Mancunians Assemble – Greater Manchester Unveils Self-Guided Film and TV Location Map

Marketing Manchester, the agency charged with promoting the city nationally and internationally, has launched a new self-guided map to help visitors explore iconic filming locations from their favourite productions that have been shot in the city, including blockbuster films like Captain America: The First Avenger and TV series such as Peaky Blinders and UK’s longest running soap opera Coronation Street.

The map, created in partnership with the Manchester Accommodation BID and Screen Manchester, aims to promote the city’s screen tourism and is timed to launch as part of the wider international campaign from VisitBritain’s “Starring GREAT Britain” that is showcasing the rich cultural history in the UK connected to film and TV. The economic value of tourism for the city region is, as of the end of 2024, a reported £9.5bn and for the city, £5.16bn, and Manchester is consistently the third most visited UK city after London and Edinburgh. With this newly launched map, the city is looking to get a share of the growing screen tourism industry and set-jetters and see the city competing domestically and internationally as a destination of choice.

The map, designed by Instruct Studio, a multi-disciplinary communications studio based in the city, guides visitors through Greater Manchester’s key role in various productions, offering insider information, trivia, and pinpointing notable locations. This initiative launched by the city is part of the growing international trend of “set-jetting,” where travellers seek out destinations featured in their favourite films and TV shows.

Victoria Braddock, Managing Director of Marketing Manchester, on the importance of the film and TV industry to the region’s cultural identity and tourism, said, “Greater Manchester’s film and TV industry is a vital part of our cultural identity and a major driver of tourism. From the iconic cobbles of Coronation Street to the cutting-edge productions at Space Studios, our city-region is home to a plethora of world-class talent and facilities.”

Elaborating on the map created, she added, “This new map highlights the incredible offering of our city-region as a leading destination for film and TV production and the activity will complement the fantastic work VisitBritain is doing to promote national screen tourism through their new campaign, Starring GREAT Britain.”

Patricia Yates, CEO of VisitBritain, driving the Starring GREAT Britain campaign, on the growing appeal of screen tourism, on the back of the agency’s research that showed nine out of ten potential visitors to the UK are keen to visit places used in filming, said, “It’s brilliant to see Marketing Manchester launch this map, harnessing the powerful draw of screen tourism to put the region’s fantastic visitor offer centre-stage. It’s also timely as we launch our international Starring GREAT Britain campaign, that sees Britain the star of the show. Using film and TV as the hook, our campaign tells the story of our dynamic and diverse destinations including Greater Manchester, inspiring people to put themselves in the picture and discover more of Britain, driving visitor spending into local economies.”

Films Featured in the Map

Recent and forthcoming productions filmed in Greater Manchester that feature on the map include major Netflix productions such as the high profile The Crown which recreated New York in the centre, and forthcoming series House of Guinness, looking at the famous Guinness brewing family, where the city doubled for Dublin. This is alongside key locations that the city is also known for, including productions such as Darkest Hour, It’s a Sin, Life on Mars, A Gentleman in Moscow, and many more.

Speaking at the time of the filming of the Crown, Bobby Cochrane, Screen Manchester’s Development Manager on why it is sought after location, “Having another high profile drama like The Crown choosing Manchester as a place to film continues to showcase how adaptable the city is as an ideal filming location. It was a pleasure to assist the production team in achieving their vision of doubling key Manchester locations as period New York.”

The new map also features locations in American mystery writer Harlan Coben’s novel adaptation and viral hit Missing You, which hit the platform in early January. Netflix has also just announced a new series with Coben called Run Away, which is due to get underway again in Manchester later in January and will no doubt be added to the map in due course. 

The map also includes eagerly awaited films that have filmed around the city in 2024. First up is the Peaky Blinders feature film, following on from the six series on Netflix, starring Cillian Murphy, which, like in the series, has the Northern Quarter doubling up for New York City. Anemone, starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Sean Bean, which Day-Lewis co-wrote with his son Ronan Day-Lewis, who is also the director and filmed around the city as other parts of the north west of England. The map also features upcoming rom-com CC Emily from Working Title, and Talamasca, based on the Immortal Universe novels of gothic fiction writer Anne Rice.

Screen Manchester – Local Expertise

Screen Manchester has seen a significant increase in film and TV productions choosing the city and its surrounding areas for shooting in recent years. With its expertise on the ground, assisting and facilitating productions seeking to film in the city, the newly launched map builds on the vast on-the-ground experience of what appeals to producers and location managers about shooting in Manchester.

Bobby Cochrane, Film Office Manager at Screen Manchester, on this appeal: “Every day we are privileged to explore Manchester’s magnificence as we open the city up to producers from all corners of the globe. We then enjoy the greatest job satisfaction when locations we have secured appear in all manner of genres across a spectrum of platforms.

“This new map is a brilliant initiative, which will allow visitors to get up close and personal with some of the places where their on-screen heroes have played out their roles. We were delighted to help curate the information included and look forward to being able to add a whole host of new locations in the future thanks to a rich pipeline of productions filmed in the city releasing throughout 2025 and beyond.”

Breakdown of Manchester Tourism

In 2022/23, according to Manchester City Council’s report released at the end of 2024 into the night and visitor economy, it was estimated that the city’s cultural organisations had an estimated economic impact of £264.4 million. The estimated Social Value in the same year was £6.5 million (2023 Culture Impact Survey – based on responses from 43 cultural organisations).

In 2023, the city’s five most visited attractions were the Manchester Museum, HOME, Manchester Art Gallery, Science and Industry Museum, and The Whitworth. This is also on the back of significant investment in the culture and leisure offer such as Aviva Studios, Coop Live, HOME, and Manchester Museum, which has widened the appeal to different audiences and multi-age groups. The push for screen tourism fits in with the wider efforts identified by the Council, and the Greater Manchester International Strategy 2022-2025, which set out an ambition for Greater Manchester to be a world-class visitor hub for business and leisure tourism. Marketing Manchester are also developing a new Visitor Economy Strategy for Greater Manchester, which covers a 5-year period from 2025 to 2030, and it will be interesting to see future developments on screen tourism as part of this and building on not only attracting more productions but also placing Manchester firmly on the map for set-jetters.

On a wider cultural note, it is a busy cultural year for the city, including increasing its global cultural connections, participating as the first UK city to be invited to join La Merce festival in Barcelona, and celebrating Japanese culture as host to the 50th edition of prestigious Japan Week in September.

Talking about the big series of cultural events in the city-region in 2025, Victoria Braddock, Managing Director of Marketing Manchester, said, “It’s an exciting time to plan a visit to Manchester in 2025 – following the last few years of major reopenings across the cultural scene, including Aviva Studios, Manchester Museum and Co-op Live, the city-region has a wide range of unique attractions and experiences for visitors to enjoy.

“In 2025, there are plenty of must-see moments exclusive to Manchester, with new reasons to visit all year long. Alongside the popular return of annual events like the Manchester Flower Festival, Manchester Pride, and Christmas Markets, it’s fantastic to see the tourism offer in the region grow.”

To see Marketing Manchester’s annual review for 2023/24 visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2udCOB3d8Pw.

Further Details on Marketing Manchester’s Film and TV Map

The map is available online at visitmanchester.com/filmandtv, where visitors can find itineraries, behind-the-scenes information, and exclusive experiences to enhance their cinematic journey through Greater Manchester. The initiative is expected to boost tourism and local economies by not only attracting visitors keen to explore the locations of their favorite films and TV shows but now making it much easier to find these locations.