Where was The Great filmed? Guide to ALL the Filming Locations

Posted by Ra Moon

Now back for season three, this magnificent Hulu series has never set foot on Russian soil. The Great was filmed almost entirely in England, and occasionally, in Italy.

If HBO's 2019 historical drama Catherine the Great told the story of the last triumphant years of Russia's longest-reigning female ruler, this satirical comedy explores her arrival at court as a young lady.

Catherine is the tsarina who - history spoiler! - expanded the country and led the kingdom into a new age of enlightenment. But how much of this occasionally true story is real? In general, the series gets it right.

But obviously, a lot of facts and details have been changed or omitted for the sake of drama (like the fact that Catherine spent 18 long years at court before reigning). So don't rely on this if you're taking a history test.

Welcome to our grand guide to all the filming locations of The Great. You'll find the locations more or less in order of appearance, with the new season 3 updates below in the report.

The Great Locations

The dazzling Royal Palace of Caserta in the south of Italy provided some of the grandest locations for the court palace of Saint Petersburg.

The Reggia di Caserta was projected by the King of Naples during the mid-18th century to rival Versailles in magnificence and grandeur.

(You can open all the locations on Google Maps by clicking on the links below in the captions ↴)
Image courtesy of Hulu and Tango 7174 - Map

The interior courtyard, the great fountain in the gardens, the theater, the marble staircase, and the scenes with the Peter the Great statue astride a bear were all filmed in Caserta.

The cast and crew occupied the historic apartments of the palace and the English Garden for five days for a sequence that required over a hundred extras.

The show stars model and actress Elle Fanning (Maleficent, All the Bright Places) as the young Catherine and Nicholas Hoult (The Menu, Renfield) as the despotic Russian Emperor Peter.

n several scenes, the actors walk up and down the corridor where the mummy of Catherine I of Russia is on display.

This is the Long Gallery at Hatfield House in Hertfordshire, England. This Jacobean-style country manor is also the Enola Holmes house - you may have seen it in other movies and TV shows such as Wonder Woman, Trust, or Taboo.

Image courtesy of Hulu and Esther Westerveld - Map

Peter III's Council Chamber was filmed in the Marble Hall, also in Hatfield House.

The wedding in the first episode was filmed here, in the Old Banqueting Hall.

If you can afford it, you can celebrate your wedding here, as the estate is normally open for all kinds of events and celebrations.

However, production designer Francesca di Mottola revealed to us that not all of the State Room scenes were filmed at Hatfield House Grand Hall.

Most of the Long Hallway scenes were filmed on a set built at 3 Mills Studios in central London.

Only episodes one and two of the first season were filmed on location at Hatfield House.

Some of the rooms are from the Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire. The Regent’s Gallery is a lovely 17th-century drawing room.

Image courtesy of Hulu and It's No Game - Map

We also discovered that some garden scenes and rooms (the Antique Passage with sculptures) were filmed at Castle Howard, an impressive stately home and private residence located near York.

Image courtesy of Hulu and Allan Harris - Map

The diplomatic meeting with the Swedish royals in episode eight, Meatballs at the Dacha, was filmed at Hever Castle's Loggia Terrace.

Located in the village of Hever, Kent, The Loggia in the lake features a 100 years old Nymph’s Fountain inspired by the world-famous Trevi Fountain in Rome.

Image courtesy of Hulu - Map

Many of the palace scenes in the second season were filmed in the red brick courtyard and grand baroque staircase of Hampton Court Palace in East Molesey.

This impressive Tudor royal palace, with its elegant cobbled courtyards and 750 acres of historic parkland, is located 12 miles southwest of central London on the River Thames.

Hampton Court Palace is also one of the top locations where the Bridgerton series was filmed.

Image courtesy of Hulu - Map

The New Season 3 Locations

The Nakaz conference in the third episode of the third season, "You The People", was filmed at the Old Royal Naval College in Maritime Greenwich.

The Painted Hall The Painted Hall boasts a stunning ceiling adorned with intricate baroque paintings by Sir James Thornhill, depicting scenes from British history and mythology.

Image courtesy of Hulu - Map

The seventh episode, "Destiny", features the Great Hall of University College School in Hampstead, London.

Image courtesy of Hulu - Map

The theater is the small but beautiful 18th century Court Theatre in the Royal Palace of Caserta near Naples.

Image courtesy of Hulu - Map

The Oriental palace in the season finale is the Mughal-style interiors of Elveden Hall.

Nestled in the picturesque Suffolk countryside, this stately home was purchased and renovated by the last true ruler of the Sikh Empire, Maharajah Duleep Singh.

The house is one of the locations where the movie Heart of Stone was filmed.

Image courtesy of Hulu - Map

Huzzah! Can you help to improve this article about the filming locations of The Great? To complete and correct this report, any feedback, info, or images that you may have are more than welcome, thank you!

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3 comments:

1- Anonymous - Aug 7, 2024, 8:52 AM
A garden with splendid hedges is often featured, but where is this filming location?

2- Emma Nelson - Oct 12, 2024, 1:57 PM
The interior of the country house that Aunt Elizabeth takes Paul to in S2 E9 was filmed at Brighton Pavilion.

3- Anonymous - Feb 16, 2025, 3:28 AM
Marvellous, thank you.

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