In
the first episode of Tweng, Kapitein Zeppos and Ariane pay a
visit to Erik, their sailor friend, at the local snooker hall. They
ask him whether he knows anything about Tweng - he seems not to have
heard the word, but passes them a beermat with a line drawing of a
church. He implies that the church it depicts is linked to what
Zeppos and Ariane are looking for.
Acting upon this clue, Zeppos and Ariane drive to the church in the
Amphicar and explore the building and its grounds.
The church in question is St. John the Baptist Church at Afsnee, Sint-Denijs-Westrem, a suburb
of Gent in Flanders. This church dates back to the Twelfth Century,
although subsequent generations made additions and necessary repairs
to the building, with significant restoration work undertaken in the
Eighteenth and Twentieth centuries. The result is a fascinating
blend of Latin and early Gothic styles. The church remains in use to
this day.
The filming in 1968 took place six years before the most recent
restoration work was undertaken, although the building today is
pretty much as the film crew would have found it. The church
exterior is shown in an establishing shot which cuts from the shot
(above, left) of Zeppos studying the image on the beermat. Actors Senne
Rouffaer and Vera Veroft then enter the church, and, as Kapitein
Zeppos and Ariane, they look around the interior (also shot at this
location). Finding nothing pertinent to their investigation, the
pair exit to the church grounds. Eventually they find a newly-planted grave marker in the form of a
wooden cross by the boundary wall, which directs them to Overslag.
