Murder Before Evensong is an easy-paced, cosy crime drama based on the bestselling novel by Rev Richard Coles, and the filming locations include a famous 17th-century country house in the care of the National Trust.

The six-part series, which airs on both Acorn and Channel 5, introduces the character of Canon Daniel Clement to the small screen. He made his debut in the book of the same name in 2023 – and has appeared in the subsequent sequels.

The Richard Coles book is set in the English village of Champton St Mary in 1988. But is it a real place, what filming locations were used, and what church posed as Champton Church in Murder Before Evensong? Here’s what we know…

Murder Before Evensong filming locations

Acorn and Channel 5 crime drama Murder Before Evensong was filmed primarily in and around the West Midlands. Filming took place over 13 weeks earlier this year.

Specific filming locations used in Murder Before Evensong include Stourbridge, a market town in the Borough of Dudley. Cast and crew filmed scenes in Stourbridge’s pretty Mary Stevens Park, a public space located in Norton.

Cast and crew were spotted filming outside a council building on the edge of Mary Stevens Park.

The village of Gornal in Dudley was also used for filming – this region included the historic villages of Upper Gornal, Lower Gornal, and Gornal Wood. Key features include the famous Crooked House pub, Gornal Wood Crematorium, and a local library.

Filming for the Channel 5 series took place in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, too. The town centre, including Church Street and areas around the old post office and the church, were all used as filming locations for Murder Before Evensong.

The Queen Street building in Wolverhampton was also being used for filming.

Is Champton St Mary a real village?

Champton St Mary is not a real village. It’s a fictional village made up by the wonderful imagination of Rev Richard Coles.

Dudmaston Hall actually posed as Champton House in the Acorn/C5 series. The building is a working estate with “an old family home at its heart”. Dudmaston Hall is located at Quatt, near Bridgnorth, Shropshire. It’s a 17th-century country house in the care of the National Trust in the Severn Valley.

Meanwhile, cast and crew recreated Champton in Worfield, a village and civil parish in Shropshire in the West Midlands. St Peters Church was used as the village’s place of worship and Canon Daniel Clement’s second home.

Talking about the inspiration for the setting, Richard Coles was asked if Champton was an “amalgamation of villages”.

He said: “I don’t want to say where Champton is inspired by, but Bernard’s house is based on two houses. It’s half-based on Althorp, where the Spencers live, which was near to where I was in Northamptonshire. And it’s half-based on another house which I was very excited about.”

The former I’m A Celebrity contestant continued: “This house is ancient and the same family have lived there since the Norman conquest. It’s never been let, sold, or open to the public. And you can’t see it from any road. Then they only bloody used it for Saltburn! So that ruled out using Drayton House in Northamptonshire.”

Murder Before Evensong filming locations mark ‘such an important moment for the region’s profile’

Murder Before Evensong was supported by the West Midlands Production Fund.

Paul Ashton, head of film & TV, Creative UK, stated: “The West Midlands Production Fund is delighted to be supporting the show at such an important moment for the region’s profile as a home for high-end TV – with what we hope will be an instant hit with audiences.”

At the time of the commissioning announcement, Radford Neville, executive producer and director of The Lighthouse, said of the series: “We can’t wait to bring Richard’s fabulous world of vicars, miniature dachshunds and bloody murder to audiences around the globe in this complex and gripping mystery.”

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