Lights, Camera, Action! Visit Essex launches tourist movie map of the County in conjunction with the Essex Film Office

15th July 2025

Visit Essex, the county’s tourism organisation, is launching a new movie map to encourage tourists to  visit top film and TV locations.

Is Essex a county of spies, superheroes, gothic romances and people fighting injustice? Have you bumped into Tom Cruise, Cate Blanchett, Tom Holland or Tom Hiddleston on the High Street?

A new campaign ‘Starring Essex’ has revealed the top spots across the county that have hit the screen. From the gritty streets of the ever-popular spy thriller series ‘Slow Horses’ to the star-studded historical romance of ‘The Essex Serpent’, Essex has taken centre stage.

Screen tourism is growing; the latest figures reveal 7 in 10 UK visitors have sought out a film or TV location¹. Over recent years Essex has also seen an exponential growth in TV and film productions. In 2024/25 the Essex Film Office recorded over £3m in economic impact from film and TV production activity in Essex. Due to these figures, the tourism sector is now looking forward to benefit.

Councillor McKinlay, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Communities, Economic Growth and Prosperity, said: “TV and film is a rapidly growing industry in Essex and brings a lot of economic benefits to the county. There’s not only an opportunity to drive film tourism, but also employment for people onscreen and behind the scenes. Venues in Essex, from historic houses and urban settings, to forests and coasts, have all become popular filming venues and are benefiting from additional revenue.”

Thanks to the launch of the new movie map, film fans can follow in the footsteps of their favourite actors and superheroes. The map includes locations for ‘Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part 1’, which was filmed in Stansted Airport. Visitors can recreate a pose from ‘Wonderwoman’ at Tilbury Fort or imagine being Lady Mary from ‘Downton New Era’ at the Electric Palace, Harwich. It also details locations for much-loved historic TV shows, such as Porridge, which was filmed in Chelmsford prison. The city was also the backdrop for one of the UK’s biggest groundbreaking dramas, ‘Mr Bates vs The Post Office’, which was filmed at Chelmsford’s Shire Hall. Tom Hiddleston and Claire Danes’ fans can retrace their steps by following The Essex Serpent trail.

The special trail takes in stunning scenes along the coast from Mersea Island to Maldon. Many of these productions came to the county as a result of the Essex Film Office, set-up by Essex County Council in 2021.

Councillor Mark Durham, Chair of Visit Essex, is excited about the opportunities film tourism offers. He says: “Over recent years Essex has seen a boom in TV and film productions, it has shone a light on our stunning woodlands, coast and unique buildings. From Killing Eve to Downton Abbey, Essex has made an appearance on so many well-known TV shows and blockbuster films.”

He continued: “We’re looking forward to welcoming more people to Essex! The county has so much to offer. We're keen to showcase somewhere different, but somewhere that has become iconic on both big and small screens”

Starring Essex is part of a wider Visit Britain initiative, ‘Starring Britain’. The campaign was set-up to encourage visitors to explore film locations and discover hidden gems.

To follow in the footsteps of Tom Cruise, Spiderman, Lady Mary and more, view the movie map at: www.essexfilmoffice.co.uk/filming-locations-map.

ENDS

Notes to Editor

¹ Source Visit Britain ‘The Influence of Film and TV Locations on Visits to the UK’, July 2024.

VISIT ESSEX

Visit Essex is the official tourism organisation and the only body specifically marketing the whole of the county to the visitor market. We work with visitor attractions, leisure/activity providers, accommodation establishments and other tourism related businesses (including the travel trade, media and wider partners), to ensure that the county remains a leading visitor destination.

Our work encompasses major marketing campaigns, high profile PR work, business support, and the management and promotion of the official Visit Essex brand. Visit Essex will ensure that the county gets the recognition it deserves as a desirable place to visit in the 21st century. We will work closely with partners to develop a sustainable tourism offering for the future, identify new markets and harness visitors at the county's major gateways of Stansted, Harwich, Southend and Tilbury.

FIND OUT MORE

• Hilary Collins, Big Wave PR, hilary@wearebigwavepr.co.uk, 01206 231807