Norfolk Tourism Launches Stephen Fry’s Kingdom Section on www.visitnorfolk.co.uk
Norfolk Tourism has added a Norfolk film locations section to the county’s leading tourism website, www.visitnorfolk.co.uk, to coincide with Stephen Fry’s return to ITV on Sunday evenings for a second series of Kingdom. The gentle drama is set in the fictional seaside town of Market Shipborough – real location Swaffham, Norfolk.
The www.visitnorfolk.co.uk film section opens with four pages on Kingdom that feature a virtual tour of Swaffham’s historic buildings, photographs and video clips from the first series, an introduction to the main characters, along with the actors’ thoughts on Norfolk. Visitors can also search for local accommodation and things to see and do in the area.
Martin Hickey, Chairman of Swaffham and District Tourism Association and a member of Norfolk Tourism’s Executive with responsibility for www.visitnorfolk.co.uk said: “Kingdom has provided a great boost for our area. Not only has the show’s producer, Parallel Films, contributed some £2.5 million to the local economy, but we are also welcoming increasing numbers of visitors wanting to discover ‘Market Shipborough’ and ‘Kingdom Country’.”
“As well as the www.visitnorfolk.co.uk web pages, we are also planning to run a press trip in March, to introduce regional journalists to Market Shipborough,” continued Martin Hickey. “Swaffham will be staging a Kingdom weekend during August Bank Holiday. The Market Place car park will be turned into a beach for the day with deck chairs, sandcastle competitions, volley ball games, plus a barbecue. Visitors can already pick up Market Shipborough beach rock and postcards from the town’s Tourist Information Centre. The local cab company, Cool Cabs, is organising tours of ‘Kingdom Country’.”
For more information about Swaffham see www.aroundswaffham.co.uk.
What Stephen Fry says about Swaffham
“I have lived a few miles away from Swaffham for over 20 years. I have always admired the balance between modernity and tradition that the town has managed to strike and have always felt at home amongst its people. There’s something about the place, a perfect market town, perfectly placed in the heart of Norfolk’s perfect Breckland.
When we decided on making Kingdom, I was very sure that the producers and writers should visit Swaffham and perhaps gain some inspiration from it. I had secretly hoped that they would be so struck by the town that they would want to film there.
All of us connected to Kingdom are grateful to the town and it’s hospitable people for allowing us the opportunity to make the series there. Dozens of actors, production staff and film technicians have fallen in love with the town and with this part of Norfolk.
Swaffham is a wonderful place to visit, a wonderful place to stay and a wonderful place to know.”
What the Kingdom cast says about Norfolk
Hermione Norris stars as Peter’s (Stephen Fry) troubled younger sister Beatrice. Hermione stayed in Norfolk for the shoot and fell in love with the area. “I wasn’t familiar with Norfolk at all. Now I really do understand why people have a real draw or pull to it, it really does have a strong identity all of its own. The Norfolk coast is amazing; we stayed in the very beautiful village of Castle Acre. It’s just very very rich farm land and it really is an extraordinary place.”
Celia Imrie plays Gloria Millington, Peter Kingdom’s faithful receptionist and trusted confidante. “My favourite place was Holkham beach which features in the opening titles of Kingdom. It can’t be bettered. I tried to find beaches that were more beautiful and more expansive, but there weren’t any. That is just the prime beach in the whole area. At the moment it is still marvellously wild.”
