Netflix has dropped a brand-new political drama that fans are comparing to hit shows like The West Wing and House of Cards. The Diplomat dropped on the platform on Thursday (April 20) and is described by Netflix as a “high-stakes, contemporary political drama about the transcendence and torture of long-term relationships, between countries and people”.
It features an ensemble cast led by Keri Russell as Kate Wyler, the new US Ambassador to the UK. According to the official synopsis, Kate was supposed to go to Afghanistan, but now she must diffuse international crises and forge strategic alliances in London, while adjusting to her new place in the spotlight and trying to survive her marriage to high-profile political figure Hal.
Fans are already gripped by the streaming giant’s latest offering, with the series currently boasting a 91 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics have been equally impressed, with The Wall Street Journal praising its “ingenious” plot and “brisk pace” and The New York Times lauding the “Aaron Sorkinesque high-comic, high-velocity style” of its writing.
READ MORE: Netflix’s The Diplomat full cast list and where you know them from
The Diplomat is largely set here in the UK, and several real locations were used during filming. Here, we take a look at the filming locations of The Diplomat:
The filming locations used in Netflix’s The Diplomat
Other than some early scenes in Washington D.C., much of The Diplomat is set in the UK, as Kate hops the pond in her new role as US Ambassador. Filming for the series ran between April and November 2022, with shooting primarily taking place around London and the Cotswolds.
Given Kate’s role in the show, many scenes takes place at Winfield House, the real-life residence of the US Ambassador to the UK in Regent’s Park, London. But speaking to Vogue, Russell admitted that these scenes were filmed elsewhere.
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“We actually shot at a house outside of London that is very similar,” she said. “It was completely idyllic.”
The first episode of The Diplomat sees Kate laying a wreath at a memorial in a scene filmed at Greenwich’s Old Royal Naval College, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Greenwich, London. The crew also took a trip to Paris to capture some footage, including outside the iconic Louvre Museum.
Netflix has remained tight-lipped on other locations used during filming, but Russell has described other areas used as “location porn.” Speaking to Newsweek, she said: “London has a pretty fun wild scene.
“It’s not all pomp and circumstance, but that is absolutely one of the characters of the show. Even though there’s definitely location porn.”
Regarding the decision to shoot on-location in the UK, she added: “[Showrunner] Debora [Cahn] has said many times that doing these hour shows is a grind. So many times it’s like she was in Morocco at a night shoot, like five in the morning going, ‘This could be in England during the day’.
“That’s literally how we ended up here.”
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