filmed in Kent

Call the Midwife Series 1 – 12 (2012 – 2023)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Nurse Phyllis (Linda Bassett), Nurse Lucille (Leonie Elliott), Nurse Trixie (Helen George), Nurse Nancy (Megan Cusack) and Nurse Shelagh (Laura Main) all stand in front of a baby pink background. All five women are wearing their blue midwife uniforms with red cardigans and red hats. Behind them stand two women wear yellow and pink and holding babies.

Nurse Phyllis (Linda Bassett), Nurse Lucille (Leonie Elliott), Nurse Trixie (Helen George), Nurse Nancy (Megan Cusack) and Nurse Shelagh (Laura Main) in Call the Midwife Series 11 © Nealstreet Productions

Writer: Heidi Thomas
Starring: Vanessa Redgrave, Jessica Raine, Pam Ferris, Miranda Hart, Helen George, Jenny Agutter, Laura Main, Judy Parfitt, Stephen McGann, Cliff Parisi, Ben Caplan, Jennifer Kirby, Leonie Elliot, Linda Bassett, Annabelle Apsion
Production Company: Neal Street Productions for BBC
Kent Locations Used: The Historic Dockyard Chatham

Much-loved BBC period drama Call the Midwife (2012-2023) is back for its annual Christmas Special, which will kick off the twelfth series. Based on the memoirs of Jennifer Worth, the TV drama follows the lives of nuns and midwives working in the East End of London during the 1950s and 60s.

Set in December 1967, the Series 12 Christmas Special is set during the aftermath of the train crash in Series 11 as life in Poplar begins to return to normal. The Nonnatus team will also be faced with the harrowing side effects of Thalidomide medication when an expecting mother visits the new maternity clinic. The Christmas Special will air on Christmas Day 2022, with the rest of the series to commence from Sunday 1st January 2023.

Series 1 Episode 1 of Call the Midwife aired for the first time on Sunday 15th January 2012 on BBC One and attracted over 10 million viewers. A new series has aired every year since, along with an annual Christmas Special broadcast every Christmas Day since 2012.

The early series featured actress Jessica Raine as the main protagonist Nurse Jenny Lee, with leading supporting cast Helen George as Nurse Trixie Franklin, Pam Ferris as Sister Evangelina, Judy Parfitt as Sister Monica Joan and Miranda Hart playing Chummy Browne, all led by the calm guidance of Sister Julienne (Jenny Agutter). Vanessa Redgrave narrates the series as mature Jennifer Worth.

The more recent series feature now familiar faces Nurse Valerie Dyer (Jennifer Kirby), Nurse Lucille Anderson (Leonie Elliott), Nurse Phyllis Crane (Linda Bassett) and Nurse Trixie Franklin (Helen George) . Supporting cast includes long standing characters Doctor Turner (Stephen McGann) and his wife Shelagh Turner (Laura Main), Fred Buckle (Cliff Parisi) and Violet Buckle (Annabelle Apsion). Following her absence from Series 10, the much-loved Mother Mildred (Miriam Margolyes) will make a comeback in the Series 11 Christmas special.

Three characters from call the midwife looking out to sea on a bridge at the Historic Dockyard Chatham with their blue and red midwife uniforms on.

Call The Midwife Nurses ©The Historic Dockyard Chatham

During all twelve seasons Call the Midwife has made use of the settings of The Historic Dockyard Chatham to stand in for the Victorian buildings of Poplar in East London. The Fitted Rigging House doubles for the Lisbon Buildings and Rakesby Street Homeless Shelter. Meanwhile, Admiral’s Offices exteriors feature as Poplar Maternity Home and the London Hospital. The Tarred Yarn Store has made regular appearances as a Boxing Ring, Chinese Laundry and derelict building. HMS Cavalier, a WW2 destroyer ship and The National Destroyer Memorial, has also featured playing the role of a Russian ship. The Commissioner’s House gardens set the scene for a famous engagement scene in one episode, while Anchor’s Wharf and the Dockyard Railway and steam train have regularly appeared for Poplar Docks scenes. The Victorian Ropery even appears in one episode as a working ropemakers as well as various cellars and tunnels around the building. In Episode 1 of Series 11, the Sail and Colour Loft appears as the building site where human bones are found. The Royal Dockyard Church also appears in the same episode as the graveyard that Nurse Trixie and Matthew (Olly Rix) visit.

