Over the years, historical buildings, streets and train stations in Bradford and across West Yorkshire have made the ideal filming locations for some of the biggest TV shows and films.

There’s nothing more exciting than when a film crew moves into the area to get started on a production that could go on to win Oscars, Golden Globes and BAFTAs.

Here is a roundup of some of the finest productions we have seen on our screens that have been filmed in the region.

Some of the most famous filming locations in Bradford and West Yorkshire

Keighley & Worth Valley Railway

  • The Railway Children (1970)
  • The Railway Children Return (2022)
  • All Creatures Great and Small
  • The English Game
  • Peaky Blinders
  • Testament of Youth
  • Brideshead Revisited
  • Swallows and Amazons
  • The ABC Murders (Agatha Christie, 2018)
  • The Great Train Robbery
  • Official Secrets (with Keira Knightly)

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: This is what Keighley & Worth Valley Railway looked like in 1969This is what Keighley & Worth Valley Railway looked like in 1969

This iconic railway first made its way onto TV screens in The Railway Children when Jenny Agutter ran along the platform to greet her homecoming father.

Most recently, it went on to act as Cheltenham Spa Station in Official Secrets with Keira Knightly back in 2019.

Bradford City Hall

  • Official Secrets
  • Testament of Youth
  • Coronation Street
  • Emmerdale
  • The ABC Murders
  • Peaky Blinders
  • Victoria
  • The Great Train Robbery

Shibden Hall

  • Gentleman Jack
  • Peterloo

Filmed in Yorkshire adds: “The original timber-framed house dates to 1420 but Shibden Hall’s most fascinating story is that in the early 19th century it was home to the infamous landowner and diarist Anne Lister (1791-1840).

“Anne’s life, and her trailblazing role as one of the first modern lesbians, is the subject of the BBC historical TV drama Gentleman Jack, which was largely filmed here at Shibden Hall. Sally Wainwright, the writer and producer, actually grew up near the estate.”

Bramham Park

  • Victoria
  • Darkest Hour
  • Gentleman Jack

“The house, constructed of magnesian limestone ashlar with stone slate roofs in a classical style, is built to a linear plan with a main range linked by colonnades and flanking pavilions,” writes Filmed in Yorkshire.

“Well preserved in its original state, you can just imagine the period-costumed actors in its rooms or taking constitutional strolls through the estate’s 500-acre landscaped park, ornamented by a series of follies and avenues.”

TV Licence explained

Saltaire and Salts Mill, Bradford

  • The English Game
  • The Railway Children Return
  • Oakwell Hall & Gardens
  • Anne Boleyn (with Jodie Turner-Smith)
  • The Syndicate (Kay Mellor)
  • Gentleman Jack
  • Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell
  • The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister
  • Wuthering Heights

“Finding Oakwell Hall hidden down a lane in Birstall, West Yorkshire, comes as quite a surprise,” explains Filmed in Yorkshire.

“Built in 1583, it is a rare example of an Elizabethan manor house set in 100 acres of country park and has delighted visitors for centuries, including Charlotte Brontë.”

Little Germany, Bradford

These “striking” buildings can be found a short while away from Bradford Centre.

Filmed in Yorkshire says: “Many contemporary and period productions have been drawn to this unique enclave in the heartland of Bradford UNESCO City of Film.”

  • Downton Abbey
  • Gentleman Jack
  • The English Game
  • Peaky Blinders
  • Red Riding
  • Gold
  • Testament of Youth
  • Funny Cow

Did you see any of these films being made across Bradford and West Yorkshire? Let us know in the comments.