William Shakespeare is as strongly associated with Stratford-upon-Avon as Black Sabbath is with Birmingham. So when it came to filming Chloe Zhao’s new film ‘Hamnet’, which follows the relationship between the Bard and his wife, Agnes, after the death of their 11-year-old son, where better to shoot than… Herefordshire!?
Based on Maggie O’Farrell’s novel of the same name, and starring Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley, ‘Hamnet’ is out this Friday in the UK (January 9) and is hotly tipped to win everything at the Oscars. But rather than filming in Shakespeare’s real hometown, the 300-strong crew had to look elsewhere for 16th-century England.
Where is Shakespeare’s Stratford-upon-Avon in ‘Hamnet’?
Herefordshire’s black and white village of Weobley (not to be confused with Weoley Castle) is less than a two-hour drive from Birmingham. The timber-framed buildings of Broad Street, Bell Square and Church Road became the perfect replacement for Stratford-upon-Avon in ‘Hamnet’ (although dirtied up a touch with mud and straw).
Filming took place over six weeks, with various locations along the River Wye also making an appearance in the film. While about 13 miles away, Cwmmau Farmhouse, a grand Jacobean farmhouse you can actually rent out yourself, became (the popular tourist attraction in its own right) Anne Hathaway’s cottage.
Where else was used as a filming location in ‘Hamnet’?
Further afield, Gloucestershire’s lush and lovely Lydney Park Estate framed many of the more idyllic scenes, with Agnes exploring the forests around her house, foraging for herbal remedies and choosing to give birth there. Meanwhile, William is often in London—at The Globe Theatre, Charterhouse in Farringdon, and the River Thames’ Durham Wharf.