7 TV and film set locations to visit in and around London

2 Explore London’s royal secrets with The Crown tour

For a fresh perspective on the world’s third most-visited city, The Crown Tour of London explores the capital through the lens of Netflix’s multi-award-winning royal drama that charts the life and reign of Queen Elizabeth II across nearly six decades. 

 

Fast-paced and fact-filled, the Brit Movie Tours’ adventure departs from Temple tube station and covers more than 10 filming locations as well as the real-life royal landmarks that inspired them, before concluding at Buckingham Palace. 

 

The two-and-a-half-hour tour visits Lancaster House, where ornate interiors doubled as Buckingham Palace on screen, and the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich, which provided a stately backdrop for several key scenes. The route also passes real royal residences such as St James’s Palace and Clarence House. 

 

Led by an expert guide, the journey reveals fascinating behind-the-scenes stories about filming in royal locations, including the challenges of recreating coronations and scandals and navigating restrictions at actual palaces. The-crown-tour-of-locations

3 Chase Paddington’s trail through London in an iconic Black Cab

Climb into a classic London taxi for Brit Movie Tours’ private, three-hour journey that traces the pawprints of Britain’s most beloved bear, guided by an expert who shares behind-the-scenes anecdotes along the way. 

 

The tour begins and ends at Paddington Station, home to a bronze bear statue, before winding through some of the film’s most recognisable settings, including the Brown family’s home, on a pastel-hued Victorian street in Primrose Hill. There’s time to explore the north London neighbourhood with its distinct village atmosphere, Grade II-listed gardens and eponymous hill worth climbing for some of the best views of the capital.

 

Another tour highlight is the Portobello Road, a cinematic favourite seen in films such as Notting Hill (1999), whose stretch of colourful houses and vintage shop fronts brings Paddington’s London to life.

 

There’s time to explore Portobello Market, one of the world’s largest antique markets, and to browse the curiosities at Alice’s Antiques, a Notting Hill staple since 1887, which stands in for Mr Gruber’s shop in all three Paddington films and also made a cameo appearance in The Italian Job (1969).

 

For a deeper dive behind the scenes, the Paddington Bear Experience at County Hall on the South Bank features an immersive train journey through meticulously recreated film sets, with interactive storytelling, hands-on puzzles and costumed characters. The experience ends with a Windsor Gardens street party, complete with a Calypso band, carnival games and marmalade sandwiches. paddington-bear-tour;paddingtonbearexperience.com

4 Relive regal England at Hampton Court Palace

Once the seat of King Henry VIII, Hampton Court Palace stretches elegantly along a broad sweep of the Thames in Richmond, its Tudor brickwork and ornate Baroque interiors a recognisable backdrop in TV and film, from The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) to Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2019). 

 

More recently, Netflix show Bridgerton has cast a fresh spotlight on the palace’s sweeping cobbled courtyards. Base Court and the Great Fountain Garden are both open for visitors to explore.

 

Hampton Court Palace, London / ©Tom Podmore/Unsplash

 

Step beyond the on-screen settings and the palace reveals halls that echo with centuries of history, galleries lined with 16th-century tapestries and masterpieces by Rembrandt and Caravaggio, plus 60 acres of picturesque gardens that reach right down to the river.

 

Discover the world’s oldest grape vine from 1768, still producing fruit today, and the Chapel Royal with its spectacular vaulted ceiling where Henry VIII married Katherine Parr (number six, if you’re counting).

 

Visitors can wind through the twists and turns of the UK’s oldest surviving hedge maze, watch chefs conjure up historic dishes in the Tudor kitchens, or settle in for afternoon tea where royalty once dined. For kids, there’s a dedicated garden with a puzzle maze, and in summer, open-air jousting and falconry displays bring ancient action to the palace grounds. hampton-court-palace

 

5 Wander Richmond’s scenic streets inspired by Ted Lasso 

Richmond, a pretty riverside town nestled along a bend of the Thames in southwest London, is instantly recognisable to fans of American sports comedy-drama series Ted Lasso, where the town’s elegant Georgian terraces, leafy streets and village green serve as the backdrop for the fictional football club featured in the series. 