An image of an exploded bomb set, a pile of rubble and a sign saying KEEP OFF

Behind the Scenes: Special Effects filming of Call the Midwife (2014) at The Historic Dockyard Chatham © BBC (Click on image for video clip).

The Historic Dockyard Chatham hosts Official Call the Midwife Location tours. For more information see here.

The Historic Dockyard Chatham was established in the mid-16th century and is located on the River Medway. A location with an extensive history, evident through its numerous buildings and exhibitions open to the public. Today Chatham is the only one of the original four Royal Navy Ropeyards to remain in operation and, together with its related buildings, forms the finest integrated group of 18th century manufacturing buildings in Britain. The site offers maritime, industrial, Georgian and Victorian architecture and cobbled streets, an ideal set for many film productions. Recent period dramas to film at the Dockyard include Belgravia (2020), World On Fire Series 1 (2019) and Pennyworth Series 1 (2019) to name but a few.

Call the Midwife Series 12 Christmas Special will air on BBC One on Christmas Day 2022, with the rest of the series to commence from Sunday 1st January 2023.

All 11 series are available to view on BBC iPlayer or purchase on Amazon Prime.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map. 

The Larkins (2021-2022)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Pop and Ma Larkin posing for a photo in front of a flowering hawthorne hedge. Bradley Walsh as Pop Larkin sits in a brown leather chair and wears a brown waistcoat and light blue shirt. Joanna Scanlan as Ma Larkin stands behind him, wearing a blue shirt and patterned apron.

Pop Larkin (Bradley Walsh) and Ma Larkin (Joanna Scanlan) in Series 2 of The Larkins © ITV Plc / Objective Fiction / Genial Productions

Writer / Creator: Simon Nye
Starring: Bradley Walsh, Joanna Scanlan, Sabrina Bartlett (Series 1), Joelle Rae (Series 2) Tok Stephen, Peter Davidson
Production Company: Objective Fiction, Genial Productions
Kent Locations Used: Viking Bay and Victoria Gardens – Broadstairs, Eynsford, Faversham, Stonepitts PYO Farm, Sundridge, Squerryes Court, Walpole Bay Hotel & Museum, Underriver, Chiddingstone, various undisclosed villages and farms in North Kent, Tonbridge Castle, Leigh, Sackville School, Canterbury prison

ITV’s The Larkins (2021-2022) returns for Series 2. The show is an adaptation of the five beloved HE Bates’ novels about the Larkins which began with  The Darling Buds of May. The comedy drama series was written and created by Simon Nye (The Durrells, Finding Alice) and stars Bradley Walsh (Law & Order: UK, Coronation Street) as Pop Larkin, Joanna Scanlan (After Love (2021), Getting On) as Ma Larkin, Peter Davison (Call the Midwife (2020), Doctor Who) as The Vicar, Sabrina Bartlett (Bridgerton (2020), Victoria) as Mariette Larkin (Series 1), Joelle Rae (Get Even) as Mariette Larkins (Series 2), and Tok Stephen as Cedric ‘Charley’ Charlton (Silent Witness, Grantchester).

Bradley Walsh takes on a role originally played by David Jason (Still Open All Hours, Only Fools and Horses) in The Darling Buds of May (1991 – 1993), a story about the lives of the working class May family in rural Kent in the 1950’s.

Series 2 sees a new family settle in the picturesque village, and they soon find themselves at war with the Larkins. Also joining the new townspeople is Reverend Candy (Maxim Ays (Sanditon, Still So Awkward)), whose handsome face immediately sets Primrose’s heart aflutter.

The Larkins family posing for a photo by a lake with trees in the background. The actors are wearing brightly coloured 1950s clothing. To the left children sit on a picnic blanket with a hamper. The adults stand to the right leaning on a wooden bench.

