As the world tuned in to watch Netflix’s immensely popular Bridgerton series, the hit show from creator Shonda Rhimes (the TV producer behind long-running series like Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, and How to Get Away with Murder) there’s one thing that caught everyone’s eye beyond the storyline: the incredible homes of the show’s leading characters.
Set against the backdrop of Regency-era England, the period drama based on Julia Quinn’s novels is full of opulent mansions and palace-like abodes.
And you’d be forgiven for thinking that some of the houses on Bridgerton are too beautiful to be true. But quite a few real-life settings served as filming locations for the Netflix hit series — some that you can visit and admire in all their grandeur.
Among them: the ivy and wisteria-covered house of the Bridgerton family, their country home, Aubrey Hall, Lady Danbury’s house, the Duke of Hastings’ impressive residence, and the Clyvedon Castle where the Duke and Duchess move to after their wedding. Spoiler alert though: you’d have to travel all the way to the UK to visit them.
The Bridgerton house
The red brick Georgian mansion portrayed as the house of the Bridgerton family is, by all definitions, dream home material.
With its elegant gated entrance, and tall white windows that stand out against the carefully maintained brick façade — wonderfully framed by ivy and wisteria — the Bridgerton house is exactly what you’d expect a viscount’s home to look like.
In reality, the building used to film the scenes of Anthony and Daphne’s house is actually a museum.
Built in 1723, the former residence goes by the name Ranger’s House and is home to a world-class art collection amassed by diamond magnate Sir Julius Wernher.
The house had many distinguished owners in its 300-year history, though its first resident was a naval officer who made his fortune selling ship’s cargoes. It was later home to the 4th Earl of Chesterfield and later still became the residence of the Ranger (keeper) of Greenwich Park, hence the name.
If you’d like to visit the Bridgerton house, you’ll find it in South East London, right next to Greenwich Park.
Now home to the Wernher Collection, the 300-year-old Georgian mansion has about 700 museum items on display across 12 rooms.
The impressive collection includes priceless items ranging from Renaissance jewelry to medieval, Byzantine and Renaissance ivories, enamels, and bronzes, as well as tapestries and furniture, so there’s much more to see than just a familiar exterior. There’s also a beautiful rose garden behind it.
Aubrey Hall, the Bridgerton country house
The much-anticipated second season of Bridgerton introduced quite a few charming new characters. But the new addition that stole our hearts is the country estate of the Bridgerton family, Aubrey Hall.
The Bridgerton ancestral estate is reminiscent of the viscount family’s house in London, with vining plants framing its façade. But Aubrey Hall is much grander — in both its architecture and significance.
We’ll refrain from commenting on the house’s history or the events that take place there, as not to let a spoiler slip and ruin the second season for those that didn’t yet get a chance to watch it. Instead, we’ll quickly take a trip to the mainland to find the spectacular property’s real-life counterpart.
Standing in as Aubrey Hall is Wrotham Park, a neo-Palladian English country house located in the parish of South Mimms, in Hertfordshire.
Set in the heart of a sprawling 2,500-acre estate, Wrotham Park fits the series’ narrative like a glove. Built in 1754 for Admiral John Byng, the fourth son of Admiral George Byng (the 1st Viscount of Torrington), the estate is one of the largest private houses near London inside the M25 motorway.
With its sheer size, intricate architecture, and opulent interiors, Wrotham Park has attracted countless filmmakers, with the long list of productions filmed here including Kingsman (both the first movie and the sequel), Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001), Jane Eyre (2011), and Great Expectations (2012).
According to Wikipedia, Wrotham Park’s drawing room is featured as the interior of Buckingham Palace in the Downton Abbey movie. It was also featured in several seasons of Netflix’s The Crown, as Clarence House and Gatcombe Park, home of the Princess Royal.
The Featherington estate
Housing the all-powerful Lady Whistledown herself, the Featherington residence has been a fixture throughout the series’ past seasons — taking an even larger role in Season 3.
Providing a place for Portia’s scheming to unfold, and a nice background for Colin and Penelope’s romance to bloom, the famed Royal Crescent Hotel & Spa in Bath lent its imposing exteriors to the Bridgerton filming crew, BBC reports.
Located at 16 Royal Cres, in Bath, United Kingdom, the Royal Crescent is home to the row of Georgian townhouses that serve as the facade of the Featherington residence in the series. Now a 5-star retreat, the Crescent dates back to 1767, and is one of the most recognizable representations of Georgian architecture.
It’s also a UNESCO World Heritage site, a distinction it’s been holding since 1987.
Lady Danbury’s house
As the second season gave Lady Danbury a more prominent role, her beautiful home took center stage too. Particularly since it was also hosting our leading ladies, Sharma sisters Kate and Edwina.
