These Are the Breathtaking Locations Where 'Broadchurch' Was Filmed
Jul. 28 2022, Published 11:45 a.m. ET
Created by Chris Chibnall and starring David Tennant, Olivia Colman, and Jodie Whittaker, Broadchurch offers a glimpse into the turbulent events shaping the lives of the people inhabiting the titular, fictive city in England's county of Devon. Season 1 of Broadchurch plunges viewers into the aftermath of the tragic death of an 11-year-old boy, with Seasons 2 and 3 exploring the ramifications resulting from different crimes involving abuse.
Since Broadchurch doesn't actually exist, where was the series filmed?
'Broadchurch' was filmed in these locations.
Season 1 of Broadchurch premiered on ITV on March 4, 2013, immediately garnering strong reviews from critics and audiences alike. Focusing on the seismic impact of Danny Latimer's (Oskar McNamara) death, the initial eight episodes show the grief experienced by his family and how the community grapples with the sudden death.
Season 1 of Broadchurch was predominantly filmed on the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site stretching from Devon to Dorset. The Harbour Cliff Beach and the East Beach car park are some of the coastal locations where the crew got to work.
The Folly, an apartment block with a modern feel in West Bay, Dorset, the Quay West underground car park, and the Harbour Newsagent moonlight as the Broadchurch Police Station, the Broadchurch Police Car Park, and the Broadchurch Newsagent, respectively. West Bay lists the Methodist Chapel and the Coastguard Cottages on East Beach, and the Chesil House as other filming locations in Dorset.
According to the outlet, shooting also took place at the North Somerset parish of Clevedon, the nearby town of Portishead, the town of Yate in South Gloucestershire, and Weston-Super-Mare in Somerset.
The crew returned to some of the spots for Season 2, carrying out a considerable percentage of the principal of photography in West Bay, Dorset and Clevedon, North Somerset once more. Reading and Bracknell, both in Berkshire, Bristol (the most populous city in South West England), and Exeter in Devon have also served as filming locations.
Filming locations for Season 3 of 'Broadchurch' include Avonmouth in Bristol and West Dorset civil parishes like North Allington.
The creators took a broader approach with Season 3. The filming took place across West Dorset locations like North Allington, Littlebredy, and West Bexington, and North Somerset towns like Portishead and Stanton Drew, as well as in Avonmouth, an outer suburb of Bristol.
Chris Chibnall chose the settings partly because he wanted to spend more time at home.
"I wanted to explore how a death affects a small community that suddenly finds itself at the eye of the storm. The residents of Broadchurch come under scrutiny and suspicion; it’s a story of scale and intimacy, as the lives of the characters are laid bare," Chris told Great British Life. "Setting a drama in the West Country and being closer to home became very appealing."
As he explained, he wrote the series after moving to the area, and he would frequently take "writing problems for a walk" around the Jurassic Coast.
"Dorset gives me space to create. I had a brilliant writing teacher who said it was always good to take a writing problem for a walk," he added. "That's exactly what I did, and still do, in the extraordinary landscape of the Jurassic Coast around West Bay, Burton Bradstock, and Eype."
Seasons 1, 2, and 3 of Broadchurch are available to stream on Prime Video.
