With hills as beautiful as the ones on this estate, it’s no surprise Netflix came knocking
As the latest series of Netflix’s period romance show Bridgerton continues to charm viewers around the world, The National Trust has revealed that many of its estates and parks were used by the film crews. One of those featured is less than a two hour drive from Cambridge.
Ashridge Estate in Hertfordshire covers 5,000 acres of countryside. With chalk downlands or open chalk hills that tower over the landscape, it’s no surprise that Netflix knocked on The National Trust’s door.
One of the hills on the estate called Ivinghoe Beacon, across the border in Buckinghamshire, features in Series 2 of the show which came out in 2022. Explaining the estate featuring in the popular Netflix show, National Trust said: “Ivinghoe Beacon offers plenty of wide-open countryside and some of the best views on the Ashridge Estate, so it was the ideal location to film some of the horse-riding scenes in series two.
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“Ashridge’s close proximity to Pinewood Studios means it’s been used for hundreds of productions over the years, including some which have required the production crew to fill the woods with snow or build a medieval village on site.”
According to The National Trust, transforming the landscape into the world of Bridgerton was one of the easiest the team have had to achieve. “Bridgerton was a comparatively simple shoot, only requiring the local team to lay some temporary track for the various production vehicles and equipment,” It is explained on their website.
“Plus, as the site is an SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest), someone was always on hand to supervise and make sure the landscape was protected.”
Although Ivinghoe Beacon is not the highest point on the Ashridge Estate, it has views of the surrounding countryside and takes around 45 minutes to walk to the top.
But there aren’t only hills to climb at Ashridge Estate. It’s also home to the National Trust’s largest ancient woodland. These very different landscapes each support a rich variety of wildlife, including bluebells in spring, rare butterflies in summer and fallow deer in autumn.
The estate also has one of the oldest British post mills. Open Fridays and Bank Holiday weekends May to September, visitors can see the workings of the windmill and the beautiful parkland that surrounds it.
Ashridge Estate is open weekends during April to October, as long as the weather is permitting.
