Where is Hebden Bridge? Happy Valley filming location explained - what other shows and movies are shot there

The final episode of Happy Valley, which National World gave 4.5 stars and called ‘the perfect summation of the show’ landed on Sunday. The series is likely the most well-known and most popular production to be filmed at Hebden Bridge.

The series, which first aired in 2014 and returned for two more seasons in 2016 and on New Year’s Day 2023 was filmed on location at the market town, but is far from the only production to have been filmed there.

Landmarks from the town, which will be well-known to locals, have popped up across several major films and TV shows over the last several decades - these are the biggest productions that have filmed at Hebden Bridge.

Where is Hebden Bridge?

Hebden Bridge is a market town in the Calder Valley in West Yorkshire, eight miles west of Halifax. The town has a population of around 4,500 but has seen an influx in tourism since the town featured as the backdrop to crime drama Happy Valley.

What shows and films have been filmed at Hebden Bridge?

Happy Valley

The show that put Hebden Bridge on the map, BBC crime drama Happy Valley was filmed at the West Yorkshire location for each season. Since the show first aired in 2014, tourism to the town has increased as fans of the show flock there.

The series, which came to a dramatic conclusion last week, follows police sergeant Catherine Cawood on her beat in the Calder Valley, where she takes on serious murder cases.

Peterloo

The 2018 historical drama starring Rory Kinnear tells the story of the 1819 Peterloo Massacre in which British forces attacked a peaceful pro-democracy rally in Manchester, killing 18 and injuring hundreds.

Despite recalling one of the most significant moments in Manchester’s history, the film was not shot in the city. Scenes of workers completing drills before marching were shot at Hebden Bridge, and Shibden Hall in Halifax also features in the film. Other filming locations included Lincolnshire, Kent, and London.

Death Comes to Pemberley

BBC period drama, based on characters from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, follows Elizabeth and Darcy, six years into their marriage as they prepare for their annual ball - when a murder puts the celebrations on hold.

The series, which stars Matthew Rhys and Anna Maxwell Martin as well as Happy Valley villain James Norton, was filmed at several Yorkshire and Derbyshire locations including Hardcastle Crags at Hebden Bridge, Castle Howard in York, and Chatsworth House.

Nicholas Nickleby

2002 Charles Dickens film adaptation Nicholas Nickleby, starring a young Charlie Hunnam and Jamie Bell, follows a young man’s efforts to save his family and friends from his uncle’s abuse.

Gibson Mill in Hebden Bridge stands in for Dotheby Hall, the brutal Yorkshire school of Dickens’ novel. Other scenes were also shot on location at Hardcastle Crags, with further shooting taking place at locations across London and Cambridgeshire.

Swallows and Amazons

The 2016 family drama film, starring Kelly Macdonald and Andrew Scott, about four children who sail to their own island where they start a war with a group of rival children.

Heptonstall, Hebden Bridge features as the backdrop to the Rio carnival scenes, as well as the scenes where the children go shopping. Other Yorkshire filming locations for the film include Leeds, Bradford, and Harrogate.

Fanny and Elvis

This late ‘90s comedy starring Kerry Fox and Ray Winstone follows a Yorkshire writer, Kate, who finds out that she is running out of time to have children on the same day that her husband leaves her.

Kate looks for a lodger and finds the homeless car dealer Dave (Winstone), who she comes to believe may be the answer to her pregnancy problem. The movie was filmed across God’s Own County, with locations including Hebden Bridge and Ilkley, Bradford.