News / television
Bristol returns to small screen in hit BBC comedy-drama
The Bristol-made coming-of-age drama Boarders has returned for its third and final series.
All episodes are now available on BBC iPlayer, alongside weekly broadcasts on BBC One and BBC Three.
The show follows five Black state-school students (Jaheim, Leah, Toby, Femi and Omar) from inner-city London who are awarded sixth-form scholarships to the prestigious boarding school St Gilbert’s College.
As the group enter their final term, they face exams, mounting school rivalries and personal drama that threatens friendships and relationships.
Interior scenes for the series were once again filmed at The Bottle Yard Studios in Hengrove, while the school itself is again portrayed by Clifton College.
Other Bristol locations featured in the new series include Caribbean Croft, Portland Square in St Paul’s, UWE Bristol’s Frenchay campus, a home in Coombe Dingle, Redmaids’ High School sports ground in Henbury and Ashton Court Estate.
Berwick Lodge, a hotel in Henbury, was used for filming
The series was created and written by BAFTA-nominated writer Daniel Lawrence Taylor, who also appears on screen as Gus.
The first series filmed in Bristol in summer 2023, with the production returning for the second and third series in summers 2024 and 2025.
Sixth form boarders at Clifton College are charged £19,280 per year
Madeleine Sinclair, creative director for scripted at Studio Lambert and executive producer of the series, said filming in Bristol over the past three years had been a “brilliant experience”.
“We’ve had a fantastic base for cast and crew and a wonderfully film-friendly city,” she said. “With
“The Bottle Yard Studios we had space for our production offices, interior sets, green-screen filming and exterior locations.
“We feel very lucky to have worked with so many talented local crew members and to have offered training opportunities.”
Location manager Cara Wiltshire added that the city’s variety of locations and strong industry support made Bristol an ideal filming base.
“From a location’s perspective, returning to Bristol for Boarders S3 was a fantastic experience,” Wiltshire said.
“With The Bottle Yard Studios as our production base, we were able to efficiently coordinate filming across a wide range of locations throughout the city, making the most of the incredible variety Bristol has to offer on screen.
“Working in Bristol is always enjoyable, and the support from both the Studios team and the Bristol Film Office makes a real difference on the ground.”
Around 90 people worked on the third series each day, with more than 70 per cent of the crew coming from the local region.
The production also hosted trainees through the All Set West programme at The Bottle Yard Studios, providing placements and work experience across several departments.
All photos: BBC/ Alistair Heap
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