Written by on Sep 12, 2012. Posted in On Location

Epic BBC drama The White Queen commits to Bruges location shoot

An epic TV costume drama from the BBC will film on location in Bruges in Belgium. The White Queen will be a ten-hour miniseries and literary adaptation telling the story of three women caught up in the War of the Roses in 15th Century England.

Belgian support will come from the BNP Paribas Fortis Film Fund and national broadcast VRT. Further financial support might also be available from the Flanders Audiovisual Fund.

Ben Stephenson is Controller of BBC Drama: “One of the most ambitious series the BBC has made, this ten-part series is an epic drama that makes real history as gripping as the best fiction, featuring a cast of extraordinary new talent and some of our finest actors.”

Production cost is likely to be a major factor in the BBC's decision to film in Bruges. The UK’s filming tax credit doesn’t support TV productions, but a costume drama of this scale will want to cut prices wherever possible by filming in locations where it can benefit from an incentive.

High-end TV projects originating in the UK often head to places like Eastern Europe, South Africa, Ireland or indeed Belgium, in search of filming incentives and lower costs.

High-end TV projects originating in the UK often head to places like Eastern Europe, South Africa, Ireland or indeed Belgium, in search of filming incentives and lower costs.

The UK Government is consulting at the moment on the details of a TV tax credit that’s widely expected to be launched in 2013. In the coming years the UK filming industries will be hoping to see projects on the scale of The White Queen shooting in Britain.

Bruges image: Elke Wetzig