 

The Prince’s Head pub on Richmond Green stands in for the show’s Crown & Anchor, well regarded for its fish-and-chip lunch and Sunday roasts, while just around the corner, the cobbled lane of Paved Court, dotted with small shops and cafés, leads to Ted’s front door. At the edge of the green, the ‘thinking bench’, where Ted and Coach Beard sit and talk, is tucked between two red phone boxes, a favourite spot for people to pause and take in the scenery.

 

Visitors can join a two-to-three-hour walking tour led by Richmond residents, who share insider stories and local details at each of the 24 filming locations, or opt for a cycling tour that circles Richmond and the nearby park, finishing with drinks at Ted’s local pub. 

 

To really appreciate all Richmond has to offer, it’s worth a wander beyond the centre, along the Thames pathway, where the route passes under Twickenham Bridge and by Eel Pie Island – both familiar from the show – before reaching Richmond Hill, known for its wide views over meadows and the river. film-and-tv/ted-lasso 

 

Richmond Green in Richmond Upon Thames, London / ©VisitBritain/Herewegoagain

 

6 Unlock cinematic secrets hidden within Blenheim Palace’s historic halls

Set deep in the Oxfordshire countryside, Blenheim Palace is a sprawling Unesco-listed estate – and the birthplace of Winston Churchill. Its grand courtyards, landscaped grounds and English baroque architecture have starred in epics from period dramas to action films.

 

The palace offers guided tours and a ‘Lights, Camera, Action’ trail that leads guests through historic spaces, such as the Great Hall with its towering painted ceiling and the Long Library with a vaulted ceiling and 10,000 books, where scenes from Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015) were filmed. 

 

The trail continues into the Saloon and State Rooms, which hosted key scenes from the Regency-era Netflix show Bridgerton, and outside to the Great Court with its grand baroque façade, which was used as the exterior of Rome’s Palazzo Cadenza in Bond’s Spectre (2015). Along the way, QR codes share behind-the-scenes stories and insights into the challenges of filming in a working historic estate.

 

Recognisable from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), Blenheim’s 2,000 acres of parkland feature water terraces, grazing deer, ancient oaks and meandering meadows, all open to explore. Guests can wander through the butterfly house, lose themselves in the hedge maze or take a picnic with views across the lake. There’s an adventure playground for kids, and the Orangery Restaurant serves afternoon tea overlooking the park. blenheimpalace.com

 

Blenheim’s formal gardens / ©VisitBritain/Marina Comes

 

7 Walk in the footsteps of Downton Abbey’s aristocracy at Highclere Castle

Located in the Hampshire countryside, about an hour west of London by car, Highclere Castle is best known as the filming location for Downton Abbey. With roots stretching back to medieval times, it was rebuilt as a grand Victorian country house in the mid-19th century. 

 

On screen, the property doubles as the aristocratic Crawley family home and appears in nearly every episode and both feature films of the multi-award-winning period drama. Paying homage to the show, visitors are taken on a specialist TV tour guided by experts who weave behind-the-scenes anecdotes with fascinating stories about the castle’s rich history. 

 

But there’s much more to Highclere than its on-screen fame. An unexpected Egyptian Exhibition in the cellars uncovers the real-life connection between the castle and the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb by the 5th Earl of Carnarvon, while the extensive parkland, with its rolling lawns, ancient cedars and rose gardens, provides plenty of space to wander.

 

There’s also an onsite cafe and, during summer months, a programme of events, including open-air concerts and period reenactments, spotlighting the castle’s many film connections. highclerecastle.co.uk

 

Highclere Castle in Hampshire

 

For more, visit www.visitbritain.org/travel-trade where you can download VisitBritain’s new Starring Great Britain – A Premium Collection 2025 guide, or download directly here.