Yorkshire is one of the most filmed counties in Britain. Here are the real places behind the scenes, and exactly how to visit them.
Quick Facts Best for: Film fans, weekend breaks, walkers
Covers: West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, Yorkshire Dales
New in 2026: Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man (Netflix), Wuthering Heights (Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi)
Practical tip: Most locations are free to visit. The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway charges for rides.
Yorkshire has been doubling as everywhere else for decades. Its Victorian warehouses have stood in for wartime Birmingham, its moorland has played the Scottish Highlands, its village squares have passed for 1930s market towns that never existed. The county has appeared in more major productions than most people realise, and the locations that drew the film crews are often the same ones worth visiting on their own terms. This is a guide to the real places, what was filmed there, and what you actually find when you arrive.
Filming Locations Yorkshire: Why the County Keeps Getting Cast
The short answer is variety. Within an hour’s drive, you can move from gritty Victorian mill towns to open limestone dales to wild coastal moorland. Period productions need architecture that looks authentically old without the effort of full digital reconstruction. Yorkshire has it in abundance, and unlike some filming counties, most of it is accessible to visitors.
In 2026, two major releases brought fresh attention to Yorkshire’s landscapes: the Peaky Blinders film shot in Bradford, and the Emerald Fennell adaptation of Wuthering Heights, which filmed extensively in Swaledale. Both are worth building a trip around.
Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man — Little Germany, Bradford
The 2026 Peaky Blinders film, directed by Tom Harper and starring Cillian Murphy as Tommy Shelby alongside Barry Keoghan, Rebecca Ferguson, and Stephen Graham, premiered in UK cinemas on 6 March 2026 before streaming on Netflix from 20 March. Set during the Birmingham Blitz in 1940, it was filmed across England, including seven days in Bradford’s Little Germany district.
Little Germany is one of the most overlooked corners of Yorkshire. It sits in the centre of Bradford and contains one of Britain’s highest concentrations of listed Victorian buildings, 55 of them, built by German textile merchants in the mid-19th century after European trade was disrupted by the Franco-Prussian War. For the film, production designer Richard Hill dressed the streets as bomb-damaged 1940s Birmingham, closing the area for a week of shooting with rubble laid along the roads and digital manipulation handling the rest of the damage. The buildings themselves were entirely intact, the period detail already built in by the Victorians.
The same streets have appeared in the original Peaky Blinders TV series (as the Shelby warehouse district), the 2019 Downton Abbey film (standing in for genteel London), and The Crown (reimagined as Moscow). A single afternoon’s walk through Little Germany covers more screen history than most dedicated film sets.
Bradford is also where Saltaire sits, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and 19th-century mill village that appeared in the original Peaky Blinders series. The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway, a five-mile heritage line running through the Worth Valley, provided the train sequences in multiple Peaky Blinders episodes. Every Tommy Shelby scene on a period steam train was filmed here.
Where to Stay: Midland Hotel Bradford, a restored Victorian railway hotel in the city centre, a ten-minute walk from Little Germany.
Worth Knowing: The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway runs steam trains year-round. Oakworth station, which featured in The Railway Children (1970) and appears in multiple Peaky Blinders scenes, is on the line and open to visitors. Tickets and timetables at kwvr.co.uk.
Wuthering Heights 2026 — Swaledale and Arkengarthdale
Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights, released on 13 February 2026, stars Margot Robbie as Cathy and Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff. The outdoor scenes were filmed in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, primarily in Swaledale and Arkengarthdale, with specific locations at the Old Gang Smelting Mill near Langthwaite and the moorland above Reeth.
Old Gang Mill is a Grade II listed monument near the North Yorkshire village of Langthwaite, the remains of a 19th-century lead smelting operation. In the film, it serves as the exterior of Wuthering Heights itself in its later, ruined state. The crumbling chimneys and open moorland trackways surrounding the site provided the raw, elemental backdrop Fennell was looking for. Wider moorland scenes used the tracks between Surrender Bridge and the mill ruins. The village of Low Row, three miles further west along Swaledale, was where the cast ate lunch during filming. Margot Robbie was reportedly spotted in the Punch Bowl Inn, to the considerable delight of one young visitor who recognised her from a different film entirely.
The cast and crew stayed at Simonstone Hall, a country house hotel built in the 1600s near Hawes. The hotel has seen a notable increase in visitors since the film’s release, including guests from Canada, Germany, and the United States.
