The Witcher Fans Will Recognise This Filming Location In BBC Drama Better

Fresh crime thrillers keep finding their way to our screens and we couldn’t be happier about it. BBC One’s Better is the latest drama on our watch-list. The five-part series charts the tumultuous loyalties of family and explores what counts as “right” and “wrong.” Created by SISTER, the studio responsible for producing smashing hits like Chernobyl and This Is Going To Hurt, it’s no wonder viewers have high hopes.

Starring Leila Farzad and Andrew Buchan, the nail-biting series questions ideas like mortality and conscience with eerie twists and turns. While its storyline promises intrigue, the show also features intriguing landscapes. So where is Better filmed? Similar to popular shows like Peaky Blinders, Bank Of Dave and Downton Abbey, the thriller is shot in Leeds and West Yorkshire. Buchan’s character Col heads the criminal underworld in the city until he meets Lou (Farzad) and their lives take a turn for the dramatic.

In an interview, creator Jonathan Brackley said the show was consciously set in Leeds to stay true to the portrayal in the series. “It was very important for us to set it somewhere with its own distinct identity. Somewhere that could become sort of a character, a part of the show in its own right,” he said. Plumpton Rocks, a far spread parkland near Harrogate was Brackley’s favourite filming location from the show. Netflix’s The Witcher also filmed here in Season 2.

Additionally, Ceallach Spellman, who features in the series as Donal McHugh talked about how shows are representing the working class people of the UK and so the location is more important than ever. “There are more characters being written for working-class people, northern working-class people, and whilst more can be done, it's so great to have these dramas that are set in these places and set in that world,” he told Radio Times.

The crew also filmed in an abandoned police station with cells in the basement that reportedly made the process more eerie and realistic than a curated set. Farzad also told the BBC about her positive experience shooting in Leeds. “It's such a beautiful city. Being able to see the town hall every day, filming in places like the Corn Exchange, there's wonderful places to eat and being by the canal... it's a real mixture of old and new,” she remarked.

In fact, Buchan revealed that he had previously worked in the city when he shot The ABC Murders with Rupert Grint. Some of the other locations featured in the show include Sheesh Mahal, an Indian restaurant, Aire Valley Marina and Victoria Hotel while the opening scenes were filmed at the Queens Hotel bar.

Better is available to view on iPlayer, with weekly drops on Monday evenings.