The Larkins © ITV Plc / Objective Fiction / Genial Productions
Pictured: Montgomery Larkin (Liam Middleton), Petunia Larkin (Rosie Coleman), Victoria Larkin (Lola Shepelev), Zinnia Larkin (Davina Coleman), Mariette (Sabrina Bartlett), Primrose Larkin (Lydia Page), Charley (Tok Stephen), Pop Larkin (Bradley Walsh) and Ma Larkin (Joanna Scanlan)

During filming of Series 1 and 2, as well as the 2021 Christmas Special, production filmed on various farms and villages in North Kent for the setting of the family farm and village.

Series 1

In Episode 3, Victoria Gardens and Viking Bay in Broadstairs feature when Ma and Pop Larkin go on a holiday to Margate. Faversham town and the Guild Hall feature in the same episode as Margate town and the Registry Office, where Ma and Pop rescue a runaway bride. The Walpole Bay Hotel & Museum in Margate also features in Episode 3 as the Margate Grand Hotel where Ma and Pop stay.

Eynsford village features in various episodes throughout this series. Eynsford Riverside appears in Episodes 1 and 2 as the Littlechurch river, Eynsford Village Hall appears in Episode 5 as the Littlechurch village hall where the locals vote on Tom’s plans for the village, and The Castle Hotel appears in Episode 2 during the pram race. The Five Bells Pub in Eynsford also appears in Episodes 2, 3 and 6 as the local village pub.

The Larkins enjoy strawberry picking in Episodes 4 and 5, and these scenes were filmed at Stonepitts Farm near Sevenoaks. Filming also took place at Long Barn in Sundridge, which became Seth’s Cottage in Episode 6, and Squerryes Court in Westerham became Bluff Court in Episodes 2 and 6, and the interior of Reg’s guesthouse in Episode 2.

The 2021 Christmas Special saw the return of various locations from the previous series, and featured some new sites including the Underriver Village Hall where the locals rehearse their festive pantomime, a private residence in Underriver which featured as the Norman’s home, and a private cottage in Chiddingstone which featured as the Nunn’s cottage

Series 2

As well as the welcome return of Squerryes Court as Bluff Court and Underriver village hall, Series 2  features some new Kent locations, including several in Tonbridge.

Sackville School features as Fordington Prison’s visiting area, and Tonbridge Castle and the river behind it also appear, doubling as the exterior of the Mid Kent Times Office. A private estate in Leigh in Sevenoaks appears in the series as the interior of the Chand’s bungalow, the interior of the Mid Kent Times Office and the exterior of Lady Violet’s (Prue Clarke) cottage. Canterbury Prison also features in Series 2 as Fordington Prison.

Broadstairs in East Kent is a picturesque coastal town with several beautiful beaches, restaurants, bars and walking trails which provide visitors with a real Kentish seaside town experience. Victoria Gardens has stunning clifftop views of Viking Bay and Louisa Bay. Broadstairs and Viking Bay has welcomed productions including Breeders Series 2 (2021), Devils (2021) and Hurricane (2018).

Faversham is a beautiful historic market town in the Swale Borough of Kent. The historic town boasts over 500 listed buildings. Previous productions in the town include Bollywood film Jagame Thandhiram (2021), Whitstable Pearl Series 1 (2021) and Hetty Feather Series 1 – 6 (2015 – 2020).

The Walpole Bay Hotel & Museum in Margate was built for discerning guests in 1914 and extended in 1927. The hotel has five floors and 42 bedrooms and a museum space. The décor and layout is versatile to suit many eras and the hotel provides cast and crew accommodation and on road parking in a quiet cul-de-sac. Margate is a traditional seaside town complete with sandy beach, harbour, amusement park, period housing and modern art gallery Turner Contemporary. Recent productions to film in Margate are Whitstable Pearl Series 1 (2021), Two Weeks to Live (2020) and Pandemonium (2020).

Located on the River Darent, Eynsford has some distinctive features including its viaduct, ford and ancient ruins and is part of the Sevenoaks district. Stonepitts Farm sits at the foot of the North Downs in Seal, near Sevenoaks, with magnificent views over the beautiful Vale of Holmesdale that has been a local landmark for hundreds of years.

