ITV DRAMA The Bay has thrilled viewers by returning for another series.
Fans of the show are now keen to know where the hit TV show is actually filmed.
The Bay is set and filmed in the coastal town of Morecambe.
The Lancashire town is located north of Blackpool, and was once a bustling seaside resort.
Morecambe has a five-mile stretch of sandy beach with a long promenade, lined with cafes, restaurants and hotels.
Screenwriter Daragh Carville purposely wanted to focus his attention on Morecambe, mainly because it’s a place with lots of history and happens to be where he spent a great amount of time growing up.
Up until the 1970s, when Brits could increasingly afford holidays outside of England, Morecambe was popular with tourists.
Filming took place along the beach, but particularly around the Stone Jetty which is now all that remains of the original Victorian harbour.
Carville told Radio Times: ““It’s a really interesting mix of things, because on the one hand it’s very striking, it’s beautiful, it’s got extraordinary views out across the bay towards the Lake District.
“But it’s also got that very distinctive British or Irish seaside town quality, because as with many seaside places, it has slightly lost its raison d’être.”
Morecambe Bay in Lancashire is probably best known nowadays for the 2004 cockle picker disaster where at least 21 Chinese illegal immigrant labourers were drowned by an incoming tide.
Contrary to belief the police station in Morecambe is real.
But Carville told Radio Times: “To be fair, and without wanting to ruin the magic of television, the exteriors and the interiors are filmed at different places.”
While exteriors were shot in Morecambe, the interior scenes of meeting rooms, offices and interview rooms were filmed at a disused police station in Manchester.
Speaking about why he chose Morecambe, The Bay screenwriter Daragh Carville told Radio Times: “I suppose the combination of it being a beautiful place, but also a place that has had its struggles – there’s something about Morecambe, it’s literally on the edge of the country, but there’s also a metaphorical edge to it as well.”
Carville seemed to have plenty of knowledge about the area before choosing to lock it in as one of the main filming spots for the drama series, seeing that he lives in Lancaster, which is just inland from Morecambe.
Daragh was very adamant on the idea of using this location in the show, particularly because it fits the narrative of something that looks “beautiful” but is “a place with problems”.
He added: “Morecambe is also not the sort of place you usually see in a TV drama.
“One of the reasons I wanted to write this story and to set it there was just simply because nothing had been set there before.
“And I think there’s something really important about seeing your own life represented on screen or on stage.”
The show can next be viewed on January 27, 2021, at 9pm on ITV.
But if you can’t wait until then you can watch ALL six episodes now on the ITV Hub.
If you have a BritBox subscription you can also binge watch the series Ad free.
