Where Black Doves Was Filmed

Before season two lands on Netflix on 5 November, here are the London locations Netflix and Film London confirm for Black Doves, and which ones you can visit.

By Jessie Isberg November 3, 2026 4 min read

Courtesy of Netflix

Trailer: Black Doves. Cast, where to watch and more on the title page.

Black Doves is a London story, and it was made in London. Joe Barton’s spy thriller, starring Keira Knightley as Helen Webb and Ben Whishaw as the hitman Sam, returns for season two on Netflix on Thursday 5 November. Before Helen goes back to work, here is where the first series was shot, drawn only from what Netflix, Film London and the production company, Sister, have confirmed. The series is produced by Sister and Barton’s company, Noisy Bear.

Netflix announced on 24 October 2023 that the show “began filming in central London last week.” The story is set over Christmas, and the producers wanted the real city on screen. “London at Christmas is so key to Black Doves that we had to be on location as much as possible,” Chris Fry, executive producer and managing director of Sister, told Netflix’s Tudum.

Film London, the capital’s screen agency, logged the production that November, describing a “new six-part spy thriller” in which Knightley’s Helen, the wife of a senior politician, leads a double life as a spy. Alex Gabassi and Lisa Gunning directed the first series; Netflix credits Julian Farino and Kieron Hawkes as directors of the second.

A man in a tuxedo and a woman in a blue dress pose for photographers at a night-time event in Black Doves season two — In pictures 2

Two women, one with a handgun and one with a shotgun, descend a warmly lit staircase in Black Doves season two — In pictures 2

Over 100 locations, mostly by the river

The scale was large. “We’ve used over 100 locations around London, a lot of them around Westminster and the South Bank,” Pete Wimblett, the second block location manager, told Tudum. Director Alex Gabassi added that the shoot reached “not only the South Bank and Westminster, but other neighborhoods, too.”

The places that follow are the ones named by Netflix and Film London. Most are public spaces you can visit.

Somerset House

The opening party scene was filmed at Somerset House, according to Tudum, and Film London also lists it among the show’s locations. As a public arts centre, it is the easiest stop on the list to make.

The National Theatre and the South Bank

Tudum names the National Theatre as a location, and Film London lists the Southbank. Together with Westminster across the water, this stretch is where Wimblett says most of the shoot happened, so a walk along the river from the theatre towards Westminster Bridge covers the show’s home turf.

Liberty London

The Liberty London department store is another Tudum-confirmed location. It is a working shop, so you can browse where the cameras rolled.

Borough Market, from the road

Not every landmark could be closed for a camera. “Somewhere like Borough Market is open practically every day for the majority of the day,” Wimblett told Tudum, so the crew filmed on a road nearby with the market visible behind the action. Stand on its edge and you have the same view.

Helen’s house in Crystal Palace

In the story, Helen and her husband Wallace live in North London, in the Highgate and Highbury area. The real house is south of the river. “Scenes in Helen’s home were filmed at a house in South London, in Crystal Palace,” Tudum says. It is a private home and its address has not been published, so admire the neighbourhood, not the front door.

More from Film London

Film London’s December 2024 round-up adds a longer list: the Royal Lancaster Hotel, Leadenhall Market, and locations in Victoria Park, Spitalfields, Covent Garden and Tooting. Neither list gives scene-by-scene detail for these, so treat them as a walking route rather than a shot-for-shot match.

The studio near Slough

When a location would not work, the production moved indoors. Tudum says part of the series was shot at a studio near Slough, about 20 miles west of central London. That one is not open to visitors.

What about season two?

Netflix has not yet published a location list for the new season. Tudum’s season two coverage places the story in Soho bars and around Downing Street, with Wallace preparing to become prime minister, but those are story settings rather than confirmed filming sites. Knightley, Whishaw, Sarah Lancashire and Andrew Buchan return, joined by Ambika Mod, Sam Riley, Neve Campbell and others. Our earlier story on season two has the full cast.

For more London on screen, see our guides to where Harry Potter was filmed in Britain, the London scenes in The Diplomat, and where Peaky Blinders was really filmed.