15th Oct 2020
Like every wedding venue across the UK, we were ready for a quiet summer. The Covid-19 pandemic had caused multiple national lockdowns. However, our doors have been kept open by offering COVID-19 safe film locations in North Yorkshire. We have hosted Elizabeth Hurley, John Cleese, Kelsey Grammar, Jeremy Piven, Talulah Riley, Nathalie Cox, Kris Marshall and Caroline Quentin! Production company MSR Media chose us as the filming location for three of their upcoming movies. You can watch the first of these on Amazon Prime TV from early November 2020.
My Dad’s Christmas Date was partly shot at Birdsall earlier in the year. Father Christmas is Back and Miss Willoughby and the Haunted Bookshop have been filmed at the house under strict Covid-19 regulations. The large cast and crew formed isolation bubbles for up to five weeks at our filming venue!
Birdsall House has sat in its own private valley on the edge of the Wolds since 1540. For almost 500 years, Birdsall has been home to the Willoughby family. In a fun coincidence, the family and the title character in one of these films share the same name, though that’s where the connection ends! You can learn more about our fascinating history here.
Speaking to Variety magazine, Kelsey Grammar said:
“This has been a terrific experience. Although COVID presented a new set of challenges, we were able to work very effectively through new standards of film production. I would urge my family of actors at SAG-AFTRA to take a page out of the British playbook; we can responsibly get back to work.
Credit MSR Media
Actor, Caroline Quentin kindly said:
“Birdsall manages to combine complete luxury and elegance with the warmth and charm of a real family home. What a lovely family, what a beautiful home.”
You may have also seen Caroline on BBC’s The One Show recently where she announced that she would be taking part in this year’s Strictly Come Dancing from Birdsall House.
We feel extremely lucky to have had the opportunity to host so much filming here. Especially as many couples having to postpone their weddings this year with COVID precautions. If you’d have told us after the lockdown announcement in March that we would instead be welcoming the likes of John Cleese to Birdsall we wouldn’t have believed you and it’s been an absolute pleasure to do so!
One of the films, Miss Willoughby, was the first to start shooting in the UK under the new guidelines and was also the first to wrap. MSR Media and Bubwith based Highfield Grange Studios are the producers of this film.
To watch the film trailers, visit: https://msrmedia.co.uk
Want to see our available film locations Yorkshire for your next production? Please email events@birdsallhouse.com.
Posted in Film