The route from Reeth to the Old Gang Mill site is a proper moorland walk, open and exposed, best approached in dry conditions with solid footwear. Download the OS map before you go rather than relying on phone signal.
Where to Stay: Simonstone Hall Hotel, Hawes, where the cast stayed. Built in the 1600s, it sits in upper Wensleydale with views across the dale. The connection to the film has made it a destination in its own right.
Worth Knowing: Healaugh Crag, above Reeth, was used for the scene where Cathy waits on a jutting rock overlooking the Valley. It is a recognisable landmark on the ridge above the Old Gang Mill site and makes a natural extension to the walk.
Happy Valley — Hebden Bridge and the Calder Valley
Happy Valley ran for three series between 2014 and 2023, written by Sally Wainwright and starring Sarah Lancashire as Sergeant Catherine Cawood. It was filmed entirely in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, across Hebden Bridge, Halifax, Sowerby Bridge, Todmorden, and Mytholmroyd. The show made the Calder Valley famous to a national audience that had largely overlooked it.
Hebden Bridge carries most of the visible filming locations. Catherine Cawood’s house is on Hangingroyd Lane. The Nisa shop where Neil works is on Crown Street. Calder Holmes Park appeared repeatedly across the series. Heptonstall, a village on the hill above Hebden Bridge, is where Becky Cawood’s grave appears in the show. In reality, Heptonstall churchyard is where the American poet Sylvia Plath is buried.
Sowerby Bridge, seven miles east along the Valley, provided Ryan’s school on Tuel Lane and several police patrol locations. The town has its own station and is about seven minutes from Halifax by rail on the Calder Valley line.
BritMovie Tours now runs a dedicated Happy Valley and Riot Women tour of Hebden Bridge, taking in canal towpaths, filming locations, and behind-the-scenes detail from both productions. Tours run as small groups of eight. Booking at britmovietours.com.
Where to Stay: The White Lion, Hebden Bridge, a traditional pub hotel on Bridge Gate in the town centre, within walking distance of every filming location in Hebden Bridge.
Worth Knowing: The Trades Club in Hebden Bridge, a members’ music venue on Holme Street, was where the Happy Valley cast and crew socialised during filming. Sarah Lancashire was seen leaving gifts for the cast here at the end of the final series.
All Creatures Great and Small — Grassington and the Dales
The Channel 5 adaptation of James Herriot’s novels, now in its sixth series, films primarily in Grassington in Upper Wharfedale. The village doubles as the fictional Darrowby, and most of its filming sites are in and around the cobbled market square. The Devonshire pub on the square serves as the exterior of The Drovers Arms. The Stripey Badger Bookshop and Cafe on the square appears as G.F. Endleby’s. Arncliffe village in Littondale provides the rear yard of Skeldale House.
Broughton Hall Estate near Skipton stood in for Mrs Pumphrey’s mansion in earlier series. The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway provided the opening train sequence of the first episode, with Keighley station standing in for Glasgow.
For a full guided experience, BritMovie Tours runs an eight-hour coach tour of the filming locations on Saturdays from March to September, with additional Wednesday dates in June, July, and August. The tour includes a visit to the World of James Herriot museum in Thirsk, the real Skeldale House where Alf Wight practised as a vet.
Where to Stay: Grassington House Hotel, directly on the market square. The exterior of the building appears in the series as the surgery. You can stay in the building that plays Skeldale House.
Worth Knowing: Siegfried’s Retreat is a self-catering property just off the square named after the character. The original BBC adaptation was filmed in Askrigg in the 1970s and 1980s, where the exterior of Skeldale House was a different building. Both villages are worth visiting for different reasons.
The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway — Britain’s Most Filmed Heritage Line
The five-mile steam railway running from Keighley to Oxenhope through the Worth Valley has appeared in more major productions than almost any other single location in Yorkshire. The full list includes The Railway Children (1970), Peaky Blinders (2013-2022), Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man (2026), All Creatures Great and Small (2020-2026), Testament of Youth, Brideshead Revisited, Swallows and Amazons, The English Game, and Agatha Christie’s ABC Murders, among others.
Oakworth station is the most photographed stop on the line, used in The Railway Children as the station where Jenny Agutter waves her red petticoat. The station buildings are restored to Edwardian condition and look the same as they did in 1970. You can stand on the same platform.
