TV Location Tours : Turning TV show locations into tourist hotspots!

Outdoor locations used in a hit TV shows or films can turn the place into a tourist hotspot overnight, as telly viewers and cinema goers are keen to see where all the action took place. 

Indeed, there can be no better way for an area to attract tourists than starring in a successful TV show. So which TV series past and present can inspire days out and location tours with Into The Blue?

Yorkshire – ‘God’s Own County’ and TV location paradise

Perhaps the most popular of all backdrops for British TV shows is Yorkshire, thanks to its many beautiful villages and countryside. The classic comedy ‘Last of the Summer Wine’ – with three ageing friends reminiscing about their youth – was filmed in Holmfirth and the Holme Valley, now forever home to Nora Batty and Sid’s Café. 

The hugely popular drama series ‘Heartbeat’ was set in a 1960s rural police station in fictional Aidensfield and filmed in and around the village of Goathland. Into The Blue offers a tour of Heartbeat locations by mini coach from York. While in the area, you could take a trip on the North Yorkshire Moors Steam Railway which was also heavily featured in the TV series. 

And for fans of long-running soap ‘Emmerdale’, Into The Blue also offers an Emmerdale village coach tour from Leeds to the village of Esholt. This is the original ‘old’ set used for filming exterior shots for over 20 years.

Northern Ireland – The Hollywood star location

More recently, Northern Ireland has become a popular choice for filming, thanks to its spectacular scenery – and generous financial incentives! 

Of these, the epic Netflix series Game of Thrones is probably the best known. Into The Blue offers visits to Game of Thrones locations and film studios. There are also Belfast-based tours sure to appeal to any ‘Line of Duty’ fans who are still looking for ‘H’, as well as a Derry Girls tour, themed around the popular coming of age show.

Wales & the South-West – comedy & drama all the way

Hopping across the Irish Sea to Cardiff and South Wales for a classic hit comedy, how about a visit to Barry Island on a Gavin & Stacey tour? 

Across the Severn estuary, the city of Bristol has often masqueraded as London in TV shows. Anarchic eighties comedy The Young Ones made Rik Mayall and Ade Edmondson into household names. But of course Scumbag College does not exist and their student house was in Bristol rather than London. 

This blogger can recommend a visit to the Westbury Park Pub and Kitchen, an unusual circular pub that featured as The Kebab and Calculator in the series. 

Surprisingly, Bristol also played the part of Peckham in the classic comedy Only Fools and Horses and Into The Blue offers an Only Fools and Horses walking tour of some of the key locations.

Alternatively, a few miles away in Bath, fans of Bridgerton can book a walking tour around this beautiful Georgian city. 

And in the far southwest, Cornwall is another long time TV favourite with its craggy coast and moors featuring heavily in the Poldark saga. Also in Cornwall, Into The Blue offers a Doc Martin walking tour of picturesque Port Isaac, better known to millions of viewers as Port Wenn, home to the endearingly grumpy Doc Martin. 

South of England – the best period drama TV locations 

Back in the South of England, Into The Blue offers visits to Highclere Castle, instantly recognisable as Downton Abbey. There are coach trips to Highclere from London, as well as tours around Downton filming locations in the capital. 

Long-running detective drama Midsomer Murders is now shown in over 100 countries, although often under the name ‘Inspector Barnaby’. Filmed in the towns and villages around the Chiltern Hills, Into The Blue has Midsomer Murder tours to lots of these locations too. 

Oxford – the home of mystery drama TV shows 

And finally on mystery dramas, who hasn’t watched the hugely popular series Inspector Morse, plus spin-offs Lewis and Endeavour, all set in Oxford? Follow in the grumpy detective’s footsteps with a Morse walking tour of the city, visiting stunning colleges and discovering some of his favourite pubs! 

These are just a selection of the current tv themed tours and activities on offer across the UK. So for a full list and to book, visit the Into The Blue website here:   https://www.intotheblue.co.uk/excursions/tv-film-tours/