Filming in Test Valley
Filming in Test Valley
What have Tom Cruise, Jude Law and Stephen Fry got in common? They have all featured in films shot in the Test Valley area.
With its beautiful countryside, historic country houses and picturesque towns and villages, Test Valley is the perfect place to set the scene for any film. This unique and special part of Hampshire has proved a popular film location over the years, with many of its attractions featuring as the backdrop for productions on the big (and small) screen.
What’s been filmed in Test Valley?
• Edge of Tomorrow (released 2014) – This hotly anticipated Hollywood production stars Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. It was filmed in Barton Stacey.
• Downton Abbey (released 2010 onwards) – The popular ITV series Downton Abbey has largely been filmed at Highclere Castle, situated to the north of, and just outside the Test Valley
• Escape to the Country – Various episodes of the BBC’s Escape to the Country have been filmed in Test Valley. This includes a 2013 episode featuring Mottisfont near Romsey.
• Wilde (1997) – Shot at Houghton Lodge near Stockbridge, this 1997 production starred Stephen Fry and Jude Law.
• The Buccaneers (1995) – Based on Edith Wharton’s popular book, this excellent period drama was also filmed at Houghton Lodge.
• Inspector Wexford Series (1990’s) – Filmed in the market town of Romsey, the Inspector Wexford series brought Ruth Rendell’s popular fictional character to life.
• Miss Marple (1984-1992) – For this BBC adaptation Dane Cottage in Nether Wallop was used as Miss Marple’s home.
• Worzel Gummidge (1979-1981) – This children’s favourite was filmed in the Test Valley villages of Stockbridge, Kings Somborne and Braishfield. It starred Jon Pertwee.
Want to know more about filming in Hampshire?
The film industry can bring significant economic benefits - not just through business to business trading within an area but by renting your premises or land for location shoots. You could experience some of these benefits by registering your property as a film location on the Film Hampshire website.
Film Hampshire is a completely free location finding service based along the south coast of England. With over 400 film locations on their database, whether you are a student or a Hollywood producer, Film Hampshire are there to help you find what you are looking for. From grand country houses, to ornate gardens, pretty villages and historic forts, they have quirky, unique and traditional venues, suitable for a wide range of filming genres.
The Film Hampshire office receives a wide variety of enquiries for filming and they are always happy to add new venues to their location library. You can find out more information on the ‘register my property’ page on their website.
For more information on filming in Test Valley, please contact David Gleave, Test Valley Economic Development Officer 01264 368309 or email dgleave@testvalley.gov.uk. For more information on Film Hampshire visit www.filmhampshire.org.uk or email info@filmhampshire.org.uk.
Update from Film Hampshire:
Hampshire County Council will continue to encourage filming to take place in the county, however, due to limited resources we will be adapting the service currently offered and will move to a self-service proposition.
The Film Hampshire website has been redeveloped to streamline and make it easier for film makers to understand the process of filming in Hampshire. The notable changes are that film locations will now be hosted on Creative England’s website and not on the Film Hampshire website. Due to GDPR legislation and technical constraints we are unable to transfer the locations over from the Film Hampshire website to the Creative England website. If you wish to continue to advertise your property for filming purposes, please upload your details to the Creative England site (link below). By having your property on the Creative England website this will provide further exposure and opportunity for your location to be seen by the industry.
Upload your location to the Creative England website
We have also provided further guidance of filming on the highways and made general visual filming on and around highways at lot easier. For traffic management, road closures and removal of street furniture a direct enquiry to Hampshire County Council will still need to be made for approval.
Please note that if you offer professional film services these will continue to be displayed on the Film Hampshire website.
View Professional Film Services page
Thank you for your continued support in developing Hampshire as a filming hub.