The Great filmed at Hever Castle

January 03 2021 | Castle Garden

The Great, a comedy-drama about the rise of Catherine the Great saw scenes filmed at Hever Castle.

Catherine the Great was Empress of Russia from 1762 – 1796 and overthrew her husband Peter III to become leader.

She was the longest ruling female leader of Russia and helped make the country a strong power in Europe.

A film crew of over 100 people spent a few days filming on the Loggia in the Italian Garden of Hever Castle as part of the TV show in January 2019.

Created by Tony McNamara and starring Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult, The Great was released in May 2020.

Hever Castle’s Loggia was used as the ballroom as part of a meeting by Peter III of Russia (Nicholas Hoult).

Nearby Kent location, the St Clere Estate was also used to film various battle scenes.

Other locations used for The Great were York, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Caserta in Italy but none of the filming took place in Russia.

Hever Castle held an exhibition in 2019 showcasing some of the TV programmes and films which used the historic attraction as a backdrop.

Two dresses from the film Anne of the Thousand Days and a sword dredged from the moat after filming for The Passionate Pilgrim starring Eric Morecambe and Tom Baker were among the items on display.

Find out more about hiring Hever Castle for filming or photography.

Read about other Kent locations used for film or TV.