Viewers are just discovering that the new TV drama series, A Gentleman in Moscow, was actually filmed in… Bolton.
That’s right, whether you can believe it or not – and much to the shock of local residents, too – the Greater Manchester town had itself a bit of a Stalin era-themed makeover last year, and served as the perfect place to recreate the Russian capital city for a brand-new TV drama miniseries starring Ewan McGregor.
Based on the bestselling 2016 novel of the same name by Amor Towles, the new series titled A Gentleman in Moscow has now started airing on streaming platform Paramount+ in the UK.
Over the course of the gripping eight-part series, it tells the story of aristocrat Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov, played by McGregor, who has recently returned to Russia from Paris, and spends decades banished to an attic hotel room following the October Revolution after being sentenced to house arrest by a Bolshevik tribunal.
But, despite the very-Russian theme running through the show – which also stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Fehinti Balogun, Daniel Cerqueria, Johnny Harris, Leah Harvey, and more – production crews never actually ventured to Moscow to film.
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Instead, they chose several locations across northern England, and one of those locations was, none other than, Bolton.
Filming began in Victoria Square outside Bolton Town Hall on 27 February 2023, with the Town Hall itself appearing a handful of times throughout the show’s first episode, and took place into March, before returning again in April 2023.
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As well as Bolton, Liverpool Town Hall was used as a filming location in June 2023, and filming also took place in Halifax and Leeds Civic Hall too.
Eagle-eyed viewers who tuned into the first episode of the show and spotted Bolton Town Hall in all its glory were quick to head on over to social media to share their reactions – and disbelief, mostly – that the Greater Manchester town had an unexpected starring role.
Very bizarre moment for me. I'm from northwest England, but live in Moscow.
I'm watching the new TV series 'A Gentleman in Moscow'
One fan wrote on X: “Very bizarre moment for me. I’m from northwest England, but live in Moscow. I’m watching the new TV series ‘A Gentleman in Moscow’, couldn’t help but notice that it had been filmed in Bolton…”
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“Learnt that A Gentleman in Moscow was filmed in Bolton yesterday and my interest shot way up. How did they pull that off?,” another viewer commented.
A third pointed out that Bolton has actually doubled as Russia before.
“It’s been used before for same purpose,” they wrote on X, “In the late 80s when I was in my teens, we went shopping to Bolton, and there was a giant portrait of Stalin hanging from the front of the town hall. My mum thought there had been a Militant takeover on the Council.”
Learnt that A Gentleman in Moscow was filmed in Bolton yesterday and my interest shot way up. How did they pull that off?
Others were also quick to add that Bolton has been a popular filming location for movies and TV shows for the past couple of decades.
Peaky Blinders, Happy Valley, Red Rose, Traces, The Reckoning, and Brassic are just some of the smash-hit shows having been filmed in the town in recent years.
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One viewer wrote: “When I first visited Bolton in the early 90s, I was told the Town Hall often stood in for European Government buildings in films. No need to change a good thing”, while another commented that they “thought it looked familiar”.
You can watch A Gentleman in Moscow streaming now on Paramount+ in the UK.
Featured Image – Showtime & Paramount TV
TV & Showbiz
Beloved Manc butty shop Bada Bing set for a sensational return to the city centre
Danny Jones
Sandwich lovers rejoice because one of the finest butty shops to ever grace Manchester is returning: that’s right, Bada Bing is bada-back!
The Sopranos-inspired deli and sandwich shop that took its name from one of the central locations featured in the iconic US drama (yes, the strip club), was a huge success when it first opened in Manchester a few short years ago, so it was a huge blow when it closed in February 2022.
Starting out by serving sandwiches out of a window at The B Lounge pub on Paton Street near Piccadilly, before moving to a small kitchen on Radium Street and eventually setting up their stall inside Ancoats General Store, they would regularly have lines around the block every lunchtime.
These Italian-American sarnies were so popular you’d often struggle to get your claws on one – and believe us, they really are a two-handed task – as they’d sell out on what felt like most days. But now, whether you were a regular or someone who missed out, there is hope once again:
Announcing their sensational return to a new site over in the Northern Quarter, which will now mark the fourth premises they’ve popped up at, Bada Bing is back with a bang and, as you can, they dropped the news with one of the best reveal videos we’ve ever seen.
If you know, you know…
Set to take over 125 Oldham Street, owners Sam Gormally and Meg Lingenfelter haven’t yet graced us with an opening date but the new unit should hopefully be open sooner rather than later.
The duo, who previously worked at fellow NQ favourite Another Heart to Feed, came up with the concept during lockdown and it didn’t take long for the idea to take off, nor for them to earn their spot amongst the very best sandwich places in Manchester.
Seriously, these things were so big and unwieldy (in the best way possible) that they even used to come with eating instructions: both hands and the trademark Tony Soprano hunch recommended, though the slightly stained wife-beater, boxer shorts and open dressing gown look is optional.
From slices of provolone cheese, all the thinly sliced Italian meats you could think of and the closest thing to actual ‘gabagool‘ as you’ll find in Greater Manchester, the menu was fitting of being served up to the iconic characters that once sat outside Satriale’s and a big approving grin from the man himself.
Simply put, we cannot wait and we will certainly keep you posted when we find out exactly when Bada Bing confirms their official reopening date.
Will Mellor’s new BBC documentary about real-life Post Office scandal victims airs tonight
Emily Sergeant
A new BBC documentary about real-life victims from the Post Office scandal fronted by Will Mellor is hitting TV screens tonight.
As the country finally starts to wake up to the full scale of the Post Office scandal – which involved the British postal service pursuing thousands of innocent subpostmasters for apparent financial shortfalls caused by faults in an accounting software system between 1999 and 2015 – actor Will Mellor is on a mission to find out what happened to the real-life sub-postmasters in this new BBC documentary.
The Stockport-born actor famously played the part of Lee Castleton in the ITV drama, Mr Bates vs the Post Office, and says he feels a “real affinity” will the families he spoke to for the programme.
For the new documentary and accompanying five-part BBC Sounds podcast series – which is titled Surviving the Post Office – Will actually speaks to Mr Castleton himself, as well as four other affected people and their families whose lives have been “torn apart”.
Will Mellor has fronted a new BBC documentary about real-life Post Office scandal victims / Credit: ITV
Surviving the Post Office ventures to all four corners of England, including East Yorkshire, County Durham, Lincolnshire, West Sussex, and Cornwall, as Will discovers that many of the sub-postmasters want to “take back control of their lives”.
According to the BBC, for some facing the past, that proves to be a “troubling experience”, while for others, it ends up being a “liberating” step forwards.
As well as exploring the financial losses for many, including the people featured in the documentary and podcast series, Will also gets to find out how they are coping with their emotions, trying to move on from the whole ordeal, and how the victims are finding support in unexpected ways.
📢 Actor Will Mellor meets the real-life victims of the Post Office scandal in a brand new documentary from BBC Local
Surviving The Post Office is coming to @BBCOne and @BBCiPlayer tonight at 8.30pm. The podcast series is on @BBCSounds now
“I feel a real affinity with these families, so it was a privilege to hear their stories for this documentary and podcast,” Will said ahead of the documentary airing on BBC One.
“What shocked me the most after meeting so many sub-postmasters is just how far the impact and trauma has spread – the effect it’s had on people’s health, their children, and their whole communities has been massive.”