Sunday 7 December 2014

Ghost-Busting "Hide" Locations at Margam Country Park

Hi All,


So here is the second part to my brief trip down to South Wales in October for my birthday. I'm afraid to say we weren't as successful on the final day of our stay, although we did get a pretty nice Toby Carvery out of the day... yum! 


We decided to venture to Margam Country Park, otherwise known as the primary location for the Series 7 Doctor Who episode, 'Hide', as Caliburn House and which has also featured in the series 4 two-parter 'The Sontaran Stratagem'/'The Poison Sky' as Rattigan Academy. It was about a 20 minutes drive from our lodge, and a ten minute drive from Neath. It was easy to find, as it is signposted straight off the M4. 

There is no charge for entry to the park and castle as it is free to roam around, but it will cost you around £4.50 to park your car. There are lots of ruins, a beautiful Orangery, fabulous gardens and greenery, a hauntingly gothic castle and a huge, splendid lake... no wonder the grounds were bustling with visitors! 

So, why did I decide on this location?.. Well, this was the first location that I saw photographs of Matt Smith and Jenna Coleman filming scenes together, it was also where their first official series photograph took place as Doctor and companion (see left). As soon as I saw photos of Jenna here I went out and purchased her dress from Urban Outfitters as I fell in love with it. And is exactly why I decided to wear it on this visit. I thought the episode Hide was eerily beautiful, and although it did scare me when it was broadcast (yes, I was 22 years old -wimp!), I thought the message behind it was clever and decent and was anchored by a brilliant cast, crew and writers.

Just to point out, that the main area which was used for a lot of the filming outside was unfortunately inaccessible as they were in the middle of building work, so I couldn't get as brilliant pictures as I wanted to, but I did try my best by poking my camera through the wire fence. 

Hide...

The following photos were taken at the side entrance to the castle, which acted as the entrance in this particular episode of Doctor Who. 



Below is the Orangery, which is huge and size and surrounded my magical gardens and a huge water fountain. It featured in the background of one shot in this episode of Doctor Who, and is located at the bottom of the stairs up to the main castle. 


The following photos were taken of the main area used for filming in this episode of Doctor Who, however the area was sealed off for building work, so we could go no further than the large tree which the TARDIS was parked under for photographs.




The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky...



A few snapshots from in and around Margam Country Park...



 The amazingly gothic interior of the castle... it was very eerie and scary. Reminded me of a vampire lair - loved it!

 

 I hope you enjoyed my two-parter posts detailing my recent trip down south... I have two more blog posts lined up and will hopefully get them out to you as soon as I can, and before the Christmas period. One of which will detail my recent Clara cosplay, of which includes the dress I am wearing on todays post. I hope your christmas shopping is going well, I have lots of Doctor Who related goodies on my list, what are you hoping santa brings you? 

Tomorrow I start my new job which I am very excited about. It sounds like a brilliant opportunity and I can't wait to get stuck in. I have a really good feeling about this one. Lets keep positive.

Blog to you all soon, take care

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