HOLLYWOOD came to town this week - and excited residents and holidaymakers gathered to get a glimpse of the star-studded proceedings.

Scenes for 'Wonka', the upcoming movie focusing on the life of Willy Wonka before the events of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, were filmed on the Cobb in Lyme Regis on Monday and Tuesday this week.

Timothée Chalamet, who plays the titular character in the film - which has now been confirmed to be a musical - was spotted arriving in full costume by some excited onlookers who were at the Cobb bright and early on Monday morning.

More actors were spotted throughout the two days of filming, with Little Britain and Bake Off star Matt Lucas being sighted next to Peep Show and Vigil star, Paterson Joseph.

The Lyme Regis Cobb was a hive of activity throughout the two days, with production crews and extras taking over the area to produce the shots required. There were also plenty of onlookers gathered to see if they could get a sneak peak of the filming.

Resident Esme Weaver, who was at the Cobb with friends and family on Monday, said: "We were there since 7am, we saw all the cameras and buses arrive - there were huge amounts of people turning up.

"We got to see Timothée arrive as well, we gave him a wave a got a bit of a smile in return.

"It's very exciting for a Monday morning, it was worth coming down early to get to see everything coming on. It was only us and the film crew when we came down.

Local make-up artist Georgia Wheadon was on the set attempting to find some work.

She said: "I ran over when I saw the make-up artists arriving. I managed to speak to a supervisor and they took my details down.

"People are definitely showing an interest, everyone's come down to see what's going on.

"It's good fun, everyone's trying to spot the actors across the Cobb."

Scenes were shot on the historic vessel, Lydia Eva, which is the world’s last surviving steam-powered herring drifter and was covered in artificial snow over the two days.

It is believed that the filming in Lyme Regis was for a scene depicting Willy Wonka's arrival in England.

Chalamet rose to fame in recent years, starring in films such as Call Me By Your Name and Little Women.

Vicki Lucas, who lives in Awliscombe just across the Devon border, was down with her family for the day and was able to snap some pictures of the leading man.

She said: "We had just taken our young children to see the boat and I took a few pictures of people passing us, I wasn't even sure who I’d snapped until someone else said they thought it was him or a very good double.

"We just popped down to have a look and waited around for a while and got lucky.

"There was a lot of security and they weren't letting anyone get too close, they did give us a few smiles and waves though."

Daryl Turner, councillor for the Lyme and Charmouth area at Dorset Council, spoke of how tourists and locals gathered around the harbour to get a sneak peek at the filming.

He said: "It’s quite exceptional really. There must be hundreds of staff around the harbour.

“There's clearly a lot of interest from holidaymakers and locals, there’s loads of people on the Cobb trying to figure out what’s going on. It’s definitely captured peoples’ attention.

"Its great for the town and it certainly helps the economy to be promoted on such a big stage."

Wonka is set to be released on March 17, 2023.