What do Anglesey and Demi Moore have in common?

The island of Anglesey, off the north coast of Wales, is known for its exceptional natural beauty, so much so that it was chosen as the location to shoot a Demi Moore film.

The island offers the visitor the opportunity to wander a special 125-mile coastal path with official status and magnificent views of the sea and mountains from most corners of an island that is often referred to as the “jewel of the crown “of Wales.

It was these stunning coastal and mountainous scenes that persuaded Charlie Somers to cast Anglesey for some key takes in Demi Moore’s Half Light, a romantic and paranormal thriller, written and directed by Craig Rosenberg.

In addition to using some beautiful island locations for the film, Somers also moved to the mainland and used nearby Porthmadog on the Lleyn Peninsula. He was also responsible for choosing locations in the nearby Snowdon Mountains across the water for some scenes in Lara Croft Tomb Raider 2.

Half Light tells the story of Rachel Carson, a thriller writer, played by Moore, who escapes to a small cabin on the remote Scottish coast after the tragic death of her young son. The similarity of the island and the west coast of Scotland was again decisive for the seascapes of the island to be chosen for this work.

Rachel Carson tries to get her life back in this remote coastal place and during her stay she meets and falls in love with the local lighthouse keeper.

Of course, the lighthouse used is on Anglesey, near Llanddwyn Beach in the southeast corner of the island. From here you have a wonderful view of the Snowdonia mountain range on the mainland, often covered in snow in the winter and spring seasons, and further south over the Lleyn Peninsula that stretches towards Bardsey Island.

The small lighthouse on the rocky outcrop at Llanddwyn is no longer in use, but it is an unmistakable landmark for visitors, approaching from Newborough Forest or for those sailing in the tidal passage off Caernarfon Bar towards Holyhead in the West.

This small rocky headland in Llanddwyn is also famous for being the site dedicated to Saint Dwynwen, the patron saint of lovers in Wales, the equivalent of Valentine’s Day.

On the opposite side of Anglesey is what is considered the oldest Christian church in Wales, after the 4th century St. Patrick, located near a cliff on the northwest coast of the island near the village of Cemaes.

The Llanbadrig church was used for some of the graveyard shots in Demi Moore’s Half Light movie, and again this is a remote location, exposed to strong winds from the Irish Sea.

The church also has an interesting connection to Islamic art, as a 19th century local benefactor and member of the House of Lords, who converted to Islam, chose stained glass design with a mix of blues, reds and whites.

So if you ever get the chance to visit the Isle of Anglesey, you can visit an old lighthouse on a beautiful sandy beach and an old church on top of an exposed cliff, both of which both played roles in a Demi Moore film.