Touring Emmerdale Village

Keen Emmerdale fans will know that there are a number of well-loved places within the village and if you do visit Emmerdale via a guided tour you’ll be able to see the exteriors of them all and the interior of many too! Depending on what you want to see and do while you’re there, the tour can take around 4 hours so it really does make for a splendid day out! It is worth noting that lots of the interior scenes are filed elsewhere (that’s the life of TV for you!) so you won’t get to see everywhere if you do an exterior walking tour.
One thing you can be sure of if you head out on an Emmerdale tour is that you’ll find plenty of things to see – for example, you could see Butlers Farm or head past The Wool Pack, where some of Emmerdale’s biggest storylines have taken place!

Classic Emmerdale

In the past Emmerdale has been filed over various locations, before it picked up in popularity and was moved to the purpose-built TV set that it is still filmed at today. However, you can go on a bus tour to see some of the classic locations including a drive through the market towns of Otley and Esholt, which will certainly look familiar to fans of the TV show.
As you might imagine, filming days are busy for everyone involved in the production which means that tours of Emmerdale tend to take place on days when filming is not taking place. However, if you’re a fan of the stars then you can book a tour on days with meet and greets with the stars – so you can meet your favourite characters at the same time.

Did You Know?

Did you know that when filming Emmerdale, unlike lots of other TV productions they actually use pints of real beer – although actors are discouraged from drinking too much! However, it isn’t just the actors that you have to worry about, there have been plenty of guest performances from well-known names too – did you know that Spice Girl Mel B once appeared in the soap?

Visiting Your Favourite TV Shows

If Emmerdale isn’t your thing, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a tour of your favourite TV sets, because there are actually loads of options. For example, if you’re in or around Bath at any stage then you can head out on a Bridgerton Tour or if soaps are more your thing then Coronation Street tours are perfectly possible.
Don’t worry if you’re into more Hollywood blockbusters than you are TV shows because there are plenty of places to visit that tick these boxes too. For example, head to London and go on a Harry Potter tour or head to Ireland and go on a Game of Thrones studio tour. Whatever you’re into and whatever TV you like to watch, you should be able to find a tour that suits you and keeps you entertained for a good few hours.

Booking a TV Tour

With so many TV & film tours on offer, it can be hard to know what is best when it comes to booking the right tour for you. The first thing to do is think about what you would like to see – which productions do you find most fascinating? Once you have done this you can start to research what tours are on offer (we have loads) and seeing which you think will be the most fun! For example, you could head on a Mary Poppins tour in London or go on an unofficial walking tour of the city and see loads of Doctor Who filming locations. Everything that you have watched on the big screen has been filmed and made somewhere, so the chances are that if there is a location that you really want to see, there will be a way to make that happen – you just need to look up what is available and get yourself booked in for some serious TV fun.

Emmerdale Set Tour

Join the old Emmerdale village tour with other fans of the soap on our comprehensive tour.  This tour is perfect for the older generation of fans. This tour focuses on Emmerdale when it was first on TV from 1972-1997.

Click here for more details and to book the Emmerdale set tour.

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The 1993 plane crash

The plane crash of 1993 still regularly tops lists of Emmerdale’s most shocking moments. It was one of two plane crash story lines that have been featured in the soap, with the second occurring in 2015. The first plane crash was particularly controversial due to being shown close to the 5th anniversary of the Lockerbie tragedy of 1988. The second also generated complaints due to similarities to the Clutha Vaults crash.

The 1993 crash saw four regular characters meet their end, including Archie Brooks and Elizabeth Pollard. The incident left Chris Tate in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. The village in the soap, which was originally called Emmerdale Farm until 1989, was renamed from Beckindale to Emmerdale as a tribute. Several off-screen characters also lost their lives in the crash. The story was even mentioned in another soap, Brookside, with characters reading about the crash in the Liverpool Echo.

Pierce rapes Rhona

Pierce spent several months controlling his then-partner Rhona Goskirk before raping her brutally in 2017. Although the scenes generated a large number of complaints, a spokesperson for the soap said it had a “history of raising awareness of difficult subjects”. Pierce was sentenced to five years in prison for the assault but later returned to the village, kidnapping Vanessa Woodfield and murdering Graham Foster.

