Style & Culture

Paddington' film locations: Where were the movies shot?

Please look after this bear… The two films based on the classic children’s books kept to the spirit of the original while ramping up the action and jokes. With a third marmalade-filled film in the pipeline, we cast a fond eye over their (mostly) London locations
'Paddington' film locations Where were the movies shot
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The recent revelation that Paddington 3 is in 'active development' is just the news we all need – and it was confirmed again at Cannes in July 2021 (though won't start shooting until summer 2022). Fabulously fun, endlessly inventive and all-round heartwarming, the first two adaptations of Michael Bond’s classic tales of the Peruvian bear adopted by the kindly Brown family were perfectly judged updates of the family tale. Along with the wonderful cast, led by Ben Whishaw’s voicing of our ursine pal, the 2014 original and 2017 sequel were deserved hits around the world. With the use of real locations, they also showcased the huge appeal of the UK, bringing new life to both landmarks and little-known corners in London and beyond. Here’s our tour of the highlights.

WHERE WAS 'PADDINGTON' FILMED?

  • THE BROWNS' HOME The home of the Brown family where Paddington goes to stay is billed as 32 Windsor Gardens which...
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    THE BROWNS' HOME

    The home of the Brown family, where Paddington goes to stay, is billed as 32 Windsor Gardens which seems to be in a neighbourhood such as Notting Hill in the west of the capital. Filming in fact took place north, on Chalcot Crescent in Primrose Hill, a picturesque curve of houses that provides a pastel-shaded vision of London straight out of a traditional storybook – but which very much exists.

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    PADDINGTON STATION

    For the all-important station where our bear hero is discovered, only one place would do: the railway platforms were indeed filmed at Paddington Station, though we don’t see the statue of a little duffel-coated bear that now stands at the entrance. For aesthetic reasons, however, the front of the station is the more timeless Marylebone Station nearby, which is much less busy but retains its late-19th-century design.

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    WESTBOURNE OAK STATION

    The Browns' local underground station is given a very West London name but is in fact a combination of three locations from across the city. The front is from pretty, red-tiled Maida Vale Station, the escalators with their lamps are from the Edwardian St John’s Wood, and the platforms are from Charing Cross’s Jubilee Line – unused and therefore a popular film location, seen in Skyfall and The Bourne Ultimatum.

    Find out more about where the James Bond films were shot

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    GRUBER’S SHOP

    Paddington’s friend Mr Gruber (Jim Broadbent) presides over a palace of curios that seems too good to be true, but a visit to Notting Hill will reveal that this is in fact Alice’s antiques store on Portobello Road, home to the famous market of the same name. We later see Paddington skateboard along the street too.

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    THE GEOGRAPHERS’ GUILD

    For the meeting of this august body, the production secured a classic London members’ club, The Reform Club on Pall Mall. Founded in 1836, its galleried atrium and checkerboard-tiled floor make it a popular location: you can see it in 2020’s Tenet, 2021’s Bridgerton and in both the 1956 and 1989 versions of Around The World in 80 Days, among many others. For other scenes set here, in which Mr Brown (Hugh Bonneville) gets himself into trouble, shooting took place at another popular film venue, Hatfield House in Hertfordshire.

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    THE NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM

    The movie takes in many of the capital’s sights, including Tower Bridge and Trellick Tower. Most significant of these is The Natural History Museum in South Kensington, where Millicent Clyde (Nicole Kidman) works, filmed in the real thing – give or take a roof.

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    COSTA RICA

    The opening scenes, in which we see Paddington at home in Darkest Peru, take us outside the UK for the only time. In tune with the rest of the movie, this setting is close to the real thing – though it’s not actually Peru but Costa Rica. Filming took place in the Monteverde Cloud Forest, a dense, mist-covered reserve with incredible biodiversity, if not many bears.

    WHERE WAS 'PADDINGTON 2' FILMED?

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    CLERKENWELL

    While the sequel returns to the same locations for the Browns’ home and Mr Gruber’s shop, we also roam much further across the city. When Paddington and family are trying to hunt down the mysterious book robber, for example, they’re over in Clerkenwell, passing through Jerusalem Passage, St John’s Square and Rosebery Avenue.

    Read our insider's guide to Clerkenwell

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    CAMDEN

    One of the film’s most charming scenes is Paddington’s dog-riding chase along a canal. This was filmed on the towpath in Camden, North London, close to Hampstead Road locks and just by the neighbourhood’s famous market.

    These are the coolest things to do in Camden

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    ST PAUL'S CATHEDRAL

    The first film shot in the Natural History Museum, but this time round the production secured an even greater coup with St Paul’s, receiving permission to close the cathedral for the Brown family visit. Another classic London landmark featured is Tower Bridge – briefly seen in the first film, here it appears in a scene with master of disguise Phoenix Buchanan (Hugh Grant).

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    KNEBWORTH PARK

    For the funfair where Paddington crosses the palm of Madame Kozlova (Dame Eileen Atkins), the production moved out of the city to Knebworth, building the site from scratch at this great estate in Hertfordshire and filming in chilly January, despite the summer setting. Also known as a big concert venue, the house and grounds have been used for many TV adaptations and films, from Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman to The King’s Speech.

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    THE PRISON

    For Paddington’s adventure behind bars, the production headed to two distinct locations. The exterior is Shepton Mallet in Somerset, which was Britain’s oldest prison when it closed in 2013 after four centuries. The interior, meanwhile, is another disused jail, Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin. Now a museum, its open panopticon design of galleries has appeared in many classic films, from The Italian Job to In the Name of the Father and The Wind that Shakes the Barley.

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