Naman Shrestha
Based on the 2020 eponymous novel by Richard Osman, Netflix’s ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ is a British whodunit comedy movie that revolves around four elderly amateur sleuths — Elizabeth, Ron, Ibrahim, and Joyce — who have a knack for solving cold case murders for fun. The four retirees are from different professions, as one worked as a nurse, one was a spy, one served as a trade union official, and one was employed as a psychiatrist. Thus, each of them brings something different to the table while solving the cases.
Their lives turn upside down when an unexpected murder takes place in their retirement village, Coopers Chase. As the stakes get higher, the four true crime enthusiasts take matters into their own hands and attempt to solve the mystery behind the murder. Helmed by Chris Columbus, the crime comedy film unfolds primarily in the Coopers Chase Retirement Village, a huge property that adds a layer of suspense and serves as an additional character.
The Thursday Murder Club Filming Locations
Several places across England hosted the production of ‘The Thursday Murder Club,’ including Berkshire, Surrey, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, and Kent. Principal photography for the Helen Mirren starrer got underway in late June 2024 and went on for about three months before wrapping up in September of the same year. Daniel Mays, who portrays DCI Chris Hudson, talked about his experience on set during an interview with Big Issue. He stated, “I’d love to say there were some raucous, big drinking nights out, but sadly not. Everyone was lovely, though. I chatted with Ben a lot, and the level of detail he puts into his performance is incredible. One of the memorable days on the shoot was at the end of the film.”
Berkshire, England
A major chunk of ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ was lensed in the ceremonial county of Berkshire, which is situated in South East England. Englefield Estate on Englefield Road in the town of Reading doubled as the Coopers Chase Retirement Village, the residence of the four amateur sleuths. Many interior as well as exterior sequences were lensed in and around the Elizabethan country house, which has been featured in various other projects like ‘Great Expectations,’ ‘Easy Virtue,’ ‘The King’s Speech,’ and more. Its corridors, staircase, and the scenic outdoors were fully utilized to record numerous portions.
The production designer of the movie, James Merifield, immediately thought of Englefield after reading the script. He told The Telegraph, “The place the main characters live in the book is more downplayed, but Englefield’s elegance and the way it crosses architectural periods gives it the same grandeur as the senior citizens who have taken it over…I loved how the house’s scale meant I could play into the character’s hierarchy.” Expanding on the same, he added, “Elizabeth, the head of the club, has a room on the first floor, where the ceilings are highest and plaster mouldings most elegant; the decor is inspired by lemon drizzle. I put Joyce and Ibrahim on the second floor, where the windows are smaller and ceilings lower, while the attic lent itself to that old tyrant Ron.”
As for the Jigsaw Room, which is the Murder Club’s investigation centre, the crew reportedly built an additional orangery from scratch on the side of the Englefield house. In an interview with Timeout, James Merfield revealed that it “was one of the greatest challenges. It’s one thing building a set, but it’s another to integrate it into existing architecture. We’d just finished building and dressing the set when we had this massive storm, and it flooded. Our prop people were pulling out the furniture, and we had to send someone to B&Q to get an AquaVac.” They even built the graveyard on the property, “and sculpted the graves out of polystyrene.” Furthermore, the pivotal scene involving Jason’s arrest was taped at Slough Ice Arena on Montem Lane in the town of Slough.
Surrey, England
Many pivotal sequences for ‘The Thursday Murder Club’ were shot in the ceremonial county of Surrey. In order to tape most of the indoor scenes involving the Cooper Chase Retirement Village, the cast and crew members resorted to the Shepperton Studios, where they recreated the interiors of the property, including the rooms of Elizabeth, Ron, Joyce, and Ibrahim, on sound stages. Situated on Studios Road in the village of Shepperton, the film studio also stood in for London in various scenes. They reportedly constructed a studio set mirroring London’s Columbia Road and lensed scenes with the fictional flower shop, ‘Bloomin’ Marvellous.’
In addition, the sound stages at Shepperton Studios were also used to bring the interiors of the Fairhaven Police Station to life. Home to 31 different sound stages, the film studio also consists of two large backlots, nine mixing theatres, 20 cutting rooms, and a recording theatre. The facility also provides ample amenities to the cast and crew, including a coffee shop, meeting rooms, a multi-storey car park, a canteen, a hardware store, and more.
Buckinghamshire, England
For shooting purposes, the production team of the British whodunnit series also traveled to Buckinghamshire, where they set up camp in The Red Lion PH at 1 Village Road in Amersham’s Little Missenden. The pub doubled for Le Pont Noir, which is a major location in the novels. James Merfield revealed, “This is actually my local pub. We wanted something quintessentially English, with oak beans and horse brasses, etc, but so many of those spaces have low ceilings. It disables lighting and performance because people have to duck, and David Tennant is quite tall. We put in loads of flowers and hanging baskets and tubs and furniture, and it worked well.” Besides that, the cast and crew were also spotted recording a few scenes on Stratton Road in the market town of Beaconsfield and the town of Gerrards Cross.
Hertfordshire, England
The ceremonial county of Hertfordshire also served as a prominent production location for ‘The Thursday Murder Club.’ The Aldbury Memorial Hall in the village of Aldbury stood in for the exterior of the Fairhaven Police Station. On top of that, a few interior portions involving Ron’s aquarobics class were also shot at Gaddesden Place, which is located near Hemel Hempstead. Built in the 18th century, the property has also been featured in various other films and TV shows, including ‘Gothic’ and ‘Lewis.’ As per reports, a vehicle stunt scene was also shot in and around the Historic Dockyard Chatham in the town of Chatham in the ceremonial county of Kent.
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