Jackson’s assisted suicide

Jackson Walsh was left tetraplegic after a car accident. He was then helped to end his life by his partner Aaron Livesey, who gave him a fatal cocktail of drugs. This storyline also attracted criticism from groups including spinal cord injury support organisation Aspire, who accused the soap of “sensational misrepresentation”. However, the team behind Emmerdale said the storyline was created to “drive constructive debate over this sensitive subject”. They claimed that “99%” of responding viewers were “overwhelmingly positive” about the story.

Val’s HIV

Val Pollard was diagnosed with HIV following a holiday romance. Unfortunately, the actress who played Val, Charlie Hardwick, was attacked by online trolls after the scenes aired. She said she hoped the story would encourage viewers to take their sexual health more seriously. Val first appeared in Emmerdale in 2004 and passed away in 2015 after a helicopter crash. She later appeared as a ghost in 2017.

Ashley’s dementia

Ashley Thomas first appeared in Emmerdale in 1996 and spent almost 21 years on the soap. He was diagnosed with early-onset dementia towards the end of his stint, with heartbreaking scenes showing him fail to recognise his wife Laurel. The storyline was praised by campaigners including The Alzheimer’s Society, who described its impact as “tremendous” and complimented it for defying myths around the topic of dementia.

The 1994 siege

Scott Windsor’s biological father Reg Dawson arrived in Emmerdale in 1994. Although claiming he wanted to fix his relationship with his son, it soon transpired that he’d organised a siege. Reg’sgang kidnapped Viv Windsor and Shirley Turner, taking them to Home Farm. Shirley jumped in front of Viv as Reg was preparing to shoot him, though her bravery proved fatal.

The death of the Skilbeck twins

After Peggy Skilbeck died of a brain haemorrhage, her widowed husband Matt was left to bring their twins Sam and Sally up alone. As Matt found this too challenging, the twins went to live with his aunt, Beattie. Sadly, her car stalled at a level crossing before being hit by a train, with Beattie and the twins losing their lives.

The barn fire

Several months after the 2000 bus crash, Andy Sugden set a barn ablaze so his adoptive father Jack could claim on his insurance. However, Jack’s wife Sarah was in the barn with her extramarital partner Richie at the time. Andy’s guilt was not exposed until seven years later. The 35th anniversary episode of the soap saw Andy’s sister Victoria catching up with Richie to learn more about the fateful event. She then set fire to a cottage to force a confession from Andy, who was then sent to prison for manslaughter.

Tom’s murder

Millionaire Tom King was murdered on Christmas Day 2006. There were ten different suspects, and ten different outcomes were filmed. Even key cast and crew members didn’t know the identity of the killer. Emmerdale eve launched a website to help viewers ‘solve’ the crime. This featured blogs, emails, voicemails and more. Tom was killed shortly after marrying Rosemary Sinclair. He died after being struck around the head with a horse head statue, then pushed out of a window. Suspects included several members of his own family including his wife, Bob Hope, Terry Woods and Chastity Dingle. Viewers learned Carl had killed his own father several months after the scenes. At one point, all three brothers were charged with the murder, though the trail collapsed. He was murdered by Cameron Murray in 2012.

More about Emmerdale

Emmerdale has been one of the UK’s most popular soaps for almost 50 years and is showing no signs of heading into decline. Swedish band The Cardigans even named an album after it. Stars from other soaps that have appeared in Emmerdale include Ross Kemp, who played EastEnders’ Grant Mitchell, Pam St Clement who played Pat Butcher in the same programme and Coronation Street’s Beverley Callard AKA Liz McDonald.

Explore Emmerdale and the Yorkshire Dales with Brit Movie Tours

For those interested in booking a fun and informative Emmerdale tour click here. Our expert soap tour guides can help you explore some of the most important and fascinating locations linked to the Yorkshire soap. You can get in touch with Brit Movie Tours at any time to find out more about our sightseeing tours across top filming locations like Leeds, Manchester, London, Liverpool, Bristol, Belfast, Edinburgh and many more.  We have entertained more than 45,000 customers annually for several years, we can be counted on to deliver an Emmerdale tour experience to remember.

