Wales


<p>Now that <em>Bridgerton</em> is over for another season, we&#8217;re desperately searching for a gorgeous new period drama to become obsessed with &#8211; and it turns out that we don&#8217;t have to look very far.</p>



<p>Based on Janice Hadlow’s acclaimed novel, <em><a href="https://www.instagram.com/otherbennetsistertv/?hl=en-gb" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Other Bennet Sister</a></em> tells the tale (and woes) of Mary Bennet, the oft-overlooked middle sister from <em>Pride and Prejudice</em>. And the best part? It&#8217;s filmed almost entirely in Wales.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-3.png" alt="The Other Bennet Sister" class="wp-image-5039" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-3.png 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-3-300x200.png 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-3-1024x683.png 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-3-768x512.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<p>The upcoming 10-episode series, which premieres <strong>Sun 15 Mar</strong>, shines a light on just how tricky the journey into adulthood can be when you&#8217;re the odd one out. Expect plenty of wit, charm and heart. And, while we might like to imagine ourselves as Elizabeths or Janes, the truth is that more of us are probably Marys than we&#8217;d care to admit. Still, we&#8217;ve got a sneaky feeling that we&#8217;ll all be Team Mary by the time the <em>The Other Bennet Sister</em> finishes with us.</p>



<p>The series stars Ella Bruccoleri as Mary Bennett, alongside Ryan Sampson (<em>Plebs</em>) as Mr Collins, Richard Coyle (<em>Chilling Adventures of Sabrina</em>) and Indira Varma (<em>Game of Thrones</em>) as Mr and Mrs Gardiner, and Laurie Davidson (<em>The Girlfriend</em>) as Mr Ryder. Mr and Mrs Bennet are played by none other than Richard E Grant and Bridgend&#8217;s own Ruth Jones &#8211; and we have a feeling that pairing alone will be worth the watch. </p>



<p>Produced by <a href="https://bad-wolf.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bad Wolf</a> (the team behind <em>His Dark Materials</em> and <em>Industry</em>), the series premieres exclusively on BBC iPlayer and BBC One later this month. In an exciting exclusive, we&#8217;ve chatted with the show&#8217;s Location Manager, Paul&nbsp;Davies, to find out why he chose the rolling hills and grand stately homes of Wales as the stand-in for 1800s Austenland.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-did-you-pick-wales-as-a-backdrop-for-the-other-bennet-sister">Why did you pick Wales as a backdrop for <em>The Other Bennet Sister</em>?</h2>



<p>I asked the same question when I was approached to join the production! Back in January 2025, I was invited to meet producer Kate Crowther at <a href="https://bad-wolf.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bad Wolf Studios</a> and was given a brief synopsis –&nbsp;to make the series look amazing, with houses that turn heads and landscapes so beautiful you could almost eat them. Luckily&nbsp;Wales has plenty of that. My first mission was to find Longbourn and Meryton village!</p>



<p>Period drama is always a challenge for a location team, and a Jane Austen series filmed in Wales was something I&#8217;d never heard of before. I did wonder whether it was even possible. But I love a challenge, and apart from two locations, the entire series of <em>The Other Bennet Sister</em> series&#8217; scenes was filmed in Wales –&nbsp;even the Lake District locations.</p>



<p>The boat scenes on Lake Windermere were actually filmed on a private lake in the Brecon Beacons. The inside of the inn was the closed museum at <a href="https://www.visitmidwales.co.uk/showmewales/things-to-do/llancaiach-fawr-manor-p1722571" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Llancaiach Fawr</a>, and Scafell Pyke was recreated on the <a href="https://www.visitmonmouthshire.com/explore/brecon-beacons-national-park/black-mountains" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Black Mountains</a>, again in the Brecon Beacons.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-easy-was-it-to-dodge-onlookers-and-paps">How easy was it to dodge onlookers and paps?</h2>



<p>We spent a few weeks at the Longbourn location, while the rest of the shoot was scattered across South Wales. Because we were mainly filming on private land and estates, most people didn&#8217;t even know we were there. The biggest challenge came when we moved onto public streets in Newport and Bristol – but, in fairness, we didn’t have any real issues. If you&#8217;re polite to onlookers and photographers, they usually play the game!</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-1.png" alt="The Other Bennet Sister" class="wp-image-5044" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-1.png 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-1-300x200.png 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-1-1024x683.png 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-1-768x512.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-can-you-share-a-few-of-the-prominent-locations-you-filmed-at-and-why-were-they-chosen">Can you share a few of the prominent locations you filmed at, and why were they chosen?</h2>



<p>Three of the main locations were filmed in the Vale of Glamorgan –&nbsp;one of which is owned by the National Trust. <a href="https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/wales/dyffryn-gardens" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dyffryn House and Gardens</a> doubles as Meryton Town Hall, both inside and out (which isn’t open to the general public as yet). The Netherfield dining room scenes were also filmed inside the house, while the outdoor Westminster Bridge, park and poetry scene were shot in the Pompeian Garden at Dyffryn Gardens.</p>



