Offering such a stunning and diverse landscape, it is no surprise that Dartmoor has been used as the filming location for many films and television shows.

If you’re visiting Dartmoor, it can be fun to explore these filming locations yourself. We share some of the films and tv series filmed on Dartmoor and the places you can visit to see the settings.

War Horse (2011)

War Horse is a Steven Speilberg film based on Michael Morpurgo’s novel of the same name. The story is set during World War 1 and follows a young Devon man’s mission to bring his horse home from the war.

Dartmoor was used as the backdrop throughout many scenes of the film. Speaking of filming on Dartmoor, Spielberg said: “I have never before, in my long and eclectic career, been gifted with such an abundance of natural beauty as I experienced filming War Horse on Dartmoor.”

The movie was a hit, gaining 6 Academy Award nominations, 2 Golden Globes and 5 BAFTAs.

Image Credit: Richard Johns / Ditsworthy Warren House / CC BY-SA 2.0

Ditsworthy Warren House

War Horse Dartmoor Filming Locations

The rocky landscape and rolling hills of Dartmoor National Park made the perfect backdrop for the movie, providing a dramatic feel for the film. In particular, areas around Haytor, Combestone Tor and Ringmoor Down were used as filming locations in War Horse.

In the film, the main character Albert brings up Joey the horse on Narracott Farm, which is actually Ditsworthy Warren House – a grade II listed cottage on the southwest edge of Dartmoor.

Other filming locations include Meavy as a local village, Sheepstor, and Burrator Reservoir.

If you’re interested in seeing the key War Horse Dartmoor film location sites, you can follow the War Horse Walk from Visit Dartmoor.

Sherlock The Hounds of Baskerville (2012)

The BBC series Sherlock took a trip to the moors in series two episode two, The Hounds of Baskerville. The episode was based on the Arthur Conan Doyle novel, The Hound of the Baskervilles, which itself was set on Dartmoor.

Image Credit: John Phillips / Hound Tor – Dartmoor / CC BY-SA 2.0

Sherlock Filming Locations on Dartmoor

With a nod to the original novel, The Hounds of Baskerville has scenes shot in Haytor and Hound Tor. Hound Tor is where the original story was set, with the name contributing to the story.

Hound Tor

Gold Digger (2019)

Gold Digger is a six-part BBC One TV mini-series that aired in 2019, starring Ben Barnes and Julia Ormond. The series follows a wealthy 60 year old woman who begins a relationship with a much younger man, despite the disapproval of their family.

The series was predominantly shot on Dartmoor and the surrounding area.

Image Credit: Jbattersby under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported

Canonteign Falls

Gold Digger Dartmoor Filming Locations

Widecombe, a village on the eastern side of Dartmoor, is featured throughout the series, while Haytor and Honeybay Tor provide the backdrops for dramatic scenes in this tense drama.

Also featured in the show is Canonteign Falls, a 70-metre waterfall and ancient woodland, which offers a striking background for the tense penultimate episode.

Revolution (1985)

Revolution is an adventure movie from 1985, starring Al Pacino and Donald Sutherland. The film follows a man from New York who unwillingly ends up as part of the American Revolution.

Image Credit: Nilfanion / Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported

Revolution Filming Locations on Dartmoor

Despite being set in America, a lot of the filming locations for this film are in the UK. One such location is Burrator Reservoir, which is in Yelverton in the south of Dartmoor National Park.

Burrator Reservoir

Doctor Who The Sontaran Experiment (1975)

The 12th season of Doctor Who, featuring Tom Baker as the Doctor, was filmed on location on Dartmoor. The two-part episode involves the Doctor fighting the Sontarans on Earth 10,000 years in the future, in an attempt to stop them from performing experiments on humans.

Image Credit: Nilfanion / under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International

Hound Tor

Doctor Who Filming Locations on Dartmoor

The Sontaran Experiment was the second-ever episode of Doctor Who to be shot entirely on location. The episode was filmed at Hound Tor on Dartmoor, and the iconic rocks of the landscape can clearly be seen throughout the show.

 

If you would like to visit any of these exciting filming locations on Dartmoor, why not stay at a hotels in Chagford, Dartmoor so that you can visit all of them?!