Squerryes Court in Westerham is a beautiful 17th century manor house which has been the Warde family home since 1731. It is surrounded by 20 acres of attractive and historic gardens which include a lake, restored parterres and an 18th century dovecote. Westerham is a very busy village on a through road near Sevenoaks. Recent productions to film in the Sevenoaks district include The Cleaner (2021), The First Team (2020) and Great British Railway Journeys Series 11 (2020).

Chiddingstone is one of the oldest and most picturesque villages in Kent. It’s described as the most accurate example of a surviving Tudor village in the county, complete with half-timbered frames, gables and stone hung red-tiled roofs. Previous productions to have filmed in Chiddingstone include A Room with a View (1986) and The Wind in the Willows (1996).

Tonbridge is a riverside town with picturesque castle, churches and historic buildings. Tonbridge Castle was built at the time of the Norman conquest and in 1741, stone from the towers, walls and keep were used in the building of the Medway canal. Other productions to have filmed in Tonbridge include PRU (2022), Making Noise Quietly (2019) and Missing (2009-2010).

Now owned by Canterbury Christ Church University, the former Canterbury prison has wings with closed cells dating back to 1808. It is a popular filming location, with previous productions such as Deceit (2021), Small Axe (2020) and Break (2020) having filmed there.

The Larkins S1 began airing on ITV on Sunday 10th October. All episodes are available to stream on ITV Hub as well as the Christmas Special which first aired on ITV on Saturday 25th December 2021 at 9pm.

Series 2 of The Larkins began airing on ITV on Sunday 16th October 2022.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

Kate & Koji (2020-2022)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Koji sits at a table in a dated looking café. He holds a white mug and has a full English breakfast in front of him. Kate stands behind him, wearing a green apron and smiling at the camera.

Brenda Blethyn as Kate and Okorie Chukwu as Koji in Kate and Koji (2020-2022) © Hat Trick Productions

Writers: Andy Hamilton, Guy Jenkin
Director: Ben Kellett
Starring: Brenda Blethyn, Jimmy Akingbola (Series 1), Okorie Chukwu (Series 2), Blake Harrison, Barbara Flynn, Meera Syal
Production Company: Hat Trick Productions, ITV Studios
Kent Locations Used: Romney House, School Road, Charing, Herne Bay Beach, Pier & Promenade

Kate & Koji (2020-2022) is a six-part TV sitcom about a working-class woman played by Brenda Blethyn (Vera, Pride & Prejudice (2005)) who runs an old-fashioned café in a neglected seaside town. Kate develops an unexpected and spirited friendship with Koji, an asylum-seeking African doctor (Jimmy Akingbola – Series 1 (In the Long Run (2019), Bel-Air); Okorie Chukwu – Series 2 (The Complex: Lockdown (2020)). Although from very different worlds, they are similar in ways which they do not recognise, including a dogged determination to never back down!

Kate’s resourceful nephew ‘Medium’ played by Blake Harrison (The Inbetweeners (2010), Big Bad World (2013)) is often on hand to act as peacemaker. Barbara Flynn (The Durrells, Cracker) also stars as Kate’s lifelong nemesis Councillor Bone, and in Series 1, Meera Syal (Back to Life (2019-2021), The Split (2020)) guest stars as an adversarial GP to Koji.

The series is directed by Ben Kellett and written by Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkin. It is a Hat Trick Production for ITV Studios filmed on location in Kent and at Elstree Studios in front of a live audience.

The seaside café for the TV sitcom was filmed at Frasiers Pie and Mash Shop in Herne Bay, standing in for the fictional seaside town of Seagate. For Series 1, the production also filmed exteriors of The Divers Arms pub and various scenes around the Promenade and Pier and an exterior scene at Herne Bay Industrial Estate. A further sequence was shot on the Promenade featuring a storm and its after-effects.

Series Two returned to Herne Bay for exterior filming and once again filmed along the Pier and Promenade, as well as the Neptune Arm and the Bandstand, which doubled as the exterior to a Community Centre.

A damaged road sign saying ‘Seagate’ on the side of a coastal road with the sea in background.

Herne Bay stands in for the fictional seaside town of Seagate © Hat Trick Productions

Herne Bay is a seaside town which has a Pier and shingle beach and is set just outside of the historic City of Canterbury. Recent productions to film in the area include Blue Planet UK – Series 1 (2019), The 1900 Island – Series 1 (2019) and Coast vs Country (2016).

