Seen on Screen: Iconic events venues featured in TV & Film

Looking to host your next event somewhere with a bit of extra wow factor? Social Pantry is proud to be an approved caterer for over 80 of the country’s most beautiful and exclusive event venues, including famous London landmarks, English Heritage sites and world-renowned art galleries. In fact, some of our partner venues are so iconic that they have been used as filming locations for a number of TV shows and movies. 

Whether you’re a film buff, TV addict or simply want to host your next event somewhere with a bit of cinematic history  – not to mention a ready-made talking point for guests! – we’ve compiled a list of some of the most iconic event venues that have been seen on screen.

Read on to find out which famous film locations you could hire for your next event. But, be warned, there are a few spoilers ahead…

If you’d like to know more about any of the venues on our list, get in touch.

Blenheim Palace

Blenheim Palace is a magnificent country house and UNESCO World Heritage Site in Woodstock, Oxfordshire.  Built in the early 18th century, it’s known for its impressive Baroque architecture, landscaped gardens and parkland. With such outstanding beauty, history and grandeur, the palace is not only a hugely popular destination venue for weddings and large-scale celebrations, it has also provided a dramatic and iconic backdrop for many major films and TV dramas. 

James Bond fans might remember seeing Blenheim Palace in Spectre (2015). The most notable scene filmed there is the secret SPECTRE meeting. This takes place in the stunning interior of the palace, where James Bond (played by Daniel Craig) infiltrates the clandestine gathering of the global criminal organisation. The palace’s exterior and courtyard also feature as Bond makes his way into the meeting. 

Just below the palace, within its vast grounds, there is a Cedar of Lebanon tree on the bank of the lake that is now known as ‘The Harry Potter Tree’, thanks to its role in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007). The tree is featured in a flashback of Severus Snape when he was a student at Hogwarts. It is one of the most iconic and recognisable trees due to its sprawling branches and the gaping hole on the front.

With so many impressive areas on the site of the palace, the list of TV and film appearances by no means stops there. Both the palace’s stunning Long Library and Green Writing Room provided the set for scenes in Mission Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015) with Tom Cruise; and the palace’s Great Court appears in films including Gulliver’s Travels (2010) with Jack Black, The Young Victoria (2008) with Emily Blunt and Entrapment (1999) with Sean Connery and Catherine Zeta Jones.

Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge is undoubtedly one of London’s most famous landmarks, and truly memorable event spaces. As such a prominent part of the city’s skyline, the bridge has been featured in numerous films and TV shows over time, dating right back to early black and white movies, as well as more recent features…

In one of the most famous rom-com film series of all-time, Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001) and its sequel Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004), we see Bridget walking across the bridge as part of her daily commute into work from her coveted Borough Market flat. In stark contrast, in Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018), the bridge provides the dramatic backdrop to a chase scene, as Tom Cruise’s character, Ethan Hunt, is seen running along Blackfriars bridge with an impressive view of Tower Bridge behind. 

The bridge also appeared in the 2001 action-adventure film The Mummy Returns, when the heroes escape mummies on a double-decker bus that crosses Tower Bridge and in “Paddington 2 (2017), when the villain sneaks into the bridge as part of a treasure hunt.

As for the small screen, Friends fans might remember Tower Bridge’s appearance in ‘The One with Ross’s Wedding’, when Joey and Chandler explore London on a sightseeing bus that crosses right over the bridge. It has also featured in Dr Who, Only Fools and Horses, Inspector Morse, and Top Boy, as well as at the end of the music video for One Direction’s Midnight Memories.

Chandler & Joey on a sightseeing bus on Tower Bridge in ‘The One with Ross’s Wedding’, Friends.

Tower of London

One of the inimitable Historic Royal Palaces, the Tower of London is another of the capital’s most iconic event venues. The World Heritage Site boasts fantastic architecture and a thousand years of history, creating an awe-inspiring setting for events, from weddings to conferences. 

Built by William the Conqueror in the 1070s, the Tower of London has been a royal palace, fortress and prison. With such a long and fascinating history, it is no surprise that the tower has been featured in a number of historical films and TV shows. 

