As the world tuned in to watch Netflix’s immensely popular Bridgerton series, the hit show from creator Shonda Rhimes (the TV producer behind long-running series like Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, and How to Get Away with Murder) there’s one thing that caught everyone’s eye beyond the storyline: the incredible homes of the show’s leading characters.
Set against the backdrop of Regency-era England, the period drama based on Julia Quinn’s novels is full of opulent mansions and palace-like abodes — and we’re gonna do our best to track down their real-life counterparts.
You’d be forgiven for thinking that some of the houses on Bridgerton are too beautiful to be true.
But quite a few real life settings served as filming locations for the massively successful Netflix show, some that you can actually go visit and admire in all their grandeur.
Among them: the ivy and wisteria-covered house of the Bridgerton family, their country home – Aubrey Hall, Lady Danbury’s house, the Duke of Hastings’ impressive residence, and the Clyvedon Castle where the Duke and Duchess move to after their wedding.
Read on to see where you’ll find each of them in real life. Spoiler alert: you’ll have to travel all the way to the UK to visit them.
The Bridgerton house
The red brick Georgian mansion portrayed as the house of the Bridgerton family is, by all definitions, dream home material.
With its elegant gated entrance, tall white windows that stand out against the carefully maintained brick façade — wonderfully framed by ivy and wisteria — the Bridgerton house is exactly what you’d expect a viscount’s home to look like.
In reality, the building used to film the scenes of Anthony and Daphne’s house is actually a museum.
Built in 1723, the former residence goes by the name Ranger’s House and is home to a world-class art collection amassed by diamond magnate Sir Julius Wernher.
The house had many distinguished owners in its 300-year history, though its first resident was a naval officer who made his fortune selling ship’s cargoes.
It was later home to the 4th Earl of Chesterfield and later still became the residence of the Ranger (keeper) of Greenwich Park, hence the name.
If you’d like to visit the Bridgerton house, you’ll find it in South East London, right next to Greenwich Park.
Now home to the Wernher Collection, the 300-year-old Georgian mansion has about 700 museum items on display across 12 rooms.
The impressive collection includes priceless items ranging from Renaissance jewelry to medieval, Byzantine and Renaissance ivories, enamels, bronzes, as well as tapestries and furniture, so there’s much more to see than just a familiar exterior. There’s also a beautiful rose garden behind it.
Aubrey Hall, the Bridgerton country house
The much-anticipated second season of Bridgerton introduces quite a few charming new characters. But the new addition that stole our hearts is the country estate of the Bridgerton family, Aubrey Hall.
The Bridgerton ancestral estate is reminiscent of the viscount family’s house in London, with vining plants framing its façade. But Aubrey Hall is much grander — in both its architecture and significance.
We’ll refrain from commenting on the house’s history or the events that take place there, as not to let a spoiler slip and ruin the second season for those that didn’t yet get a chance to watch it. Instead, we’ll quickly take a trip to the mainland to find the spectacular property’s real life counterpart.
Standing in as Aubrey Hall in the hit Netflix series Bridgerton is Wrotham Park, a neo-Palladian English country house located in the parish of South Mimms, in Hertfordshire.
Set in the heart of a sprawling 2,500-acre estate, Wrotham Park fits the series’ narrative like a glove. Built in in 1754 for Admiral John Byng, the fourth son of Admiral George Byng (the 1st Viscount of Torrington), the estate is one of the largest private houses near London inside the M25 motorway.
With its sheer size, intricate architecture, and opulent interiors, Wrotham Park has attracted countless filmmakers, with the long list of productions filmed here including Kingsman (both the first movie and the sequel), Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001), Jane Eyre (2011), and Great Expectations (2012).
According to Wikipedia, Wrotham Park’s drawing room featured as the interior of Buckingham Palace in the Downton Abbey movie. It was also featured in several seasons of Netflix’s The Crown, as Clarence House and Gatcombe Park, home of the Princess Royal.
