MOVIEGOERS had a big treat in store when they turned up at the screening of Paddington Bear 2 at the Millennium Centre on a Saturday afternoon.

For Hugh Bonneville, who plays Henry Brown in the film, paid a surprise visit and spent time chatting with the children who had brought along their own toy bears to the screening.

Gill Snedden, events manager at the Millennium Centre, insisted this week nobody knew Hugh was going to drop in.

“We spoke about inviting him a while ago, after we booked the film for the screening, but thought he might be far too busy,” she told The Herald.

“We were completely stunned when he showed up out of the blue. He was absolutely charming with the children and we felt very honoured that he chose to come along.”

The Milland resident has a special affinity with Paddington Bear 2, which was released on his birthday, November 10, last year.

During a talk at Hollycombe Primary School, he revealed the bear is a mixture of an actor in costume, a stuffed life size model and technical wizardry and that filming at Paddington railway station at night proved to be exciting for all the cast.

The wonderful tree house was a set built at Pinewood Studios, a jungle area in Costa Rica and digital enhancement.