Four major dramas begin filming in Bristol

Four major new dramas for the BBC and ITV have begun filming in Bristol.

Showtrial, The Girl Before and Chloe for the BBC and The Long Call for ITV will be using locations, studio space and filming support services in the city as they

The Girl Before, which will be broadcast on BBC One and HBO Max, is being filmed at south Bristol’s Bottle Yard Studio, Based on JP Delaney’s novel of the same name, the show will be filmed using purpose built sets created inside the studio.

The phycological thriller will follow Jane, played by Misbehaviour‘s Gugu Mbatha-Raw as she gets the chance to move into a beautiful, ultra-minimalist house designed by an architect Edward Monkford, played by Golden Globe, BAFTA and Emmy nominee David Oyelowo.

The catch is occupants have to abide by Monkford’s list of exacting rules. The four-part series follows Jane as she starts to feel the house changing her in unexpected ways and questions around the situation develop.

Five-part series Showtrial will be set in the city and has been described as “a timely legal drama full of dark humour”. It explores how prejudice, politics and the media distort the legal process and will star Tracy Ifeachor, James Frain and Sharon D Clarke, among others.

Filming on purpose-built sets at the Bottle Yard Studios and on location in Bristol with assistance from Bristol Film Office, Chloe is an original psychological thriller from creator and writer Alice Seabright, director of Sex Education.

A mystery about obsession, deceit, identity and grief, Chloe will star lots of new UK talent, including The Crown‘s Erin Doherty and Poldark‘s Jack Farthing.

Chloe will also feature the work of artists local to the region, including an original score composed by Will Gregory of Goldfrapp, featuring Adrian Utley of Portishead and Alison Goldfrapp.

The Long Call for ITV and BritBox North America is Inspired by the best-selling novel of the same title from award-winning writer Ann Cleeves, who wrote Vera and Shetland.

Pearl Mackie and Ben Aldridge in The Long Call. Photo: ITV 

Filming on location in Bristol and along the north Devon coast, the four-part crime drama follows detective inspector Matthew Venn who has returned to live in a small community in Devon with his husband, Jonathan, and the case that unravels upon their homecoming.

“Four major dramas beginning their shoots in Bristol in the space of just a few weeks is a clear indication of the city’s appeal to producers right now,” says Laura Aviles, senior Bristol film manager for Bristol City Council responsible for the Bottle Yard Studios and Bristol Film Office.

“With Showtrial, Chloe, The Girl Before and The Long Call joining other titles already actively filming in the city, Bristol is continuing the exceptionally strong levels of high-end TV production, bringing welcome benefits to local crew, facilities and service companies, and creating numerous other knock-on benefits to the city’s economy.”

Main photo of Chloe cast Poppy Gilbert, Billy Howle, Erin Doherty, Pippa Bennett-Warner, Jack Farthing: BBC York Tillyer

Read more: Planned £11.8m expansion of Bottle Yard Studios on track