A visit to Haddon Hall, currently being used as one of the filming locations for the BBC follow-up to ‘Pride and Prejudice’.

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Strange that we’ve never visited Haddon Hall before, given that it’s only a few miles drive away from where we live. The Hall is on the outskirts of Bakewell, a busy market town in Derbyshire. While we were there, film crews were busy preparing for some location filming for ‘Death Comes to Pemberley’, a drama sequel to Jane Austen’s ‘Pride and Prejudice’. Much of the location filming was being done at nearby Chatsworth House, believed to be the inspiration for Pemberley. Haddon I gather was being used for scenes set in the magistrate’s house.

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Our £10 admission tickets gave us access to the house which dates back as far as the 12th century, and also to the impressive Elizabethan terraced gardens overlooking the River Wye.

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A significant amount of work has been done replanting the gardens in the last two years, by Chelsea award winning garden designer Arne Maynard. When we visited, the borders were a glorious riot of colour.

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After visiting the house, and enjoying a picnic in the local countryside, we made the short drive into Bakewell town. A beautiful day for a stroll round the shops, and for enjoying an ice cream while watching the rainbow trout in the River Wye where it passes close to the Market Square.