begin there shortly
(Image: Josh Sandiford / BirminghamLive)
L’occitane beauty store staff said they were disappointed they didn’t catch Cruise.
They said they had a weekend promotion and were “very busy”.
One said that while wishing Cruise had come in and spent “Hollywood money,” she lived in New York and was used to walking among the stars.
Next door at Neal’s Yard Remedies, an employee who refused to be named said Cruise blended into the busy crowds at Grand Central. Monsoon staff took a video as he sauntered by.
Another store nearby described Cruise looking over the balcony between the Endura rose shop and another of the patrons.
But a woman at the flower shop’s checkout said she hadn’t seen anything.
“There was a group of them and we didn’t notice them at first,” said another shop assistant who asked not to be named due to company policy.
She said it looked like he started at one end of Grand Central near Pho and got around all the way.
What Grand Central Says
When asked by BirminghamLive whether they would like to respond to claims that filming is due to start shortly, Grand Central said they could not provide any information.
They told BirminghamLive to contact Jumpy Newt, who appears to be a public relations firm.
A John Lewis spokesman told BirminghamLive over the weekend that they were unable to confirm or deny whether filming would take place in the closed store.
They said, “I don’t know that, but even if I were, I wouldn’t be able to comment on it.”
BirminghamLive has also reached out to Mission Impossible production company Skydance Media for a response.
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