27 April 2015

Alnwick Castle, England


     
In the Christmas special of the fifth season of DOWNTON ABBEY, ‘A Moorland holiday’, the Crawley family pays a visit to the family-in-law of lady Rose in the autumn of 1924. They have been invited by Lord and Lady Sinderby to hunt pheasants and stay at Brancaster Castle.

This episode was broadcasted first by ITV on 25 December 2014 in the United Kingdom and by PBS on 1 March 2015 in the United States. Brancaster Castle is Alnwick Castle in real life, a location seen in more than 30 films and television series. The website of Alnwick Castle lists all titles, including information for future filming opportunities. Filming for Downton Abbey took place in July and August of 2014 in and around Alnwick, including a local high school that was temporarily transformed into a pub, ‘The Crown and Anchor’.

We visited the castle three years earlier, amongst others because it is featured in Harry Potter and Robin of Sherwood. Some of the photos that we took are similar with the images that as seen in this episode.

In the first scene Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery) goes to the prison of York by taxi to visit her maid Anna (Joanne Froggatt). The entrance of the prison is actually the main entrance of Alnwick Castle. This scene was filmed on 4 August 2014.
 
Downton Abbey, season 5, Christmas special, 0:00:33
Alnwick Castle, 29 July 2011

Alnwick Castle can be seen from various views and is photographed beautifully. The presence of the filmcrew has resulted into an exhibition of the series in 2015 at the castle, including a groups-exclusive tour of the State Rooms as seen in the Christmas special.

Downton Abbey, season 5, Christmas special, 0:09:56
Alnwick Castle, 29 July 2011

Screenshots © Carnival Film & Television

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