Top Scottish film locations tour featuring
- Doune Castle ( Monty Python , Game of Thrones )
- Linlithgow Palace ( Outlander, Mary Queen of Scots )
- Rosslyn Chapel ( the Davinci code )
- Blackness Castle ( the Outlaw King , Mary Queen of Scots )
- the historic Hippodrome cinema in Bo’ness
1 The Hippodrome cinema in Bo’ness
The historic Hippodrome cinema was built in 1912 .
A personal guide from Falkirk Community Trust will take your group on a tour round the inside of the Hippodrome Cinema, Bo’ness: Scotland’s oldest purpose-built cinema . You will learn about local entrepreneur Louis Dickson – the man with the vision to open Scotland’s first picture palace – his architect Matthew Steele, and the unique building they created together. Hear the fascinating history of this remarkable building, discover some of its quirky mysteries and get behind-the-scenes with an exclusive opportunity to visit the projection box. The tour includes a 15 minute film about the magnificent restoration work undertaken to restore the cinema to its pre-Art Deco glory and time for questions too.
Access: Please note the balcony and projection box are only accessible by stairs, the latter very steep and narrow. The tour can be modified for people with mobility difficulties on request.
2 Doune Castle
Doune Castle is unique in that it actually has three claims to movie fame .
- Monty Python and the Holy Grail
- Game of Thrones
- Outlander
Doune Castle was widely used in Monty Python and the Holy Grail as the castle of Guy de Lombard .
Take the audio tour of the castle narrated by Monty Python’s Terry Jones.
It also represented the castle Winterfell in Game of Thrones.
Originally dating to the 13th Century, Doune Castle near Stirling plays Castle Leoch, home to Colum MacKenzie and his clan in Outlander TV series .
It also features in the 20th century episode when Claire and Frank Randall visit the castle on a day trip.
Once a Royal residence, Doune Castle was rebuilt by Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany in the late 14th Century.
3
Linlithgow Palace
This royal palace and birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots was featured in the Outlaw King . It also became the backdrop for some of the most harrowing scenes of the TV show Outlander .
Depicted as Wentworth Prison, the prison corridors and entrance were used in episode 15 of the first series when Jamie Fraser was brutally incarcerated by his adversary, Black Jack Randall.
Built in the 1400s and 1500s, the now-ruined palace is set among the spectacular surrounds of Linlithgow Loch and Peel.
4 Blackness Castle
The castle has been used in a number of films including Hamlet, Outlander , the Outlaw king and Mary Queen of Scots.
Doomsday , an action thriller starring screen legends Bob Hoskins and Malcolm McDowell , was filmed at Blackness castle. The Castle near Linlithgow is used for key scenes in the futuristic movie. The film’s plot centres on a deadly plague called the Reaper Virus, which kills hundreds of thousands of British citizens in 2007. In desperation, the Government evacuates as many survivors as it can from the infected area, then builds a wall to quarantine the remaining population. But 30 years later, with the wall still up and the victims all but forgotten, the virus breaks out again. The authorities send in a crack team of operatives, led by Major Eden Sinclair, to retrieve a cure by any means necessary.
She is played by Rhona Mitra, from TV shows Nip/Tuck and Boston Legal, who is currently on location at the castle – along with Clockwork Orange star McDowell and British actor Adrian Lester, who featured in Hollywood blockbuster The Day After Tomorrow. However, Bob Hoskins – who plays a character called Bill Nelson in Doomsday – is not filming in West Lothian.
Both the interior and exterior of Blackness Castle will feature in the film, and fight scenes were played out at the ten-day shoot . The building, which will appear on screen as an unnamed Scottish castle, has been closed to the public for a fortnight to allow the shoot to go ahead. Nick Finnigan, Historic Scotland’s filming and events manager, said: “In view of the size and scale of the production, the decision was made to grant the film crew exclusive access to the castle for a short period. We look forward to welcoming visitors back to Blackness Castle when it re-opens on May 14.” Doomsday is written and directed by Neil Marshall, whose previous work includes The Descent and Dog Soldiers. Other cast members include Sudanese actor Alexander Siddig, whose first main role was in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as Dr. Julian Bashir and recently on screen as a reformed villain alongside Kiefer Sutherland in 24, while Sean Pertwee is also thought to be joining the cast.
5 The stunning chapel from the Davinci Code
Rosslyn Chapel, Roslin, near Edinburgh
With more than 100 carvings and scenes depicted in stone, the exquisite masonry of Rosslyn Chapel has to be seen to be believed. Look out for angels playing bagpipes, people dancing with death and the famous apprentice pillar – the story goes that the apprentice mason who carved this exquisite pillar was killed shortly afterwards by his jealous boss.
This tour runs on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday each week .
Tour price – £295
Exclusions
Lunch and refreshments
Entrance fees to Doune Castle, Linlithgow Palace , Rosslyn Chapel and Blackness Castle
- Scottish film locations tour
- Doune Castle
- Linlithgow Palace
- Rosslyn Chapel
- Blackness Castle
- historic Hippodrome cinema
Phone 07305-294773 or contact us online .
Our film locations tour is featured in Visitscotland
