Boat Story location guide: Where was the BBC series filmed?

They snatch the substance, hoping to transform their lives forever by selling it on - but alas, things take a dark turn when the true owner makes it his mission to trace the missing delivery.

The story unfolds in a fictional coastal town called Applebury, with the creators explaining that no single place in England "offered absolutely everything that you see in this show".

As a result, Boat Story was filmed in several locations – read on for an overview.

Where is Boat Story filmed? Location guide for BBC drama

Much of the filming for Boat Story took place in Yorkshire, with co-creator Jack Williams mentioning Leeds and York as particularly useful locations for the shoot, which demanded versatility from its setting.

"We had pictures in our mind of where it took place," he told press. "We wanted somewhere by the coast, but it wasn't going to be the depiction of a traditional British TV coastal detective drama.

"We started to consider how to get a touch of that, but also somewhere urban that can also be rural, and we looked at a lot of different places."

Williams continued: "We started from the coast and began working back, and as we looked around Yorkshire - and particularly Leeds and York - we found it offered a massive variety of locations to stitch together."

Local publications noted filming taking place at Redcar Beach (via Teesside Gazette) and in Selby (via Yorkshire Live) in January and February of this year.

"We wanted something that felt interesting and a little different to what we've seen before. There is no town in England that offered absolutely everything that you see in this show," added Williams.

"But it's a slightly storybook version of it - which, again, felt on point thematically with what we're trying to do."

Haggard and Joseph had warm words for the region, describing it as a "beautiful" place, although for the Back to Life creator it represented her first experience of working away from home – and being away from her kids was tough.

"One night I did a night shoot and I was going to wake up in the morning obviously and travel back, but I thought I could make the school run," she told RadioTimes.com.

"And I did a mad thing – I travelled through the night in a car to get there having done a night shoot, to then go, 'Right, let's do the school run,' [to] surprise them and take them to school."

Haggard laughed: "Four days later, when I still felt jet lagged, I slightly regretted that."

On the other hand, she described eating fish and chips on her lunch break as a "high point", and said there was a "bleak beauty" to being at the beach during winter "and the wind just stripping you".

Joseph had his own standout location: "Halifax was the big surprise for me and going into the covered market and finding 'the street in the sky', which is [comprised of] five-bedroom houses above a market.

"It’s a beautiful place and should be renovated as I think artists would love to live up there," he said of the unusual properties, which can be found above the Grade II listed Halifax Borough Market.

Boat Story premieres on BBC One and iPlayer at 9pm on Sunday 19th November 2023. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.

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