Series 2 of Kate and Koji began airing on ITV on Wednesday 16th March 2022 at 9PM.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

The Nevers (2021)

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Laura Donnelly and Ann Skelly are standing arm in arm looking into the distance. They are dressed in Victorian clothes in a London street with washing hanging behind them.

Laura Donnelly and Ann Skelly in The Nevers – Hanged (2021) © HBO / Keith Bernstein

Creator and Director: Joss Whedon
Writer: Joss Whedon, Melissa Iqbal, Kevin Lau, Madhuri Shekar, Jane Espenson
Starring: Laura Donnelly, Olivia Williams, Ben Chaplin, Eleanor Tomlinson, James Norton, Pip Torrens, James Norton, Nick Frost, Denis O’Hare
Production Company: HBO
Kent Locations Used: The Historic Dockyard Chatham, Fort Amherst

This 12-part, direct to TV series is an epic science fiction drama about a gang of Victorian women who find themselves with unusual abilities, relentless enemies and a mission that might change the world.

The Nevers (2021) was co-written by Joss Whedon (Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Melissa Iqbal (Humans (2016), Origin), Kevin Lau (Lovecraft Country, Damnation), Madhuri Shekar (Sister Act 3, Evil Eye), and Buffy co-writer Jane Espenson (Once Upon a Time, Game of Thrones). The series was also directed by Joss Whedon. This is not the first time Whedon has filmed in Kent, as he filmed at Dover Castle for Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015).

Laura Donnelly (Outlander, Britannia (2021)) leads the cast as Amalia True, the most reckless, hero of her time. Olivia Williams (Victoria and Abdul (2017), The Halcyon (2017)) plays the role of Lavinia Bidlow, wealthy spinster and champion of The Touched, who funds the orphanage where Amalia lives. Eleanor Tomlinson (The Outlaws, Poldark) plays Mary Brighton, a gentle but resilient woman who pursues her dream of singing on stage despite a disappointing career.

Ben Chaplin (The Thin Red Line, The Children Act) is the deeply moral Detective Frank Mundi, a man caught between the powerful and The Touched. Pip Torrens (The Crown Series 1 – 4 (2016-2020), Roadkill) is the unflappable Lord Massen, a former general determined to protect the established order from The Touched.  Nick Frost (The Boat that Rocked (2009), Shaun of the Dead) portrays Declan Orrun, aka the Beggar King, a low-level crime lord. Denis O’Hare (American Horror Story, Dallas Buyers Club) plays Dr. Edmund Hague, a gifted American surgeon who uses his skills in the most brutal way possible and James Norton (Grantchester (2014), Little Women) plays pansexual posh boy, Hugo Swann.

In 2019, production visited The Historic Dockyard Chatham, making use of multiple areas at the location as London doubles for Victorian streets including the Ropery exterior, Anchor Wharf, Stables and Officers’ Terrace. In Episode One a stunt scene filmed on Ropery Street appears with masked horsemen chasing the protagonists Amalia True, Penance Adair (Ann Skelly) and Myrtle Haplisch (Viola Prettejohn). The rear of the Ropery building also stands in as a theatre stage door entrance. The Stables houses stand in for Dr Horatio’s (Zackary Momoh) home and Officer’s Terrace stands in for the London street where Maladie (Amy Manson) is led away to an “asylum for the psychologically deranged”. The Historic Dockyard Chatham also provided a unit base for cast and crew during filming at Fort Amherst. Production also filmed at Fort Amherst to depict colonial scenes for the second part of the series, which unfortunately never aired.

Various locations in the Medway area provided unit base facilities to support The Nevers cast and crew during filming. The Dockside Retail Outlet Chatham and The Medway Campus of Greenwich University provided car parking and Gillingham Football Club provided a base for Supporting Artists. The Historic Dockyard Chatham provided unit base facilities in the exterior car parks and on Anchor Wharf, while the Fitted Rigging House was utilised for crowd holding between scenes.

