Written by on Aug 28, 2013. Posted in On Location

Police drama Vera films on location in Newcastle in north-east England

British police drama series Vera has filmed on location in Newcastle and in Northumberland in the north-east of England for its fourth season. The show follows Brenda Blethyn’s Detective Chief Inspector Vera Stanhope as she works cases in the area.

“[Newcastle] has got great bridges that span across the river,” the show’s producer Margaret Mitchell told Radio Times: “We have used the Sage building, which is an amazing-looking structure, and the Millennium Bridge in the background of shots, as well as the Victorian buildings in the older parts of Newcastle.”

Filming locations also included coastline around Blyth, just north of Newcastle, which offers “a very angular, metallic world” in the form of giant offshore wind turbines.

“I think there’s a real appetite to see dramas set in areas other than London. I absolutely love Northumberland; I think it’s beautiful,” Mitchell added.

British TV production is increasingly shifting to more northerly parts of England. This is in part driven by the establishment of MediaCityUK in Salford just outside Manchester, which is a base for both the BBC and ITV. Hollywood is following suit, with the major studios now making more use of the north, especially since the 2012 Olympics necessitated the use of locations outside London.

(Photo courtesy of Semi Detached on flickr)