On Location peels back the curtain on some of your favourite films, television shows, and more. This time, we look at The Sheep Detectives filming locations.
Not all heroes wear capes goes the popular idiom. And this year’s unexpected spring hit, The Sheep Detectives, is a perfect example of this. The mystery-comedy features an all-star cast (Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Emma Thompson, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Bryan Cranston) and follows… a flock of sheep who investigate the murder of their shepherd.
Set outside the small English village of Denbrook, shepherd George Hardy (Jackson) reads mystery thrillers to his flock every night. But suddenly, fiction becomes reality when the sheep find him dead with blue and green dye on his hands.
While local policeman Tim Derry (Nicholas Braun) immediately rules it a heart attack, the sheep aren’t so sure, especially as they recognise some signs from their bedtime murder mystery readings. Set in the gorgeous English countryside, these rolling hills and peaceful landscape serve as a perfect contradiction to this dark story of murder. This perfect pairing has formed a genre in and of itself: cosy crime.
From Agatha Christie to the latest Knives Out installation, the countryside and murder have long satisfied our love for sprawling stories in serene environments. Unsurprisingly, the stunning locations featured in the film caught the attention of the Condé Nast Traveller office, so join us for a deeper look into them…
White Pond Farm, Surrey
This location ended up serving as the main hub for the on-screen farm, where George lived, and then the sheep began their investigation of his death. Between the rolling Chiltern Hills, this working farm has a farmhouse where guests can stay in self-catering accommodation.
A popular location, White Pond Farm has also been the setting for four episodes of Midsomer Murders and James Bond.