Set on the River Medway, The Historic Dockyard Chatham was once an active Royal Navy shipyard and is one of the most popular Kent filming locations, particularly for period dramas looking for London street doubles. Recent period drama TV productions include Pennyworth Series 1 (2019), Belgravia (2020) and The Crown Series 1 – 4 (2016-2020).

The first half of The Nevers (2021) was made available to stream on NOWTV on Monday 17th May 2021. Unfortunately, the series was axed before the second half was released.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

Too Close (2021)

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Connie Mortenson (played by Denise Gough) and psychiatrist Dr Emma Robertson (played by Emily Watson) stand side by side looking to camera with a dark background, the mood of the image is sinister.

Too Close (2021) © ITV images

Writer: Clara Salaman
Director: Bruce Goodison
Starring: Emily Watson, Denise Gough, Eileen Davies
Production Company: Snowed-In Productions Ltd, All3Media for ITV
Kent Locations Used: Kingsferry Bridge – Isle of Sheppey, Swale

Too Close (2021) is a psychological drama for ITV starring Emily Watson. The three-part mini‑series tells the story of a forensic psychiatrist who must assess a criminal suspect – only to fall victim to their manipulative nature.

Dedicated forensic psychiatrist, Dr Emma Robinson played by Emily Watson (The Third Day (2020), Chernobyl) is sent to assess Connie Mortensen played by Denise Gough (Juliet, Naked (2018), Guerrilla) who is on trial for a terrible crime. When Connie quickly gains insight into Emma’s deepest insecurities and starts to brutally exploit them, their sessions become a complex psychological game. Eileen Davies (Grantchester (2014), Peterloo (2018)) also stars as Julia de Cadenet.

Too Close is based on the book of the same name, written by Clara Salaman under the pseudonym Natalie Daniels, and is directed by Susan Tully (Lark Rise to Candleford, Line of Duty) for Snowed-In Productions for All3Media.

During filming, production visited Kent to film a stunt sequence on Kingsferry Bridge, a combined road and railway bridge that links the Isle of Sheppey to mainland towns Sittingbourne and Kemsley. The maximum bridge lifting height is 84 feet and when reached a claxon sound is heard to confirm the bridge is at full height. The Kingsferry Bridge is no longer as busy as it once was, traffic now able to use the New Sheppey Crossing Bridge. Previous productions to film on the bridge include Kiss Me First (2018).

Too Close is due for release on ITV on Monday 12th April at 9pm.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

Devils (2021)

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Patrick Dempsey as Dominic Morgan & Alessandro Borghi as Massimo Ruggero are walking down a stairway outside with skyscrapers in the background.

Patrick Dempsey as Dominic Morgan & Alessandro Borghi as Massimo Ruggero
© Antonello&Montesi

Writer: Elena Buccacio, Mario Ruggeri, Alessandro Sermoneta, Ben Harris, Chris Lunt, Michael A Walker
Director: Nick Hurran, Jan Michelini
Starring: Patrick Dempsey, Alessandro Borghi, Laia Costa
Production Company: Lux Vide, Sky Italia
Kent Locations Used: Kingsgate Bay in Broadstairs

Based on the novel by Guido Maria Brera, Devils (2021) is a brand new TV series set in the London Offices of a large investment bank where Massimo Ruggero (Alessandro Borghi) discovers a worldwide financial conspiracy. Will he side with the perpetrators or expose the fraud?

The writing of the show is shared amongst several writes, including Elena Buccacio (Magie and Bianca Fashion Friends), Mario Ruggeri (Don Matteo), Alessandro Sermoneta (Once Upon a Time The City of Fools), Ben Harris (Dark Heart), Chris Lunt (Prey) and Michael A Walker (Primevil). It is directed by Nick Hurran (Sherlock), and Jan Michelini (Medici). Starring Patrick Dempsey (Grey’s Anatomy, Bridget Jones’ Baby), Alessandro Borghi (Romulus and Remus: The First King), and Laia Costa (Cities, Only You).

Production visited the Kingsgate Bay in Broadstairs to film a dialogue scene on the clifftops.

Broadstairs is a coastal town on the Isle of Thanet in the East Kent district. Productions that have also visited this area include and The Tunnel (2016) and Humans (2016).

