Diksha Sundriyal
Netflix’s ‘How to Get to Heaven from Belfast‘ weaves a mystery thriller with a hint of comedy as three women embark on a journey to find out what happened to their childhood friend. Saoirse, Dara, and Robyn receive an email about Greta’s death, which brings them to the town of Knockdara, where Greta’s family is preparing to bid her goodbye for the last time. The spooky town becomes the starting point of a journey that takes the main trio through the winding roads of Northern Ireland as they try to piece together Greta’s life and figure out what truly happened to her. The answers lead them to a place called Heaven’s Veil, and the answers they get aren’t entirely what they had expected, or maybe even wanted. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Fictional Knockdara is Brought to Life by Several Locations
Knockdara is a fictional town that Lisa McGee created specifically for ‘How to Get to Heaven from Belfast.’ She revealed that the idea for the story, specifically its spookiness, came to her while visiting Thornhill College in Derry. It is her old secondary school and has been abandoned for over twenty years, which has given it a haunting vibe that made McGee think about the ghosts of the past, leading her to craft a story about four women who are haunted by one event from their schooltime. As the mystery unfolds, Knockdara appears at the center of it, and the cast and crew travel through various locations across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland to present an authentic portrayal of an Irish town. The village of Carnlough in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, stood in for Knockdara.
The Harborview Hotel, located at 20 Harbour Road, was given a makeover and turned into the Knockdara Hotel. With the characters spending a considerable amount of time there, a lot of scenes were filmed at the hotel. However, for the club scenes at the beginning of their journey, the crew turned towards the Dockers Club in Belfast, citing the requirement of a wider disco space for the dance scenes. The show also used locations like Murlough Bay (with its winding roads) and Saint John’s Point in County Down (with the lighthouse that Booker uses as a safe house) to give more character to the fictional town. Because the location is such an integral part of the story, McGee wanted it to reflect the twists and turns and the mystery of the journey that the main trio embarks upon.
The Mysterious Heaven’s Veil is a Fictional Location
As Dara, Robyn, and Saoirse look into Greta’s past, Heaven’s Veil emerges as a recurring theme. It later turns out that it refers to a town, also known as Caille Neamh. Their search for Greta eventually leads them to the abandoned town, and they end up in a place that is surprising in more than one way. The scenes featuring the mysterious town with a tragic past were filmed in the Hidden Village of Galboly, situated in the rolling hills along the east Antrim coast road.
The location might seem familiar to the fans of ‘Game of Thrones,’ as it was used to portray Runestone in the Vale of Arryn. It was also used to portray the halfling village of Longsaddle in ‘Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.’ The secluded nature of the place, along with its stone-walled houses, gives it a captivating vibe, which makes it perfect for fantasy stories as well as mystery thrillers with a touch of supernatural undertones that spook the audience while also compelling them to unearth the mysteries that haunt its surroundings.
Read More: Where is How to Get to Heaven From Belfast Filmed?
