Empire Strikes Backstage: Intimate pictures of cast and crew during filming of second Star Wars movie

By PAUL MILLIGAN

PUBLISHED: 07:44 EST, 12 May 2012 | UPDATED: 10:22 EST, 12 May 2012

The cast and crew of The Empire Strikes Back faced a daunting task - how to follow Star Wars, the blockbuster which had reinvented science fiction on the silver screen overnight and instantly become the favourite film of millions of cinemagoers.

By the time it opened in 1980, the pressure was really on director George Lucas and his team of actors to deliver, but as these fantastic pictures illustrate they all found time to enjoy themselves in the process.

Ahead of an upcoming convention in Florida in August, which is expected to attract up to 30,000 buffs, here is a chance to see behind the scenes during the making of the second film.

All the stars, Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher can be seen laughing and joking in and around the many sets and with a lot of the characters in costume. READ MORE HERE