Naman Shrestha
Based on the book titled ‘Wicked Beyond Belief: The Hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper’ written by Michael Bilton, Netflix’s ‘The Long Shadow’ is a British true crime drama series that chronicles the long and desperate manhunt for the serial killer Peter Sutcliffe, who is infamously known as the Yorkshire Ripper. Instead of focusing on the perspective of the killer, the show focuses on his victims and police officers’ lives who were affected by his gruesome killings.
Featuring brilliant onscreen performances from a talented ensemble cast, comprising Lee Ingleby, Jack Deam, Michael McElhatton, Kris Hitchen, and David Morrissey, the show documents and dramatizes the story behind Sutcliffe and his innocent victims against the backdrop of Yorkshire where the former used to commit his crimes, which leads several viewers to raise questions about the actual locations that appear in the show.
The Long Shadow Filming Locations
‘The Long Shadow’ is filmed in England, especially in and around West Yorkshire. According to reports, principal photography for the inaugural iteration of the crime series took place between June and July 2022. So, let’s traverse through all the specific sites that serve as the backdrop for the Yorkshire Ripper’s tale.
West Yorkshire, England
All the pivotal sequences for ‘The Long Shadow’ are lensed in West Yorkshire, a ceremonial county situated in England’s Yorkshire and the Humber region. First and foremost, a property in the large suburb of Roundhay in northeast Leeds doubled for Sutcliffe’s home in the series. Moreover, the production team set up camp in and around the Western Flatts Cliff Park at 78 Green Hill Lane in Leeds, along with several street signs and vintage cars, and transformed it to look like Roundhay Park. A graffiti was also put on one of the walls, which read: “Scothall says hang the ripper!.”
Beckhill Grove in Leeds served as a prominent filming site where a victim’s body was found in the show’s first season. Reports also suggest that the filming unit utilized the facilities of Versa Leeds Studios on Whitehall Road Parking in Holbeck, Leeds. The film studio complex is home to four different sound stages of varying sizes, workshops, prop stores, make-up and costume rooms, production offices, and wardrobe facilities, making it a suitable filming site for different kinds of productions. Several other sites across the city of Leeds are turned into film sets, including Wortley, Granny Lane, Leysholme Crescent, and Highfield Avenue.
The cast and crew members were spotted taping important scenes for ‘The Long Shadow’ season 1 in and around a residential property on Langford Lane in Burley-in-Wharfedale, near Ilkley, with vans full of 1970s-themed props. The locales of the town of Dewsbury also feature in a few scenes. Moreover, Bulmer & Lumb at Unit 5, Royds Hall La, Royds Hall Lane in Buttershaw, Bradford is transformed into the Millgarth Police Station for the show. Within the city of Bradford, the production team also sets up camp in Buttershaw, Low Moor, and Royds Hall Lane. For shooting purposes, the filming unit also reportedly travels out of West Yorkshire, to the cathedral city of York.
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