Steam trains run year-round, with extended timetables in summer and during special event weekends. The five-mile journey from Keighley to Oxenhope takes around 35 minutes and passes through Ingrow, Damems, Oakworth, and Haworth before reaching the end of the line. Haworth itself is the village of the Brontë Parsonage, a two-minute walk from the station.
Where to Stay: The Old Registry, Haworth, a small boutique guesthouse on Main Street in Haworth, a five-minute walk from Haworth station on the railway.
Worth Knowing: The railway holds themed event weekends throughout the year, including 1940s weekends and Santa specials. During the 2025 1940s Weekend, one episode of a BBC drama was filmed on the platform. Check the events calendar at kwvr.co.uk before booking.
Practical Tips
- Little Germany in Bradford is a free walk. No entrance fee, no booking required. Parking is available in central Bradford car parks.
- The Old Gang Smelting Mill in Swaledale is reached on foot across open moorland. Allow two to three hours from Reeth. Download the route before you leave town.
- Grassington is busiest at weekends. Midweek visits are easier for photography and parking.
- For the Happy Valley tour in Hebden Bridge, groups are capped at eight. Book in advance at peak times.
- Hebden Bridge station is on the Calder Valley Line with regular services from Leeds and Manchester. The town is easy to reach without a car.
- The AllTrails app covers walking routes connecting several of these locations, including routes from Reeth into upper Swaledale and circular walks around Grassington.
Responsible Visiting
Catherine Cawood’s house in Hebden Bridge and the house used as Skeldale House’s rear yard in Arncliffe are private residences. Visit the street, take your photos from the pavement, and do not approach the buildings or knock on doors. The Old Gang Mill in Swaledale is open moorland, but the ruins are protected as a Grade II listed monument. Do not climb on or disturb the structures.
Reader Q&A
Where exactly was Wuthering Heights 2026 filmed in Yorkshire?
The main outdoor locations were the Old Gang Smelting Mill near Langthwaite in Arkengarthdale, moorland tracks between Surrender Bridge and Reeth, and the ridge of Healaugh Crag above Reeth. The village of Low Row in Swaledale was also used. Interior scenes and studio work were filmed at Warner Bros.’ Leavesden studios in Hertfordshire.
Can you visit the Peaky Blinders filming locations in Yorkshire?
Yes. Little Germany in Bradford is a publicly accessible area of the city centre. The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway runs regular steam services, and both Oakworth and Keighley stations are open to visitors. Bolton Abbey, used in the original series, is open to the public on the Bolton Abbey Estate near Skipton.
Where is All Creatures Great and Small filmed?
The Channel 5 adaptation films are primarily set in Grassington in Upper Wharfedale, which doubles as the fictional Darrowby. Arncliffe in Littondale provides the Skeldale House rear yard. The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway appeared in the opening episode. Broughton Hall near Skipton has served as Mrs Pumphrey’s estate.
Is Hebden Bridge worth visiting outside of Happy Valley?
Yes. The town has a strong independent business scene, good walking on the surrounding moors, and easy access to Heptonstall and the upper Calder Valley. The Happy Valley connection brings visitors in, but Hebden Bridge stands on its own merits as a place to spend a weekend.
What is Little Germany in Bradford?
Little Germany is a historic quarter in central Bradford containing 55 listed Victorian commercial buildings, originally built by German and Jewish textile merchants in the mid-19th century. It has appeared in Peaky Blinders, Downton Abbey, The Crown, and the 2026 Peaky Blinders film. It is free to visit and takes around 30 to 45 minutes to walk through on foot.
Where to Stay Near Yorkshire’s Filming Locations
Midland Hotel Bradford — Restored Victorian railway hotel, ten minutes’ walk from Little Germany. Best for Peaky Blinders visits.
Simonstone Hall Hotel, Hawes — Where the Wuthering Heights cast stayed. Built in the 1600s, Upper Wensleydale. Best for the Swaledale filming locations.
The White Lion, Hebden Bridge — Town centre pub hotel, walking distance from all Happy Valley locations in Hebden Bridge.
Grassington House Hotel — On the market square in Grassington, the building that appears as the surgery exterior in All Creatures Great and Small.
The Old Registry, Haworth — Boutique guesthouse five minutes from Haworth station on the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway.
The best thing about filming locations is that what drew the cameras is usually the same thing that makes a place worth a visit on its own terms: proper architecture, proper landscape, and somewhere to eat and drink at the end of the day. Yorkshire has all of it, and most of it is free.
For more ideas on where to travel, visit our website SecretGB.
