Where was Great Expectations shot? Filming locations of the Hulu series explored

Directed by Lucy Forbes, a mini-series Great Expectations, based on Charles Dickens' novel of the same name, will premiere on BBC One on March 26, 2023. The mini-series will premiere in the US later the same day on FX on Hulu.

In the past decade, the novel has been adapted in the form of a movie and a TV series. While both of these were great watches, fans are just as excited to see the new version of the novel, especially to see Olivia Colman as Miss Havisham. Miss Havisham is the evil antagonist of the Charles Dickens novel.

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Great Expectations locations explored

Great Expectations was majorly filmed across several locations in London and the countryside of the southeast and a little further. Since the novel is set in Kent, the settings were important to get the proper aura of the story.

Oxfordshire

Miss Havisham's home is always iconic because of its old-school structure and architecture. To get the perfect setting, the production created a composite of three parts. They began with the exterior and gated courtyard of the grand house Myles Place on West Walk, close to Salisbury Cathedral.

While the interiors were built in studios, some parts were filmed at Shirburn Castle, near Watlington in Oxfordshire. This historic castle was built in the 14th century and was home to the Earls of Macclesfield.

Movies like Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows and Philomena, and shows like Inspector Morse, Midsomer Murders, and Poirot, have been filmed here.

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Surrey

Surry was chosen as the location of Pip's farm. The filming took place at Oxenford Farm, near Elstead in Surrey. Designed in the Gothic revival style by the famed Augustus Pugin in the 1840s, Oxenford Farm is a working farm.

It produces Christmas trees as well as beef cattle and has been featured in films like films Wolfman and Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood.

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London

London was used a lot in the filming of the show. The opening scene was filmed in Marlow Bridge in Buckinghamshire and a lot of filming took place around Millennium Mills, a former factory in Docklands. This is the location where Pip was on a rowboat.

For the Old Bailey and Jagger’s office, the filming took place in Skinners’ Hall on Dowgate Hill, in EC4. Built in 1670, this is home to The Skinners’ Company, one of London's traditional Livery companies. The catacombs of the House of Detention in Clerkenwell served as Newgate Prison.

Commenting on the accessibility of these locations, Location Manager David Kennaway said that it takes a while to negotiate getting a place like that. He added that it also depends on the political content they want to shoot there. Kennaway noted that he had tried to get it for Dennis Potter but that the "meeting was a car crash."

He added:

"This, of course, is classic English literature and that does help – as does Olivia Colman."

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What is Great Expectations about?

Great Expectations is developed by Steven Knight and follows the story of Pip, an orphan, who dreams of achieving bigger things in life. On his journey, Pip encounters the mysterious and evil Miss Havisham, who manages to change his world.

The official synopsis of the show reads,

"Great Expectations is the coming-of-age story of Pip, an orphan who yearns for a greater life, until a twist of fate and a mysterious benefactor opens a dark world of possibilities. Under the great expectations placed upon him, Pip must weigh the true cost of this new world and if it will make him the man he wishes to be."

Executive producers of the show include Steven Knight, Tom Hardy, Ridley Scott, Dean Baker, David W. Zucker, and Kate Crowe.

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Great Expectations will premiere on BBC One on March 26, 2023. The USA premiere is later the same day on FX on Hulu.