Famously known filming locations in England and Ireland

Every film or series needs a filming location to set the overall look of the film. And most importantly to create the atmosphere of the story. In any case, my beloved England and Ireland have been used for multiple films and series. And those locations are famously known as of today. Let’s see if you recognise them!

1. Highclere Castle, Hampshire

Even before Downton Abbey came along, the castle had plenty of famous claims already. It was the seat of the Earls of Carnarvon and their predecessors since the late 17th-century. In the 1920s it provided a home for the collected Egyptian artefacts of the 5th Earl, who accompanied Howard Carter ton his excavations of the Valley of the Kings. But thanks to Downton Abbey, it has achieved serious fame in the last few years. The exterior, great hall and several bedrooms are featured prominently in the show.

2. Alnwick Castle, Northumberland

Scenes from the first 2 Harry Potter films were filmed at this castle. Including the famous broomstick practice scene from the first film; The Philosopher’s Stone. It was filmed next to the Outer Bailey. The courtyards and gates were also used to film the students while walking between classes.

3. Lacock, Wiltshire

The village of Lacock has been used for many projects, as its central streets are almost untouched by modernity. It appeared as a mid-19th/early 20th-century village in Cranford and Downton Abbey. However, this house has gained particular notoriety as the house in Which Harry Potter was supposed to have lived as a baby. You know, when he survived he who shall not be named’s attack.

4. Portobello Road, London

The reputation of Notting Hill was forever changed by the comedy of the same name back in 1999. I myself never saw the film, but my friend Sam wanted to say this: ‘do you remember the immortal scene in which Hugh Grant moons around Portobello Road Market? Trying to forget Julia Roberts? That’s what makes these candy-coloured houses iconic whenever you visit.’

5. Kenwood House, London

Sam, come back in for this location. ‘Right, well Hugh Grant shouldn’t worry about forgetting about Julia Roberts, as he was soon to be reunited with Julia Roberts’ character Anna Scott as she was filming a Henry James adaptation at Kenwood House.’ This glorious mansion can be found on the northern edge of Hampstead Heath. Its elegant white façade presiding the grounds to the south.

6. Lyme Park, Cheshire

In the 1995 BBC version of Pride and Prejudice, this Italianate house owned by the National Trust stood in for Mr Darcy’s grand estate called Pemberley.

7. Chatsworth, Derbyshire

10 years later, in the 2005 film of the BBC version, Mr Darcy got an upgrade to one of the grandest houses in England, Chatsworth. Starring Keira Knightley and Matthew Macfadyen. It’s a beautiful place to visit. The late Deborah Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, revitalised the estate and turned it into a highly successful business with gardens, art installations and even an organic farm.

8. Castle Howard, North Yorkshire

This castle has been a famous location for films: it was a stand-in for Pemberley in the BBC’s 2013 Death Comes to Pemberley, interiors were used as a stand-in for Kensington Palace in ITV’s Victoria. But, it got real fame as the location of Brideshead in the 1981 adaptation of Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited. It starred Jeremy Irons, amongst others. The association between the castle and the fictional seat of the Flyte family were so strong, that it served as Brideshead again in the 2008 version.

9. Blockley, Gloucestershire

The colleges of Oxford have been positively decimated over several series of Morse and Lewis and it’s surprising that there’s anyone left in the Home Counties, according to Midsomer Murders. The pretty village of Blockley has proved fairly lethal as well, as the setting of the gloriously soothing Father Brown mysteries starring Mark Williams.

10. Castle Ward, County Down, Northern Ireland

The farmyard of Castle Ward was made famous as the setting for Winterfell in Game of Thrones. There’s a Palladian house to visit at this National Trust property and you can book a Game of Thrones experience if you want to spend a day in Stark mode.

11. Botallack Mine, St Just, Cornwall

Poldark appeared on our screens in 2015 and I was blown away by the Cornish landscape. As Ross Poldark attempts to restore his family’s coastline of Cornwall, the abandoned buildings at Botallack stand-in for Poldark’s mines. It’s a monument to the region’s mining industry which ended at the end of the 19th-century.

Which locations have you visited? And which ones would you like to add?

Love, Deem ❤

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