Castlefield is only a short walk from Manchester City Centre and provides production crews with the perfect blend of both modern and historic Manchester. This is where the ruined Fort of Mamucium from which the city takes its name can be found. It is an area populated by canals and the traditional and characterful red brick edifices of ‘old Manchester’ which sit alongside plate glass skyscrapers housing hi-tec offices and luxury penthouse apartments.
This varied urban landscape has provided the setting for many productions, most famously perhaps global hit drama series, Peaky Blinders. Tommy Shelby, as portrayed by Oscar winner Cillian Murphy, along with the rest of the clan are often seen ruling the streets of Birmingham’s Small Heath which was recreated here and became home to the production over several weeks. Dyed in the wool Peaky Blinders fans who make their personal pilgrimages are never more than a stone’s throw away from The Garrison Pub central to some of Peaky’s most unforgettable scenes.
Other recent TV hits filmed in and around Castlefield include the Joanna Lumley, Michelle Keagan and Richard Armitage fronted Fool Me Once. World On Fire which starred Yorkshire’s Sean Bean and was created by Stockport writer Peter Bowker also shot extended sequences in this atmospheric quarter of Manchester which is also popular for advertising and photoshoots. TV viewers who have enjoyed series like The Irregulars which was loosely based on the works of Arthur Conan Doyle and saw Baker Street irregulars working for Dr Watson saving London from supernatural elements will be familiar with Castlefield without even realising that they have visited the area from the comfort of their armchairs. Other series made in the neighbourhood include American RomCom Wedding Season and 2024’s Domino Day, a fantasy supernatural fiction series which was received to great critical and audience acclaim.
Cold Feet fans might also recall comedian John Thomson in a dramatic canal rescue scene in the ever-popular series and who could forget when Coronation Street villain Richard Hillman took Gail, Sarah-Louise and David for a terrifying drive into the murky waters of Weatherfield – an iconic Corrie Cliffhanger. It is impossible to talk of Castlefield without mentioning the Castlefield Viaduct, a 330m disused railway bridge built in 1892, which used to carry heavy rail traffic in and out of the Great Northern Warehouse. More recently transformed into a stunningly beautiful inner city green space by The National Trust, this monument to Manchester’s phenomenal contribution to the Industrial Revolution has also provided the film and TV Industry with eye-catching vistas.
Bringing a production into any location depends on great relationships and collaboration with the various businesses and agencies who make up each community. Screen Manchester is fortunate to operate in Castlefield with fantastic support from the people who are key in making the area a film-friendly destination through offering up their land or premises for filming. Our thanks go out to bars and restaurants like Barca, Albert’s Shed and Dukes 92. Then there is Castlefield Estates, an independent landlord with a number of properties and private land around the area, the Bridgewater Canal Company who manage the water/basin within Castlefield and of course the Canal & River Trust too. A huge shout out also goes to the residents of Castlefield who continue to welcome film crews into the area!
Castlefield then is an area which provides creatives with a blank canvas around and on which to build moments that will find their way into film and TV history and that is why it is our Location of the Month for December 2024.
