The Hairdresser Mysteries on BBC One: Cosy crime is set in a 'sleepy northern market town' called Blossom Vale, but is it real?
The real town is chocolate box pretty...
The Hairdresser Mysteries follows protagonist Lily as she abandons her life in London to move into the quaint historic town of Blossom Vale, but what filming locations were really used?
The new cosy crime introduces Lily Petal, who screeches onto our screens in her Triumph Spitfire blaring old 70s tunes. A modern-day hairdresser with an all-consuming love for everything 70s, Lily leaves behind her high-profile career in a trendy London salon for the charm of a small shop in a sleepy northern market town.
It’s certainly a change of gear. And not everyone welcomes her. But it’s not long before Lily’s quiet life is cut short when murders begin happening right on her doorstep…
Lily discovers her intuition and eye for detail make her surprisingly good at untangling clues in her new home town. So what filming locations were used in The Hairdresser Mysteries, and is Blossom Vale real?
The Hairdresser Mysteries filming locations: Is Blossom Vale real?
Sally Phillips’ new cosy crime drama is set in “sleepy northern market town” called Blossom Vale. But it’s not a real town in the UK.
Instead, filming took place in September 2025 across the West Midlands. This is part of a huge BBC initiative to make the Beeb less London-centric. In the past few years, we’ve had This City is Ours, and Unforgivable in Liverpool, Silent Witness’ move from London to Birmingham, and Virdee in Bradford.
Personally, we love seeing different parts of the UK on our screens. Thank you The Guest for showing us the beauty of Wales, and there’s always Shetland for its stunning filming locations… MasterChef is now also based out of the West Midlands.
Helen Munson, Commissioning Editor for BBC Daytime, said: “The BBC made a commitment to reinvest in new programming from the West Midlands. The West Midlands has so much home-grown talent in the drama sector both on and off screen, commissioning The Hairdresser Mysteries will offer more jobs to the region and showcase what the area has to offer.”
Where was The Hairdresser Mysteries really filmed?
BBC’s new cosy crime drama The Hairdresser Mysteries was filmed across the West Midlands in England, Specifically Alcester, which posed as Blossom Vale.
Alcester is a historic Roman market town in Warwickshire, England, situated eight miles west of Stratford-upon-Avon. Known for its timber-framed Tudor architecture and bustling high street, the town sits at the junction of the River Arrow and River Alne. The town dates back to AD 47 when the Romans built a settlement called Alauna.
The Guardian “love the Ye Olde Midlands-y prettiness” of Alcester. With its “crooked, half-timbered crocks, stout, ruddy-faced Georgian brick town houses, and a high street of butchers and sweet shops”. The town is famed for holding the UK’s biggest royal wedding street party.
Within seconds of The Hairdresser Mysteries credits, viewers will see Lily driving down Alcester High Street. Much of filming took place in Church House on Butter Street, which serves as Lily’s salon. The house was transformed into a 70s-style hairdressing salon.
In reality, Church House is a historic 15th-century building in Alcester. Located at 17 Butter Street, it serves as the administrative hub and meeting hall for St Nicholas Church and the Alcester Minster. It was originally a home and a bakehouse before the church acquired it.
Viewers will also see Oversley Green, a small village located in the county of Warwickshire. The tranquil filming location is known for its picturesque green spaces and charming residential streets. A residential home called Bridge House in Oversley Green was used as a key location.
Shakespeare & Hathaway has also used the area as a filming location.
Key filming locations used in The Hairdresser Mysteries
- The Chateau Impney Hotel & Exhibition Centre features in The Hairdresser Mysteries. It is a Grade II listed 19th-century house built in the style of an elaborate French château. You can find it in Droitwich Spa in Worcestershire. It’s been a hotel since 1925.
- Cast and crew also filmed some scenes in Stratford-upon-Avon, a medieval market town in England’s West Midlands on the banks of the River Avon. It’s known for being the birthplace and burial place of the playwright and poet William Shakespeare.
- Wellesbourne, a large village in the civil parish of Wellesbourne and Walton, in the county of Warwickshire.
- Scenes were filmed at a local bingo hall and the Perdiswell Leisure Centre in Worcester.
- In Redditch, cast and crew filmed outside the Batchley Road Fish Bar.
- In episode 3, Lily Petal arrives in Ragley Hall, a notable 17th-century stately home in Warwickshire featuring a grand Palladian facade.
- Wellsbourne, Droitwich, Evesham, and Aston Cantlow also feature as filming locations in The Hairdresser Mysteries.
Read more: Channel 5’s gripping new thriller An Impossible Way to Die follows the ‘race against time to unmask a killer’
