LONDON • The production company behind Star Wars: The Force Awakens is being prosecuted in Britain over an incident on set which left actor Harrison Ford with a broken leg, health and safety officials said last Thursday.

Ford, who was 71 then, was struck by a heavy door at Pinewood Studios, west of London, on the film's Millennium Falcon spaceship set in June 2014.

He was airlifted to hospital and had surgery on his left leg later.

Foodles Production UK will now appear in court in May to face four charges alleging that it had breached health and safety law as Ford reprised his role as Han Solo.

"The charges relate to an incident during the filming of Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens, which left Harrison Ford with serious injuries after he was hit by a heavy hydraulic door," Britain's Health and Safety Executive, the official body responsible for workplace safety, said in a statement.

"By law, employers must take reasonable steps to protect workers - this is as true on a film set as a factory floor," it added.

A hearing will be held at a court near the studios on May 12. A spokesman for the film production company said safety was "always a top priority".

"We provided full cooperation during the Health and Safety Executive's investigation into the on-set accident that occurred in June 2014 and are disappointed in its decision," she added.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE