Film and TV Locations in the Cotswolds

Arriving in Bampton will feel eerily familiar for Downton Abbey fans, because this quaint Cotswolds village was one of the series’ key filming locations and also features in the new film Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale (2025). With its honey-hued cottages and wisteria-framed doorways, Bampton fitted perfectly into Downton’s world: its Church Green served as Downton village square, while Churchgate House is better-known as Crawley House, and St Mary’s Church became St Michael and All Angels in the show. Look out for the Grammar School building too, which doubled as Downton’s ‘hospital’.  

The gorgeous stone-built farmstead of Cogges Manor has featured in Collete (starring Keira Knightley, 2018) and Arthur & George (starring Martin Clunes, 2015) – but most famously it became Yew Tree Farm in Downton Abbey. The manor’s one-hour self-guided tour reveals the key filming locations, and there’s a video detailing how it was transformed for the series – displayed alongside unique memorabilia and behind-the-scenes snaps of the shoot. Afterwards, meet the rare-breed pigs, ducks and sheep on the farm, and its goats: Sybil, Lady Mary, Elizabeth and Branson. You can even buy free-range hens’ and duck eggs in the café.   

Set in the peaceful Windrush valley, Asthall Manor and its rambling gardens are pure Cotswolds charm – and it was home to the scandalous Mitford sisters from 1919 to 1926. Nancy Mitford's semi-autobiographical novels Love in a Cold Climate and The Pursuit of Love were inspired by her time here, and while it’s still a private home, it opens to the public for events such as workshops, outdoor theatre shows, book clubs and more, so check what’s on during your trip.  

What do The BFG (2016), Spectre (2015) and The Diplomat (2023) have in common? They were all filmed at Blenheim Palace! Winston Churchill's birthplace has so many screen credits that it offers a film-themed map – which you can follow to find where the action took place. It has also hosted shoots for Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015), Bridgerton (2020–2025) and Transformers: The Last Night (2017), while Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007) was filmed beside the Great Lake.  

The Cotswolds is so rich in filming locations, that even tonight’s hotel has been on screen. The Macdonald Bear Hotel in Woodstock featured in ITV’s Inspector Morse series (1987–2000), the whodunnit devised by Colin Dexter, who lived and wrote in nearby Oxford. Its restaurant is criminally good, with the likes of smoked duck and camembert fondue on the menu. Upstairs, take your pick from the double and king-size rooms, or indulge in a deluxe suite – just as Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton did on several occasions.  

Praised by Monty Don in Around the World in Eighty Gardens (2008) as “one of the greatest gardens in the world”, ​​Rousham Gardens is a spectacular place to start your morning. It opens at 10am, so pull on your walking boots to discover William Kent’s 18th-century Italianate masterpiece – and enjoy views of the garden’s namesake manor house, whose film credits include Lewis (2006–2015) and The Pursuit of Love (2021) – the BBC show based on the novel written by Nancy Mitford, who grew up in nearby Asthall Manor (see Day 1).  

In the BAFTA-winning Wolf Hall (2015–2024), Chastleton House served as Jane Seymour’s family home – where King Henry VIII, played by Damian Lewis, falls for his third ill-fated wife. After snooping around this 400-year old Jacobean manor packed with original features, including plush hand-made tapestries and ornate ceilings, stroll between the flower-filled borders of the Wilderness Walk. Round off your visit in the shop, picking up plants, home-grown produce, and second-hand books.  

The Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien loved to visit the picturesque market town of Moreton-in-Marsh, and his favourite spot for a pint was The Bell Inn. It’s thought to be the inspiration behind the Prancing Pony (Middle Earth’s most famous pub), and it champions local produce: think West Country cheddar sandwiches, and smoked trout pâté from nearby Bibury. Post-lunch, discover Moreton’s thriving independent boutiques – stuffed with antiques, local produce and stylish homewares. 

When the crew of Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001) arrived in Snowshill, they covered it in fake snow and festive decorations. The village and its stone cottages are the backdrop of Bridget’s Christmas visit to her parents: turkey curry, anyone? This afternoon, follow the two-mile circular walk through Snowshill and pop into Snowhill Manor, whose eccentric interior design might inspire your next DIY project. The nearby Cotswold Lavender Fields opens to visitors from June to August, so you can skip through its sweet-scented fields and buy perfumed beauty goodies from its shop. 

If you can never decide what to eat, Gloucester Food Dock’s 12 independent food and drink businesses mean you can have a bit of everything in one sitting. Start with tacos from Elote, choose one of Daikoku’s warming ramens and finish with a locally-made ice cream by Wholly. Tonight’s recommended hotel is The Judges Lodgings, whose boutique self-catering apartments are less than five minutes’ walk from tomorrow morning’s must-sees. And trust us, you’ll need a good lie-down after that feast… 

This morning, get to know Gloucester – starting with its cathedral, which featured as Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films, as well as in Wolf Hall and Doctor Who (in 2008’s episode ‘The Next Doctor’). Join a guided tour of its crypts and sip a coffee in The Monk’s Kitchen, before heading to The House of the Tailor of Gloucester – which inspired Beatrix Potter’s The Tailor of Gloucester. Today, this enchanting museum is dedicated to the beloved author and her works, with a shop selling themed collectibles.  

Cross wildflower meadows, small streams and peaceful woodland on the Laurie Lee Wildlife Way in Slad, named after the author of Cider with Rosie. Lee lived in and wrote about the Slad Valley a lot, and this five-mile rural trail is waymarked with ten ‘poetry posts’ featuring his writings about the landscape. A glorious walk, whether you’re familiar with Lee’s works or not. 

You’ve followed in Laurie Lee’s footsteps, and now you can raise a pint in his favourite pub – and even sit in his favourite chair beside the window. Immortalised in Cider with Rosie, The Woolpack in the tiny village of Slad blends rural charm (polished wood bar, cosy nook seating, well-behaved dogs) with accomplished yet homely dishes. For lunch, take your pick from guineafowl pie, cider-braised mussels and more.