Devils was released on Sky Atlantic and NowTV on Wednesday 17th February 2021.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

Small Axe (2020)

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Actor Sheyi Cole as Alex Wheatle in a prison scene wearing blue overalls carrying a pile of clothing. Behind him is the prison metal stair case and walkways.

Small Axe (2020) Alex Wheatle – Sheyi Cole as Alex Wheatle in a scene filmed at Canterbury Prison doubling as a London prison © Steve McQueen

Starring: Sheyi Cole, Robbie Gee
Production Company: Amazon Studios for BBC
Kent Locations Used:  Canterbury Prison

Oscar-winning writer and director Steve McQueen (Widows, 12 Years a Slave) brings a new series Small Axe to BBC One with six one hour-long anthologies about London’s West Indian community spanning three decades.

The name of the series is derived from the Jamaican proverb ‘if you are the big tree, we are the small axe’ (Bob Marley) and focuses on the lives of a group of friends and their families living in West London from 1968 to 2014 and has a stellar cast featuring Letitia Wright (Black Panther, Avengers: Infinity War), John Boyega (Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens), Rochenda Sandall ((Line of Duty, Black Mirror: Bandersnatch), Malachi Kirby (Curfew, Devils) and Joshua Viner (The Nutcracker and the Four Realms).

Small Axe: Alex Wheatle, partly filmed in Kent, stars Sheyi Cole (Made in Hollywood) as award-winning writer Alex Wheatle and tells his story from a young boy, in a mostly white institutional care home with no love or family, to his home in Brixton where he finds a sense of community and discovers his identity. Small Axe: Alex Wheatle follows Alex’s story leading up to the Brixton Uprising in 1981, his imprisonment and journey to recovery. The prison scenes portray the growing relationship between Alex and his cellmate Simeon (Robbie Gee (Motherland) who encourages him to turn his life around through self-education by reading and writing.

Production visited Canterbury Prison to shoot for two days for the episode. Canterbury Prison was sold to Canterbury Christ Church University in 2014 and is now part of the university campus. Most recently BBC TV Drama The Capture (2019) filmed at the Prison. The surrounding area of Canterbury is also popular for filming with previous productions including The Rizen (2017) and The Tunnel: Sabotage (2016).

The six-part series is due to air on Sunday 15th November 2020 on BBC One.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

Belgravia (2020)

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The cast of Belgravia standing in a row wearing period costumes in front of a brown backdrop.

Belgravia (2020) Episode One © ITV

Creator / Writer: Julian Fellowes
Directors: John Alexander
Starring: Tamsin Greig, Alice Eve, Philip Glenister
Production Company: Carnival Film and Television
Kent Locations Used: The Historic Chatham Dockyard

New ITV drama Belgravia (2020), based on a book by Julian Fellowes (Downton Abbey, Gosford Park), is a story of the secrets and scandals amongst the upper echelon of London society in the 19th Century.

The six part series stars Tamsin Greig (Elementary, Harriet Walter (The Spanish Princess)), Alice Eve (Iron Fist) and Philip Glenister (Living the Dream) and the story begins at a legendary ball hosted by the Duchess of Richmond on the fateful evening of the Battle of Waterloo. This sets in motion a series of events that will have consequences for decades to come as secrets unravel behind the porticoed doors of London’s grandest postcode.

The Executive Producer is Gareth Neame (Downton Abbey) and Director is John Alexander (Jamestown).

Production visited The Historic Chatham Dockyard and filmed on Anchor Wharf quayside, the Tarred Yarn Store as a Pimm’s Chop House and the streets around the Ropery to stand in for both a London market and the streets around Girton’s Mill.

The Historic Chatham Dockyard is a historic tourist attraction on the site of a former Royal Naval Dockyard and has been the location for several recent period dramas including Pennyworth (2019) and World On Fire Series 1 (2019).

Belgravia begins on ITV on Sunday 15th March 2020 at 9pm.

 

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

Phil Spencer’s Stately Homes – Series 3 (2020)

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Phil Spencer wearing a purple jumper standing on the grass in front of the entrance to Leeds Castle.