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The Harewood Estate was known to the show because they used two farmhouses in a field on the estate as exterior scenes for the Dingles farm and Glovers farm.  In June 1997 they began construction and copied the entire row of 4 houses next to the Woolpack and the 4 running along from the adjoined post office.  All the buildings were built to look the same and the replica set was finished by December of the same year.  The only difference to Esholt is that they made the stonework look more Dales like.  Apparently, they put yogurt over the stonework to encourage algea and moss to grow to make them look old.

Here at Brit Movie Tours, we have always been fans of the show. We have 4 Emmerdale tours for fans to choose from.  Below is a little summary of each tour:

Emmerdale Tour of Classic Locations

Our Emmerdale Tour of Classic Locations takes you to the original locations which are spread around West Yorkshire.  The tour lasts for 4 hours and takes you to the market towns of Otley (Hotton) and  Esholt  (Emmerdale Village).  Along the way, you will have a chance  to get off the bus and see the locations up close, but also enjoy the beauty of the Yorkshire countryside along the way.

The tours costs £29 for adults, £21 for OAPs and £21 for children under 16.

Click here to learn more and book

Emmerdale Village Tour

The Emmerdale Village Tour will take you around the live working TV set within Harewood Estate in Leeds. The tour is purely a walking tour of the exterior of the village as interior scenes are filmed elsewhere.  It lasts for 4 hours and will take you past Bob’s Cafe, The woolpack, the village Church and the familiar stone cottages. The chances of seeing the actors are slim as they only allow tours on the days the actors are off learning scripts.  However, if you keep reading you will learn we do have a tour for those wishing to meet a star from the show.

The village tour costs £65 for adults, £44 for OAP’s and £55 for children under 16.

Click here to learn more and book

Meet an Emmerdale Star in Leeds

We are lucky to be able to offer you the chance to meet one of the actors from the show. You would need to book a location tour and at the end of the tour, we will arrange a private meeting where you can enjoy a drink or a meal with a star from the show.  You can get autographs and have your photograph taken with them and ask them questions only they can answer.  It is the all singing and dancing day out for serious fans of Emmerdale.

Facts you might not know about Emmerdale

• Originally the show was called ‘Emmerdale Farm’ and first broadcast in 1972 but changed to just Emmerdale in 1989.
• The cast drinks real beer during recording but advised to drink small amounts during takes.
• The episode where a plane exploded over the village was watched by their largest audience, 18 million viewers.
• Ross Kemp, Pam St Clements, Anna Friel and Spice Girl Mel B have appeared in the soap.
• The cast was kept in the dark for the ‘Who killed Tom King’ plotline and eleven different endings were recorded.
• Edna’s dog Batley became the first animal to win a British Soap Award when it was put down after fighting a battle with cancer.
• A full-time gardener works at the village and ensures the correct flowers are in bloom at the right time.  As the show films 6 weeks in advance, the gardener has his work cut out to ensure the right flowers bloom 6 weeks early.

Latest Storyline Rumours

This summer will be exciting for fans as it’s rumored a that Emma will finally get her comeuppance.  Emmerdale has clarified that Emma will be killed off in dramatic circumstances, possibly a shooting.  Also, the control freak that is Pierce is also rumoured to get his comeuppance.  Poor Rhona has had a long and arduous battle with painkiller addiction and because she keeps the secret of Pierce raping her, this eats her up inside and she starts to use the pills again as a coping mechanism.  The bullying storyline is also heating up as Dan Spencer discovers thug Josh’s lifeless bloodied body. Will he get the blame? It’s all happening on the famous cobbles and this summer looks set to be one to remember!

If Emmerdale is your favourite soap and you can’t get enough of it, why not join us and other like-minded fans on one of our tours.  We share lots of unknown facts about the soap and try to make each tour entertaining as well as educational.  People of all ages are welcome to book with us, we look forward to welcoming you on one of our Emmerdale tours.

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