Films and Locations – Harrogate, North Yorkshire
Did you know there is a Christmas film set in Knaresborough?! It’s called A Very British Christmas.
There are some great scenes showing Knaresborough Castle and the viaduct plus I think I spotted Stockeld Park in there too!
One of the biggest and newest movies filmed in the area has to be Paddington 2 – did you spot the Bilton to Ripley bike path and viaduct at the end of the movie?
Brimham Rocks is so magical that a whole host of famous movies have been filmed there including The Dark Crystal, Jane Eyre, Hound of the Baskervilles, Wuthering Heights and Ivanhoe to name but a few!
The highly acclaimed 1981 film Chariots of Fire used the inside of The Hales Bar for one of their scenes and also transformed Crescent Gardens in to a Parisian street cafe.
We are massive Harry Potter fans in this house so I couldn’t write this without mentioning Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in which you can see both Malham Tarn and York train station and also Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone which features Goathland Station. The best way to get the full experience is to book a Moors explorer ticket on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway so you can arrive at Hogsmeade station by train, just like Harry!
A very young looking Dustin Hoffman and Vanessa Redgrave starred in the 1979 film Agatha, a film about Agatha Christie who famously disappeared and was eventually found at The Old Swan Hotel in Harrogate.
Robin Hood Prince of Thieves – when Robin fights Big John you might recognise the backdrop as being Aysgarth Falls. If you want to visit, there are full details on a gorgeous circular walk taking in views of the falls on The Reluctant Explorers blog.
Ok so my last film is a bit out there…I was brought up watching this film but when I mentioned it on Instagram lately, no-one had heard of it. Please let me know if you’ve watched it!….
The Water Babies is set in Yorkshire with scenes in and around York. One of the main scenes (I won’t say which because I don’t want to give anything away) is filmed at The Strid which is on the river Wharfe close to Bolton Abbey. We took regular trips there when I was younger so I used to love seeing it on the big screen too.
TV Filming Locations – Harrogate, North Yorkshire
Plumpton Rocks has been host to the film Swallows and Amazons and most recently season 2 of The Witcher on Netflix. To promote the new series there was a giant snow globe erected in Ripon marketplace which took a lot of people by surprise.
The Witcher was also filmed at Fountains abbey which can be clearly seen in Season 2 Episode 3 – What is Lost.
Yorkshire’s best loved soap, Emmerdale, is filmed on location on the Harwood House estate. You can even book tickets to visit the village! https://www.emmerdalevillagetour.co.uk/. Harewood was also one of the filming locations from Downton Abbey the movie.
Is there anywhere I’ve missed? Let me know and I’ll get them added.
Claire x
