About Us
Breakaway Effects® LTD was founded in 1991 by current company director Neil Upington, and has been supplying breakaway glass & ceramic props to a long list of film, television and theatrical productions worldwide for nearly 30 years.
Originally located in a small workshop in Shepperton Film Studios, in 2002 we opened up a second workshop in Tiverton, Devon, then expanded to a larger workshop within Shepperton Studios in 2010, and moved a much bigger premises in West Molesey in 2022.
We have also augmented the service we can give to our customers by branching out into areas such as real glass/ceramic ‘Twin’ hire & purchase, as well as rubber & plastic Stagesafe® versions of some of our breakaway products. We also invented the ‘Boingy Box’, our own patented packing system to allow items to be shipped more safely.
We’re the current Guinness World Record holder for the largest single breakaway sheet, and structure ever produced. In 2011, we were asked to produce huge sheets of ice to break a world record, in a stunt created to mark ‘Remember A Charity’ Week (12th – 18th September 2011) which aimed to encourage people to leave a gift to charity in their will.
On Tuesday 13th September in London’s O2 Arena, we smashed the record previously held by the 007 franchise; created during the filming of the ‘Ice Palace’ scene in Die Another Day when an Aston Martin was driven through a glass area which was 253cm high by 164cm wide.
To break the record, veteran stuntman Rocky Taylor steered a fortified BMW 5 Series up a 3.5m ramp, hurtling through the air at a height of 12ft, before smashing through a giant 600cm by 400cm ice wall constructed of two 200cm x 300cm sheets, and three 200cm x 200cm sheets; luckily with both car and Rocky intact.
