A comedy film has been shot in a Kent hotel with a colourful past.

Owners of Stone Court House in Maidstone revealed the Grade II-listed building had recently been used by a production company for a movie.

The property in Lower Stone Street was bought by couple Saban and Belinda Demirbasa in August 2019 for £550,000.

Following two years of extensive renovations worth millions of pounds, they have transformed it into an Airbnb-style hotel.

The historic building is around 700 years old and has had an interesting past.

Previously it was used as lodgings for travelling judges in the 18th century.

Fast-forward to 2012, and police raided the building as part of a bid to bust a drugs and prostitution ring.

Last Monday (November 20), a film crew from Seriously Funny Productions spent the day shooting a new movie.

“They got in touch with us and said we had a great location,” Saban explained. “The historic part of the building was very interesting to them.

“They filmed by the fireplace and in one of the bedrooms, as they wanted a four poster bed.

“I believe it’s going to be finished by the end of January and hopefully should be out sometime next year.”

The Medway-based production company was created by Kevin Durham, who originally started off as a radio presenter.

After transitioning into TV, he presented on the red carpet and attended press trips for Fox, Universal and Warner Brothers.

Now he has begun pursing a career as a comedy director, performer and writer.

Kevin said: “We are looking to finish production around February time.

“I’m very much inspired by people like Ricky Gervais and a bit of Jack Whitehall, who write, direct and feature in their own stuff.”

His first feature film set to be released is called B-Movie.

IMDb says it is a comedy “where an out-of-work TV writer is talked into producing a feature film by his best friend, who funds the movie”.

“Whilst the writer is out to make the best film he possibly can, his friend cuts corners at every opportunity,” it continued.

“So much so that he decides that they much work with an amateur dramatics society, who could provide a venue and actors for free.

“During filming the pair step over an accident with an actor, which ultimately leads the theatre company to pull out, sending the writer on a journey to discover what friendship and community are really about.”

Kevin plans to pitch the film to a number of streaming services, including Netflix, Warner, CBS, Amazon and Apple.

“It’s fantastic – I think it puts Maidstone on the map,” Saban added.

“Kent has a long history of film locations and a huge amount of creativity in the arts.

“It is so nice to see that there is raw talent here, from both the film and music industry.”

It is not the first time the property has been used for a shoot.

In August, several rooms were used as a backdrop for Playboy – a popular men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine.

It featured Sabina Kelley, an American pin-up model, fashion icon and actress.

Stone Court House has had more than 2,000 guests stay during the last year.

The family recently celebrated after it was crowned the number one hotel in Maidstone on Tripadvisor.

“It’s great, we were really surprised it happened so quickly,” Saban said.

“All the hard work we have put in and to be recognised is brilliant. We have lots of plans for the future – hopefully we can make Maidstone proud.”

Other areas in the County Town have also been used for filming.

In June 2022, County Hall was the backdrop of shots in spy thriller Treason on Netflix.

It starred Marvel's Daredevil actor Charlie Cox, Quantum of Solace star Olga Kurylenko and Game of Thrones' Oona Chaplin.

Then this September Wes Anderson’s short film based on a Roald Dahl novella was released on the streaming channel.

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar was filmed at Maidstone Film Studios at Vinters Business Park and starred Benedict Cumberbatch, Ralph Fiennes, Sir Ben Kingsley, Richard Ayoade and Dev Patel.