Call the Midwife

In Season 11 Episode 7 of Call the Midwife, The Watercress Line served as the filming location for a dramatic train crash which leaves the fate of Sister Julienne and Dr. Turner in the balance. Luckily for fans, the two come out unscathed, but the same can't be said for a 1950s British Railway Mk1 carriage, which was sacrificed for the the sake of great TV.

🍽️ A taste for adventure. Dining train experiences aboard The Watercress Line will transport you back in time as you travel through the Hampshire countryside, with everything from classic cream teas to bangers 'n' mash.

On Chesil Beach

The platform at Alresford Station was also used as a location in the 2017 adaptation of Ian McEwan's On Chesil Beach, starring Billy Howle and Saoirse Ronan. The vintage platform and heritage steam trains stood in for a 1960s Henley-on-Thames Station. Not only did some of the filming take place in Hampshire, Ian McEwan was also born in the county.

🔎 Discover more of Alresford. Wander charming Georgian streets, browse independent shops, ramble through scenic countryside and enjoy a pitstop at one of the market town's quaint tearooms and cosy pubs.

Image: The Watercress Line

Decline and Fall

The 2017 BBC adaptation of Evelyn Waugh's Decline and Fall used Winchester College to film scenes set in Llanabba Castle, the eccentric school where the main character Paul Pennyfeather (played by Jack Whitehall) takes up a teaching position. Founded in 1382, Winchester College still occupies its original medieval buildings, making it the perfect stand-in for the fictional Welsh castle. Luckily for both pupils and teachers, the similarities with Llanabba end there!

🏺 Get a glimpse of the past. Winchester College's free Treasury museum houses a collection of ancient artefacts, medieval art and Chinese ceramics, making it a must-visit for history buffs.

Les Misérables

Winchester College was featured a few times in three-time Academy Award winning film, Les Misérables. Valjean's death was shot in the 15th century Chantry Chapel, with its beautiful stained-glass windows and star-shaped vaulted ceilings. The college's medieval cloisters can be spotted earlier in the film as the nunnery in which Valjean and Cosette hide from Javert.

🎥 Visit the filming locations. College Tours run daily and include both the Chantry Chapel and the medieval cloisters, giving visitors the chance to see where these iconic Les Misérables scenes were filmed up-close.

Image: Winchester College Old Cloister c. Catherine Garry

Goodbye, Mr. Chips

Martin Clunes starred in this 2002 ITV adaptation as the beloved schoolteacher, Mr. Chips. The film is set in the fictional Brookfield boys' boarding school and was shot in multiple historic independent schools, including Winchester College. One of the scenes involved a German warplane crash on campus, for which pieces of prop plane were scattered in front of the Chapel.

🎓 Beyond College walls. Businesses across Kingsgate Village are sprinkled with quirky pieces of Winchester College history. Step into Kingsgate Wine & Provisions to admire a wall of vintage boaters, or enjoy a drink at an old school desk in The Wykeham Arms.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age

This 2007 historical drama follows the latter part of Elizabeth I's reign, complete with secret affairs, assassination plots, and treason. You'll spot Winchester Cathedral's Lady Chapel when Babington (played by Eddie Redmayne) storms into the cathedral where Elizabeth I (Cate Blanchett) is praying. The grand gothic interiors and stained-glass windows are a suitably dramatic setting for the scene.

📜 Over 1000 years of history. Explore the story of Winchester Cathedral, see magnificent medieval manuscripts and uncover the secrets of royal mortuary chests at the free exhibition, Kings and Scribes.

Image: Lady Chapel, Winchester Cathedral ©

The Hollow Crown: The Wars of the Roses

The second season of The Hollow Crown adapted Shakespeare's histories set during the Wars of the Roses: Henry VI, Part 1, Henry VI, Part 2 and Richard III. Winchester's Great Hall took centre stage as the throne room of Benedict Cumberbatch's chilling depiction of Richard III. From here, Richard lays out his sinister plans for murder and revenge.

👑 Discover royal connections. The Great Hall was built by Henry III, houses the legendary Round Table and was the site of Mary Tudor and Philip of Spain's wedding feast. Explore all this and more with your Explorer ticket.

Wolf Hall

Three locations in Winchester were used in the award-winning BBC adaptation of Wolf Hall, starring Mark Rylance, Damian Lewis and Claire Foy. Winchester Cathedral's iconic medieval nave doubled as the interiors of Chapuys House and St George's Chapel, while the Great Hall, containing the legendary Round Table, was used in stead of Westminster Hall. The Hospital of St Cross, England's oldest almshouse, provided a number of locations including Hampton Court, Windsor Castle and Grays Inn.

🏰 Walk through Tudor Winchester. The Tudor Trail explores Winchester’s role during the Tudor period, from royal events to historic sites. Download a copy or pick one up from the Visitor Information Centre.

Image: The Hospital of St Cross

Mansfield Park

The 1983 BBC adaptation of Mansfield Park used Winchester's Canon Street to double as Regency-era Portsmouth in its final episode. Eagle-eyed visitors may spot a sign above No. 63 which reads 'The Old Wykehamist Bakery'. While there was a bakery next door in the 18th century, the sign itself was re-painted for the filming of Mansfield Park.

🖋️ Jane Austen's Winchester. The beloved author died in nearby College Street, and was buried in Winchester Cathedral's north aisle. Learn about the city as Jane knew it in the Jane Austen's Winchester trail, available online and in the Visitor Information Centre.

The Crown

Over the years, The Crown has transformed Winchester's cobbled streets and ancient buildings into everything from wartime London to Westminster Abbey. In Season 1, you'll spot a rubble-strewn Wykeham Arms and College Street doubling as London in the Blitz.

Throughout the series, Winchester Cathedral has been used as a stand-in for Westminster Abbey and St Paul's Cathedral, playing host to Winston Churchill's funeral in Season 3, Lord Mountbatten's funeral and Charles and Diana's wedding rehearsal in Season and Princess Diana's funeral procession in Season 6.

A world-renowned school with its own royal connections (at least four monarchs have visited, including Queen Elizabeth II in 1955), Winchester College was used to film scenes set at Eton College during Seasons 5 and 6.

🫅 More on monarchs. Winchester been a focus for royal activity and patronage since the Saxon kings. The Royal Blood trail, available online and in the Visitor Information Centre takes you on an extraordinary journey through royal Winchester.

Image: Filming of The Crown in Kingsgate Village c. Steve Favell