FILM LOCATIONS: AMANDALAND
Film Locations: Amandaland
1st of June, 2025.
Film Locations: amandaland
Key Takeaways:
Amandaland Uses Location as Comedy — Rather than simply providing a backdrop, the series uses architecture, neighbourhood identity and aspirational geography as part of the joke itself, turning location into an active storytelling device.
The Show Highlights the Power of Location Transformation — Despite being set in fictional “SoHa” (South Harlesden), much of Amandaland was filmed in more affluent parts of North and East London, demonstrating how production design, dressing and context can completely reshape audience perception.
Amandaland and the Art of Location Transformation
One of the most interesting things about ** is that the locations are doing almost as much storytelling as the characters themselves.
The series follows Amanda, played by Lucy Punch, as she navigates post-divorce life after moving from affluent Chiswick to the fictional "SoHa" — her rebranded version of South Harlesden. The joke is immediate: Amanda is desperately trying to sell an aspirational version of a reality she clearly does not want.
What makes the show particularly interesting from a location perspective is that much of this supposedly rougher, downmarket world was not filmed in Harlesden at all.
Instead, production took place across areas including Islington, Muswell Hill, Forest Gate and other parts of London that were then carefully transformed to fit the show's narrative.
Highbury, a film location in North London
Turning Islington Into "SoHa"
Perhaps the clearest example is Amanda's new home.
Exterior scenes were filmed on Ferntower Road in Highbury, an area far removed from the version of South Harlesden portrayed in the series. Residents reported seeing production crews add rubbish bags, discarded objects and an overturned shopping trolley to create a grittier visual identity for the street.
It's a reminder that audiences rarely experience locations as they exist in reality.
They experience them through:
Production design
Camera framing
Lighting
Costume
Context
Storytelling
A well-chosen location does not need to be an exact geographical match. It simply needs to communicate the right feeling.
The Return of Environmental Storytelling
One reason Amandaland feels visually effective is because the locations actively reinforce character psychology.
Amanda's move is not just a plot point.
It is expressed through:
Narrower streets
Smaller homes
Denser environments
Less polished surroundings
More visible signs of everyday life
The audience understands Amanda's perceived social "fall" before she even says a word.
This is increasingly common across contemporary television. Locations are no longer passive settings. They are becoming narrative devices that communicate class, aspiration, anxiety and identity.
Retro Islington Townhouse, a film location in North London.
Why Productions Rarely Film Exactly Where Stories Are Set
For location managers and scouts, Amandaland offers a useful reminder that authenticity and accuracy are not always the same thing.
Although the show references Harlesden heavily, filming largely took place elsewhere across London. Locations were selected because they offered the right balance of:
Visual character
Production practicality
Access
Logistics
Architectural flexibility
The most effective filming location is often not the literal location.
It is the location that best supports the story.
London's Endless Ability to Double
The series also highlights one of London's greatest strengths as a production city: its ability to transform.
Within a relatively small geographic area, productions can access:
Victorian terraces
Suburban family homes
Industrial estates
Contemporary developments
Period architecture
High-density urban environments
This flexibility allows scouts and location teams to build entirely new worlds without travelling far from base.
In Amandaland, North and East London successfully become a fictional version of Northwest London. The illusion works because the production understands which visual details matter — and which do not.
Borough Recreation Grounds, a multipurpose sports location in London.
Location as Character
What Amandaland demonstrates particularly well is that audiences remember places emotionally rather than geographically.
Viewers are not analysing borough boundaries or postcode accuracy.
They are responding to atmosphere.
The show's version of "SoHa" succeeds because it feels believable within Amanda's world, even if the reality is far more constructed than it first appears.
For location professionals, it's a strong reminder that the most successful locations are rarely just places.
They are storytelling tools.
Send us your brief — and we'll help find locations that deliver character, atmosphere and cinematic transformation on screen.
