Film & TV

When it comes to the town of Dundas the locals will always have a story to tell, whether it’s who filmed where, the history behind the Cactus festivals or even just a building’s history.

Dundas has been the site of many film crews, ranging from The Hallmark Channel movies to early Marvel movies. In my childhood, seeing the pylons marking out the film crew parking was just another Wednesday. Riding my bike through fake snow in the middle of summer was something that, while strange, was not a strange occurrence. My home town is a very good example of the ‘typical’ small town that you would see in the Hallmark Channel movies, so it stands to say that there were many ‘made for TV’ movies and TV shows filmed in Dundas.

The Good Witch 2008

The primary example of this is The Good Witch, a 2008 Hallmark movie that is set in the town of Middleton, however, anyone from Dundas recognizes the local shops and businesses that were the backdrop for this movie. In this movie and later the TV show, the local coffee shop Detour was used as the setting for the main character’s shop. And her house is also a historic house in Dundas. Foxbar House was used as the setting for The Good Witch for many years, and it’s not that hard to spot while driving down Governors Road.

Murdoch Mysteries

Another TV show that has had a long running history of filming in Dundas, is Murdoch Mysteries. This show has used the historical houses of Dundas as its backdrop since it started filming. Due to Dundas having an impressive amount of heritage homes, some dating back to when Canada became its own country, Murdoch mysteries has had its pick of period piece homes.

One of the episodes to mention is The Devil Wears Whalebone, Episode 12 of season 8. This episode is about a murder in a corsetry shop. This shop is actually on King St in Dundas, it’s the former Heirlooms Bridal shop, currently Modella Ladies Wear. As an aside, everyone who grew up in Dundas in the 70’s will remember this store as a Hardware Store.

The Umbrella Academy

A more recent TV show that has filmed in dundas is the Umbrella Academy. In season one and two they film near Dyment’s Market, which is at the top of Sydenham Road. The Umbrella Academy has mainly filmed in Hamilton, Dundas, and Toronto. Which is quite cool when you know the locations in real life! In the first season, the episode ‘Number Five’ has a scene where the Dyment’s Market Building is clearly visible and they don’t even try to hide the name.

Man of the Year 2006

One of the movies that Dundas remembers being filmed is Man of the Year which is from 2006. Robin Williams is playing a comedian who accidentally becomes the President of the United States. There is a clear shot of him in downtown Dundas, as well as drinking tea in Taylors Tea Room, which unfortunately went out of business during the Pandemic, now in its place is the soup restaurant The Burnt Tongue

The Incredible Hulk 2008

Finally, the last movie I want to highlight being filmed in Dundas, is The Incredible Hulk from 2008. A handful of scenes were filmed outside and inside The Deluxe Restaurant. This restaurant has now been replaced by The Bangkok Spoon Deluxe, which is in the same place as the original restaurant.