<p>Fans can visit a free <a href="https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/wales/dyffryn-gardens/events/7572fbaa-b587-430c-a951-965171c5f305" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Other Bennet Sister Exhibition</a> at Dyffryn Gardens, opening <strong>Fri 20 Mar</strong>, which offers the chance to explore parts of Dyffryn House usually closed for conservation. There&#8217;s also the opportunity to gawp at some of the show&#8217;s period costumes, worn by stars including Ella Bruccoleri, Ruth Jones, Tanya Reynolds and Indira Varma.</p>



<p><a href="https://www.penpont.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Penpont House</a> in Brecon was my favourite location. The private house &#8211; which hosts weddings and events and even has its own farm shop &#8211; appears in the series as Meryton Village.</p>



<p>When you&#8217;re scouting locations, there are all sorts of things to think about. Is the house under a flight path? Near a busy road? Next to a busy agricultural farm? Any of these could cause major noise issues.</p>



<p>Most domestic properties have been modernised these days &#8211; nobody&#8217;s living by candlelight anymore. Finding the right location is a long process, but making it work for every department is even longer, especially for the design department who have to decorate and furnish each space used. Life as a location manager is such a privilege though &#8211; it gives you the chance to nose around some of the grandest&nbsp;houses I&#8217;ve ever seen.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-5.png" alt="The Other Bennet Sister" class="wp-image-5042" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-5.png 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-5-300x200.png 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-5-1024x683.png 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-5-768x512.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-are-any-of-the-sights-instantly-recognisable">Are any of the sights instantly recognisable?</h2>



<p>The story is already there, in <em>The Other Bennet Sister</em> script, so my job is to make sure the locations I offer make sense, fit the brief, and feel credible for the story –&nbsp;because you can&#8217;t pull the wool over the eyes of&nbsp;a Jane Austen fan! Ideally, the locations should be seen and not heard, so you&#8217;re often trying to find locations that aren’t immediately recognisable.</p>



<p>That said, the very popular National Trust Dyffryn House and Gardens might stand out to some &#8211; especially if it&#8217;s their local, or somewhere they&#8217;ve visited before. <a href="https://museum.wales/stfagans/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St Fagans National Museum of History</a> in Cardiff might also look familiar thanks to its beautiful gardens. The optician&#8217;s scene was filmed inside St Fagans Castle, and we used part of the garden near the pond to double as a London park.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-4.png" alt="The Other Bennet Sister" class="wp-image-5041" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-4.png 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-4-300x200.png 300w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-4-1024x683.png 1024w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/wales/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2026/03/The-Other-Bennet-Sister-4-768x512.png 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-did-you-have-to-change-much-to-take-it-back-to-the-1800s">Did you have to change much to take it back to the 1800s?</h2>



<p>Every location needed some dressing to take it back to 1800s, and one of the biggest transformations happened in an arcade in Newport. We needed this space to double as a London shopping mall, so quite a bit of tweaking was required. </p>



<p>My personal favourite location, which stood in for Meryton Village, was in Brecon. I hadn&#8217;t&nbsp;been there before, but when I arrived and saw the courtyard, the bridge, the river, I just had this warm feeling that told me this was going to be our Meryton. I took loads of photos, rushed back to the office and hoped everyone else would love it as much as I did. </p>



<p>Even though I&#8217;m responsible for the locations, it takes a really hard-working team to make everything come together. It&#8217;s a huge joint effort between the locations and design department to make sure the series looks as good as it does.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-scenes-are-you-most-excited-for-viewers-to-see-on-screen">What scenes are you most excited for viewers to see on screen?</h2>



<p>Every location was exciting in its own way, but the Lake district scenes were challenging to pull off &#8211; so I&#8217;m really looking forward to seeing how they look on screen!</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-haunts-did-you-enjoy-visiting-when-filming">What haunts did you enjoy visiting when filming?</h2>



<p>I&#8217;m always partial to a good cup of tea or a hot chocolate, and while we were filming up on the Black Mountains there was a wonderful community cafe called <a href="https://black-mountain.org.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Black Mountain Centre </a>–&nbsp;a real gem of a place.</p>



<p><em>The series premieres on <strong>Sun 15 Mar</strong>, with the first five episodes available exclusively on BBC iPlayer at 6am, with a double bill weekly on BBC One at 8pm. Episodes 6-10 will be available on BBC iPlayer on <strong>Sun 29 Mar</strong> at 6am.</em></p>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-in-the-mood-for-more">IN THE MOOD FOR MORE?</h2>



<ul>
<li><a href="https://wales.muddystilettos.co.uk/travel/bridgerton-wales-grand-hotels-manor-houses/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bridgerton in Wales: the grand hotels and manor houses that make you feel like royalty</a></li>



<li><a href="https://wales.muddystilettos.co.uk/things-to-do/film-tv/must-visit-welsh-locations-in-sky-atlantics-under-salt-marsh-starring-kelly-reilly/">Pembrokeshire indie brands – appro</a><a href="https://wales.muddystilettos.co.uk/things-to-do/latest-news/pembrokeshire-brands-independent-shops-hrh-catherine-cardigan-haverfordwest/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ved by HRH Kate!</a></li>



<li><a href="https://wales.muddystilettos.co.uk/eat-out/recipe-st-davids-day-welsh-lamb-root-vegetable-broth/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Recipe: St David’s Day Welsh lamb &amp; root vegetable broth</a></li>
</ul>


An exclusive look into the Welsh backdrops of The Other Bennet Sister

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