Khartoum (film) Paramount could not find the money. Gilbert made "Alfie" instead. "Everybody was interested and nobody doubted the subject," said writer Robert Ardrey. "But there was strong feeling against the big picture which might gross $12,000,000 but cost $25,000,000. Frankly "Khartoum" is a proposition that could bust a studio if handled the wrong way." Initially Burt Lancaster was to play General Gordon before the role was accepted by Charlton Heston. In July 1965, it was announced that Ralph Richardson and Richard Johnson would join the cast as Prime Minister Gladstone and Colonel Stewart respectively. Filming took place in Egypt, Pinewood Studios
Khartoum main Nile ("see map, upper right") as it zigzags through northern Sudan into Egypt at Lake Nasser. Khartoum is relatively flat, at elevation , as the Nile flows northeast past Omdurman to Shendi, at elevation about away. Under Köppen's climate classification system, Khartoum features a hot arid climate, with only the summer months seeing noticeable precipitation. The city averages a little over of precipitation per year. Based on annual mean temperatures, the city is one of the hottest major cities in the world. Temperatures routinely exceed in mid-summer. Its average annual high temperature is , with six months of the