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The majority of the filming took place in and around the East End of London. Brick Lane locals were intrigued to watch the constant procession of film runners shuttling back and forth to the famous 24 hour bagel shop to collect hot cups of tea and salt beef bagels to sustain the freezing crew. The ex-government buildings of Bethnal Green Town Hall underwent some radical changes when one of its' panelled board rooms was transformed into the nerve centre of Hatchet Harry's porn empire.
Several of the cast had grown up and worked around the East End, giving their performances added authenticity. Frank Harper who plays Dog, had worked in Smithfield Meat Market for ten years before becoming an actor. "Smithfield Market was the best drama school that you could attend for learning to play a crook. Dog's character is actually a mixture of a couple of the villains and gangsters I knew back then."
Production Designers, Iain Andrews and Eve Mavrakis were responsible for perfecting the look of the sets. They worked closely with Ritchie in the pre-production stage of the film ensuring that the Director's ideas were translated into reality. The sleazy feel of many of the locations was directly inspired by photographs taken of Soho. Neon 'Girls, Girls, Girls' signs appeared as if by magic on the sides of respectable shops and businesses which were to appear in shot. An empty warehouse in Camden Town took on a highly illegal look when it was converted into a hydroponic marijuana factory with six foot tall plants creeping towards the ceiling.
Ritchie was universally praised for being a Director who was creative and open to suggestions from cast and crew. In the words of Frank Harper, who plays Dog, "Guy's a young Director, extremely on the ball with a very clear vision of how his film should look."
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