We’re very enthusiastic about providing film and TV with the backdrops needed to create some of the best entertainment around in London. But it’s hard to ignore that some of the most truly impressive filming locations aren’t actually in London. If you’re willing to travel just a short distance, you can find the location of the grand mansion used as Mr. Darcy‘s house in the BBC adaptation of Pride & Prejudiceright near our friends up in Manchester. The Pride and Prejudice house is part of Lyme Estate in DisleyCheshire, and its surroundings are open to the public thanks to the National Trust.
From a hunting lodge to a country house, there’s 600 years of history hidden across the sprawling Lyme Estate. It’s the quaint hunting lodge, Lyme East Lodgeon the grounds that can be rented for two-night stays, with prices starting from £315.
Swap grey window views for vast panoramas of green countryside and roaming red deer, as Lyme East Lodge is nestled on the eastern boundary of Lyme’s 1,400 acre historic deer park. The two-bedroom Edwardian cottage overlooks the moorland plateau of Kinder Scout and the historic cage banqueting tower, which was used as a 16th-century hunting lodge.
Inside the sandstone house, you’ll find an inviting interior with spacious rooms that retain some of their original features. It can also accommodate dogs too, with a garden at the rear of the cottage for your pup to stretch their legs.
Take advantage of free access to the Lyme estate and explore the many walking trails or visit the main house where much of the BBC adaptation of Pride & Prejudice was filmed. Promenade through the beautiful gardens, creating a regency romance of your very own, see the lake from the infamous wet t-shirt scene (although recreations are discouraged), or don your finery and tickle the ivories inside the house, just like Jane Austen would’ve wanted.
And while you’re in the North, there’s plenty more literary history to check out. The Brontë sisters were famously born in Bradfordand subsequently moved to beautiful Haworth in Yorkshire, not dissimilar to Lyme in environment and location. Lyme really represents English heritage and literary excellence, and could very well have been the inspiration for many fictional worlds, which we’ll soon be able to live in ourselves.
Like many great houses, Lyme was built and rebuilt, embellished and enlarged throughout its ownership by the Legh family, with each generation making its mark and creating the house we see today. Explore the endless rooms and discover unusual objects and strange secrets as you walk through six centuries of family history at Lyme in Cheshire. You can also find out about the battle that changed the Legh family’s fortunes and why images of “severed arms” and ram’s heads feature on the walls, ceilings and furniture in the house.
Nearby, there is also the Timber Yard Coffee Shop for tea, coffee, and cake, and a restaurant that is open for lunch daily, so you’ll never go hungry with the Peak District hospitality that surrounds Lyme.
You can find out more information and book a getaway to Lyme on the National Trust website.
📍 Lyme Estate is located in Disley, Stockport, SK12 2NR.