Lady Danbury’s house
As the second season gives Lady Danbury a more prominent role, her beautiful home takes center stage too. Especially since it’s also hosting our leading ladies, Sharma sisters Kate and Edwina.
According to local publication Welwyn Hatflield Times, two locations were used to film scenes that took place on Lady Danbury’s estate: the Holburne Museum in Bath was used for exterior shots of the house, while the ball was filmed at the Syon Park Conservatory in Brentford, England.
You’ll find the Holburne Museum inside the Sydney Pleasure Gardens, a public open space at the end of Great Pulteney Street in Bath, Somerset, England.
The building has a rich history that dates back to 1882 and is the city’s first public art gallery, hosting its original owner, Sir William Holburne’s collection of fine and decorative arts.
The ball scene, however, was filmed at the Conservatory of Syon Park — the 56.6 hectare (roughly 140 acres) garden of Syon House, the London home of the Duke of Northumberland. A location worthy of royal balls indeed, the Conservatory can be rented for private events.
The Duke of Hastings house in London
Many were smitten by the charming Duke of Hastings (yours truly included).
And those that didn’t fall for his charms were likely drawn by his palatial London home, a striking castle sitting on vast grounds with manicured lawns and water features. You know, the type of home a duke might live in.
In reality though, the house is owned by an earl and a countess. More specifically, the Earl and Countess of Pembroke, who own the Wilton House in Salisbury, UK, which served as filming location for the Duke of Hasting’s house on the show.
The Wilton House was used for exterior shots of the Duke’s house, and also served as the interiors of pretty much every other house featured in the first season.
Built back in 1544, the Wilton House has been inextricably linked to the political and artistic circles of England. But that’s not why the estate looks so familiar (unless you’re a history buff with a passion for UK royalty).
The house was used for many movies including Emma, Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, Tomb Raider (2017) and other popular Netflix shows like The Crown and Outlander.
And it’s not just the grounds of the palatial estate that are used as filming settings. On the inside, the Wilton House boasts carefully maintained 17th century interiors, splendid state rooms, and a world famous art collection by renowned artists such as van Dyck, Pieter Brueghel, Rembrandt van Rijn and Richard Wilson.
In fact, many Bridgerton indoor scenes were filmed inside the Wilton House, including Queen Charlotte’s palace, Lady Danbury’s house, of course, the Duke of Hastings’, as well as interior shots of Simon and Daphne’s house in the country. Though for that last one, a different stately home was used for the exterior shots, as we’re about to find out.
Clyvedon Castle, home to the Duke and Duchess of Hasting
Daphne and Simon’s house, where the couple retreats mid-season for their honeymoon, is a massive estate that goes by the name Clyvedon Castle.
The rightful inheritance of the Duke of Hastings, the castle is supposedly the biggest residence in Clyvedon village, which Simon starts spearheading soon after their arrive at the estate.
Arguably one of the most memorable homes on the show (though admittedly, the competition is quite fierce), the fictional country house of the Duke and Duchess of Hastings is actually a real-life castle known as Castle Howard — a 16th century palace in North Yorkshire that beams with history.
The estate dates back to 1699, and was once home to the 3rd Earl of Carlisle.
In fact, the private residence has been the home to the Carlisle branch of the Howard family for more than 300 years, and it often lends its exteriors to filming crews; other movies filmed at Castle Howard include the 1995 mini-series The Buccaneers, Stanley Kubrick’s 1975 film Barry Lyndon, and Brideshead (both the 1981 TV series and the 2008 film adaptation).
The castle and mausoleum were also used as the setting for the 2018 Arctic Monkeys video Four Out of Five.
More on-screen homes
Where is the Castle from The Royal Treatment? And is Lavania a Real Place?
Menabilly, the Real-Life Inspiration for the Manderley House in ‘Rebecca’
Dunnock Manor, the Sprawling Family Home in ‘Father Christmas is Back’
Where to Find the Real Carrington Manor from ‘Dynasty’