In The Other Boleyn Girl (2008), a film about the rivalry between Anne Boleyn and her sister Mary for King Henry VIII’s affections, the tower is prominently featured in the scenes involving Anne Boleyn’s imprisonment and eventual execution. Focussing on the same period, the TV series The Tudors also heavily features the tower.

Sticking to the theme of English monarchy, the Tower of London appears in Elizabeth, the 1998 film that explores the early years of Queen Elizabeth I’s reign, and in several episodes of celebrated series, The Crown (2016-2023), depicting the life of the Royal family from 1947 to present day.

For those who prefer more fantastical TV and films, the Tower of London has appeared in plenty of those too. These include Dr Who, Merlin, Spider Man: Far from Home (2019) and a brief appearance in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011).

Finally, Killing Eve fans may remember episode 4 of season 2, in which Villanelle, the main character played by Jodie Comer, visits the tower. 

Hampton Court Palace

Located along the banks of the River Thames in East Molesey, Surrey, Hampton Court Palace is a majestic, historic palace that was built in the early 16th century. Best known as the residence of King Henry VIII during his reign, it is now a hugely popular tourist attraction and events space. Boasting grand rooms, sweeping staircases, spacious courtyards and stunning, luscious gardens, this impressive venue is no stranger to the silver screen. 

Hampton Court Palace has been a favourite backdrop for film and television for nearly a century, beginning with its debut in the 1926 silent film named after the palace, which depicted the marriage of Catherine Howard to Henry VIII. More recently, it has featured in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011) and the award-winning blockbuster The Favourite (2018), which chronicles the life of Queen Anne, a former resident. Unsurprisingly, it also features heavily in historical TV drama The Tudors, and Wolf Hall (a mini series based on the books by Hilary Mantel, also set during the 16th century). 

If you’re one of the 98.5 million (!) viewers of Netflix’s celebrated, Regency-era drama Bridgerton, then you would have seen Hampton Court Palace in several different guises. The palace’s, two-acre, baroque-style Privy Garden set the scene for several of the show’s key moments, including the wedding between Kate Sharma and Anthony Bridgerton in series 2. The palace’s Fountain Court (a large lawn courtyard with an elegant central fountain) has also featured several times, including as the location for an elaborate high tea hosted by the Queen in series 1. Finally, the famous Chancery Lane print shop used by Lady Whistledown herself is actually the palace’s Master Carpenter’s Court. Dating back to the 16th century, it originally served as the tradesman’s entrance to the Great Kitchens, where food would be stored before cooking. For the show, fake shop fronts were erected within the courtyard to create what would become London’s Chancery Lane on screen.

Image courtesy of Netflix

Somerset House

Situated on the south side of The Strand, overlooking the River Thames, Somerset House is one of London’s most iconic venues, known for its vast courtyard and impressive neoclassical architecture. In the past, the building has been home to various government offices and departments but it’s now a hireable events space and major cultural hub, boasting a roster of art exhibitions, concerts, film screenings, fashion shows and more. 

With such an recognisable facade featuring classical columns and statues, you’d be surprised how many different guises Somerset House has appeared under in TV shows and films. One of the most surprising is its appearance in Sleepy Hollow. In Tim Burton’s famous 1999 horror starring Johnny Depp, Somerset House’s square was transformed into turn-of-the-century Manhattan for the film’s final scenes. Somerset House was also used in two different James Bond films. In GoldenEye (1995), it portrayed a square in St. Petersburg where Jack Wade’s car encounters trouble, while in “Tomorrow Never Dies” (1997), it was transformed into a bustling roundabout packed with Russian cars. 

In The Duchess (2008), a historical drama film starring Keira Knightly, Somerset House was used as a backdrop for scenes depicting the Duke’s London residence, Devonshire House. It also  featured prominently in Suffragette (2015), in the scene involving a group of suffragettes staging a protest towards the climax of the film. 

Finally, Somerset House as we know it today is featured for a brief but memorable moment in the iconic Christmas film Love Actually. We get a glimpse of the iconic festive  ice skating rink at Somerset House during Hugh Grant’s opening speech. 


To find out more about any of these venues and discuss your event requirements, please get in touch.

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