Phil Spencer’s Stately Homes Series 3 Episode 4 Leeds Castle © Thomas Alexander / Channel 4

Starring: Phil Spencer, Liz Smith
Production Company: Mayfly Television
Kent Locations Used: Leeds Castle, Maidstone

Phil Spencer (Kirstie & Phil’s Love It or List It, Relocation, Relocation) returns for a grand tour of some of the country’s finest country houses to uncover the stories behind their creation in Series 3 of Phil Spencer’s Stately Homes (2016-2020) for Channel 4.

Phil, accompanied by Conservation Architect Liz Smith ,is given unprecedented access into fascinating stately home archives to reveal the incredible ambition of the house’s creators, as well as the huge quantities of materials, labour and money involved in turning their flights of fancy into bricks and mortar.

With a chance to try his hand at craft and restoration, and insight from the current custodians, Phil discovers how these homes became symbols of power – and play – and what the buildings and estates are really like to own.

The series is produced by Mayfly Television and written by Harry Williams and Jack Williams. The executive producer is Marcus Stephenson with Clemency Green Commissioning Editor for Features.

During filming in 2019 the production visited Leeds Castle in Kent in the year the castle celebrated its 900th anniversary. Filming took place inside the Castle when Phil interviewed staff members including Leeds Castle Curator Annie Kemkaran-Smith as well as a descendant of the last private owner Lady Baillie.  During the episode Phil went punting on the moat and visited the clock tower to raise Lady Baillie’s flag.

Set in the outskirts of the county town of Kent, Maidstone is the beautiful Leeds Castle which is set over 500 acres and boasts stunning period rooms, gardens, a moat, woodlands, maze with shell grotto and a falconry centre. Leeds Castle has previously been used as a film location by factual TV programmes Celebrity Antiques Road Show – Series 8 (2018),  Secrets of Great British Castles (2016) and Richard E. Grant on Ealing Comedies (2016).

Phil Spencer’s Stately Homes – Leeds Castle is due to air on More4 on Thursday 12th March 2020 at 9pm.

Exterior shot of Leeds Castle in the distance, taken from the ground behind some trees.

Phil Spencer Stately Homes S3 Ep4 Leeds Castle GV © Channel 4

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.

The Split – Series 2 (2020)

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Hannah (Nicola Walker), Nathan (Stephen Mangan) and Christie (Barry Atsma) walking across Millennium Bridge, with London views behind them. The Split written in white.

Nathan (Stephen Mangan), Hannah (Nicola Walker), Christie (Barry Atsma) © BBC / Sister Pictures / Alex Telfer

Writers: Abi Morgan
Director: Jessica Hobbs
Starring: Nicola Walker, Stephen Mangan, Ben Bailey Smith, Barry Atsma, Donna Air
Production Company: Sister Pictures for the BBC
Kent Locations Used: Maidstone TV Studios

The Split (2018-2022) is a TV series about the Defoes, a family of female divorce lawyers forced to face their past following the return of their estranged father after a 30 year absence. In series two, the Defoes are back at newly merged law firm Noble Hale Defoe, and instead of being rivals, now find themselves on the same side of the table

Created by Abi Morgan (Suffragette) and directed by Jessica Hobbs (The Crown (2016-2020)), The Split is now in its second series and is produced by Sister Pictures with Nicola Walker (Spooks) playing the lead as Hannah Stern, eldest of the three Defoe sisters.

During filming production visited Maidstone TV Studios to film a studio show segment as Hannah Stern’s decides to represent Fi Hansen’s (Donna Air (The Counsellor), one half of the UK’s most powerful celebrity couples who seeks a divorce from her controlling husband Richie Hansen (Ben Bailey Smith (Drunk History: UK)).

Richie Hansen (Ben Bailey Smith) standing with his arms around Fi (Donna Air) with the I'm with the Band light sign and drum set and guitars behind them.

Fi (Donna Air), Richie Hansen (Ben Bailey Smith) © BBC / Sister Pictures

Just 45 minutes from London, Maidstone Studios is the UK’s largest independent studios.  The studios are classed as a regional studio facility and has hosted some of the industry’s best loved television programmes from Later… with Jools Holland (2013-2018) to Hetty Feather (2015-2020).

The Split Series 2 will air on BBC One from Tuesday 11th February 2020 at 9pm.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.