With the second series of Victoria about to appear on our TV screens, what better time to start planning a tour of the UK to follow in the Queen’s footsteps?

Victoria was filmed at Castle Howard © VisitEngland/English Heritage

The first series of Victoria, which followed the early years of Queen Victoria’s reign after she acceded to the throne at the age of 18, proved to be a huge ratings hit – drawing over 16 million viewers in the US, putting it second only to Downton Abbey as the highest rated drama on PBS in the last 20 years, and over 8 million viewers in the UK.

Now, with the second series about to start on ITV in the UK (January 2018 premiere in the US), we think it is the perfect occasion to start planning a tour of the UK to take in some of the real locations linked to Britain’s second longest reigning monarch, and to visit the filming locations from the series.

Much of the TV series was filmed in the beautiful surroundings of Yorkshire in northern England, at locations including majestic Castle Howard, which stood in for Kensington Palace, Harewood House which doubled as Buckingham Palace and Beverley Minster, which was used for Westminster Abbey.

Castle Howard is a magnificent stately home in North Yorkshire which has been seen in films and TV before, perhaps most famously as the fictional Brideshead in the TV and film versions of Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited. 18th Century Harewood House is one of England’s foremost historic homes, which boasts a wonderful Capability Brown landscape, and Beverley Minster is one of the UK’s largest parish churches and a gothic masterpiece.

Of course, no tour of Britain would be complete without a visit to our magnificent capital London, and here is where you will find many of the real-life locations associated with Queen Victoria. Victoria was the first British Monarch to reside at Buckingham Palace, taking up residence in the newly completed palace on her accession in 1837. The State Rooms there are open to the public each summer.

Kensington Palace is currently home to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, but in the 19th Century was the birthplace and childhood home of Queen Victoria. Kensington Palace is open to the public all year round. Westminster Abbey, one of the world’s great churches, where Victoria was crowned, has a history stretching back over 1000 years and is a must-see on any visit to London.

Osborne House on the Isle of Wight © VisitEngland/English Heritage

Perhaps the most famous stately homes associated with Queen Victoria are Osborne House and Balmoral Castle. Osborne in the Isle of Wight, just off England’s south coast, was built for Queen Victoria and her husband and consort Prince Albert in the style of an Italian Renaissance palace. Osborne was one of the Queen’s favourite homes and she spent a good deal of time there. Queen Victoria died at Osborne House in 1901.

The Balmoral Estate, on Royal Deeside in the Highlands of Scotland, was purchased by Prince Albert in 1852 and the castle was commissioned by him. It is built in a Scots Baronial style and is used by the royal family to this day. Queen Victoria’s purchase of a Scottish estate and her love for Scotland played an important part in promoting Highland culture in Britain and around the world.

If you or your group would like to follow in the royal footsteps of Queen Victoria and to visit the locations associated with the popular TV series, please do contact us today and we will put together a tailor made tour of the UK for you.