According to local publication Welwyn Hatflield Times, two locations were used to film scenes that took place on Lady Danbury’s estate: the Holburne Museum in Bath was used for exterior shots of the house, while the ball was filmed at the Syon Park Conservatory in Brentford, England.
You’ll find the Holburne Museum inside the Sydney Pleasure Gardens, a public open space at the end of Great Pulteney Street in Bath, Somerset, England.
The building has a rich history that dates back to 1882 and served as the city’s first public art gallery, hosting its original owner, Sir William Holburne’s collection of fine and decorative arts.
The ball scene, however, was filmed at the Conservatory of Syon Park — the 56.6-hectare (roughly 140 acres) garden of Syon House, the London home of the Duke of Northumberland. A location worthy of royal balls indeed, the Conservatory can be rented for private events.
The Queen’s Palace
If we’re talking luxury, opulence, and over-the-top estates, the Bridgerton palace takes the crown (pun intended).
The Queen’s palace in the Shonda Rhimes-produced period drama — and the 2023 spin-off series, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story — has been carefully picked to eclipse all the other estates featured on the show. And to achieve that effect, a real-life palace was used to film scenes that take place at the royal court.
Standing in for the royal residence is Hampton Court Palace, a real royal palace that dates back to 1514, when it was built for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chief minister of King Henry VIII.
Not long after the castle was built, minister Wolsey fell from favor with the king, and sought to regain his stature by gifting his sprawling residence to King Henry.
It is said that the palatial abode later became one of the king’s favorite residences, and remained in the possession of the royal family ever since (up until recently, it was under the ownership of Queen Elizabeth II).
And while most of the exterior scenes — and garden shots — taking place at the Queen’s palace have been filmed at Hampton Court, the interiors are those of a different property, one that was more heavily featured in Season 1, as we’re about to find out.
The Duke of Hastings’s house in London
Many were smitten by the charming Duke of Hastings (yours truly included). And those that didn’t fall for his charms were likely drawn by his palatial London home, a striking castle sitting on vast grounds with manicured lawns and water features.
You know, the type of home a duke might live in.
In reality though, the house is owned by an earl and a countess. More specifically, the Earl and Countess of Pembroke, who own the Wilton House in Salisbury, UK, which served as the primary filming location for the Duke of Hasting’s house.
The Wilton House was used for exterior shots of the Duke’s house and also lended its opulent interiors to portray pretty much every other house featured in the first season.
Built back in 1544, the Wilton House has been inextricably linked to the political and artistic circles of England. But that’s not why the estate looks so familiar (unless you’re a history buff with a passion for UK royalty).
The house was used for many movies including Emma, Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, Tomb Raider (2017) and other popular Netflix shows like The Crown and Outlander.
And it’s not just the grounds of the palatial estate that are used as filming settings. On the inside, the Wilton House boasts carefully maintained 17th-century interiors, splendid staterooms, and a world-famous art collection by renowned artists such as van Dyck, Pieter Brueghel, Rembrandt van Rijn, and Richard Wilson.
In fact, many Bridgerton indoor scenes were filmed inside the Wilton House, including indoor shots of Queen Charlotte’s palace, Lady Danbury’s house, of course, the Duke of Hastings’, as well as interior shots of Simon and Daphne’s house in the country.
Though for that last one, a different stately home was used for the exterior shots, as we’re about to find out.
Clyvedon Castle, home to the Duke and Duchess of Hasting
Daphne and Simon’s house, where the couple retreats for their honeymoon in the first season, is a massive estate that goes by the name of Clyvedon Castle.
The rightful inheritance of the Duke of Hastings, the castle is supposedly the biggest residence in Clyvedon village, which Simon starts spearheading soon after their arrival at the estate.
Arguably one of the most memorable homes on the show (though admittedly, the competition is quite fierce), the Duke’s fictional country house is actually a real-life castle known as Castle Howard — a 16th-century palace in North Yorkshire that beams with history.
The estate dates back to 1699 and was once home to the 3rd Earl of Carlisle.
In fact, the private residence has been the home to the Carlisle branch of the Howard family for more than 300 years, and it often lends its exteriors to filming crews.
Other movies filmed at Castle Howard include the 1995 mini-series The Buccaneers, Stanley Kubrick’s 1975 film Barry Lyndon, and Brideshead (both the 1981 TV series and the 2008 film adaptation).
The castle and mausoleum were also used as the setting for the 2018 Arctic Monkeys video Four Out of Five.
Hard to pick a favorite
All the Bridgerton houses have been carefully picked to match the title, wealth, and ambitions of the show’s leading characters. And if you’d ask us to pick a favorite, we sure would have a hard time choosing.
But we’re looking forward to what future seasons have to bring — maybe we’re about to meet the most impressive mansion yet.
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