Lacock is a tiny medieval English village in the Cotswolds, which still makes you feel that you have time-travelled to 200 years before when slow life was real. This charming village in Wiltshire is also where William Henry Fox Talbot invented photography.
The historic lanes of Lacock are lined up with timber-framed houses, quaint honey-stoned cottages, old pubs, intriguing cafes and local shops.
Lacock is also famous for being the backdrop and live set in British TV series and movies, such as Downton Abbey, Pride and Prejudice, Cranford, Harry Potter, Wolfhall and many more, due to its timeless beauty and being devoid of modern intrusions in its medieval infrastructure, such as telephone cables hanging between the houses, TV antennas, or road signs. You may see some luxurious cars parked on the road, but the production team can eliminate them while filming the scenes.
One of the endearing aspects of Lacock is the unique trust that locals have in visitors while running small businesses. It’s a heartwarming sight to see items displayed in small baskets outside houses with a price tag. Visitors can pick up the item and leave the payment in the letter box plate on the door, a testament to the trust and honesty that permeates this village, making you feel welcomed and trusted.
How to Reach Lacock
If you go to Lacock from London, you can take a train from Paddington to Chippenham and from there X 34 bus from the Railway Station Approach to The George pub.
Driving to Lacock is a convenient option for those with a legal license. The village offers many free parking spaces, such as those near Red Lion Inn, High Street and East Street. Alternatively, the paid parking through National Trust is £5 for a whole day, providing a hassle-free parking solution.
If the above options don’t work for you, rest assured that there are convenient alternatives. You can book a tour through Get Your Guide or Viator, ensuring a hassle-free journey to Lacock.
Where to Stay in Lacock
When I went to Lacock last year, I stayed with my husband at De Vere Torthworth Court in Wotton-under-Edge, which was forty minutes away from Lacock by car. De Vere Torthworth Court is an old manor house turned into a hotel located on a 30-acre estate, and we had a wonderful stay there. Moreover, our drive to Lacock was scenic, strewn with English cottages and sheep grazing the farmlands.
There are many fabulous options to stay near Lacock, such as Chippenham, Melksham, Devizes, Trowbridge and Corsham. However, you can also stay in Lacock in local English pubs like Red Lion and Sign of the Angel. In addition, you can look for B & B cottages on Booking.com.
Things to do in Lacock
I went to Lackock on a day trip and visited all the main tourist spots in four to five hours because all of them were nearby. However, if you stay in Lacock, you can take it slow and get lost in time.
Walking Tour in Lacock
- Begin your walking tour from Lacock Abbey, one of the village’s oldest buildings. It started as a nunnery in the 1200s and became a Tudor family home in the 1500s. In 1835, William Henry Talbot captured the first photographic negative of a window you can still see in the house. Many of us are grateful for the invention of photography, which has helped us create memories and beautiful moments. On top of that, the cloister and rooms in the abbey are rare examples of medieval monastic architecture.
Check the exact opening times and prices of a combined abbey, country house, gardens, Fox Talbot Museum and Exhibition ticket on the National Trust Website. For National Trust members, the car parking and tickets are free. Covering the entire Lacock Abbey can take at least two hours, especially if you read everything like me.
- Next, you can visit St.Cyriac’s Church on Church Street. It’s a 14th-century Christian church dedicated to an eponymous Norman saint.
- On Church Street, you can visit King John’s Hunting Lodge Tea Rooms, the oldest building in Lacock and Lacock Bakery, where you can buy fresh artisan breads, pastries and cakes.
- From Church Street, turn left onto East Street and continue walking until you reach High Street or Market Square, where you will find cafes, old inns, local food and gift shops in timber-framed and honey-stoned buildings.
Filming Locations in Lacock
Lacock is a perfect place for period dramas and fantasy movies due to its preservation of quaint charm in architecture that includes various styles of cottages and other buildings.
Downton Abbey TV Series and First Movie
In 2015, Church Street in Lacock was transformed into a 1920s livestock show with sheep, pigs, and long-horn bulls to create a market scene in the series.
In 2019, the movie focused on a visit by the King and Queen to the Downton estate, so the film crew set the Royal Parade scene throughout the village. It featured 350 extras, which also included local villagers.
Harry Potter’s Filming in Lacock
1. Lacock Abbey
Many scenes of the Harry Potter movie series were filmed in Lacock Abbey. Here are the popular spots:
Cloisters
The medieval cloisters were shown as the magical corridors of Hogwarts School. These cloisters look fascinating and worked as a significant backdrop in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Recently, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald also featured these cloisters.
Since the National Trust is managing Lacock Abbey along with the village, the tickets to visit the cloisters come at a price. This ticket includes gardens, a country house, the abbey ruins and Henry Fox Talbot Museum. The price is £20 (please check the website link above).
Classroom in Hogwarts — Lacock Abbey Chapter House
The Chapter House is where Harry discovers the Mirror of Erised in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. These rooms look like they are meant to become sets for the magical world of Harry Potter.
Warming House
In Harry Potter’s first part, this room was used as Quirrel’s Classroom for Defence Against the Dark Arts. The Cauldron in the Warming Room was made in 1500 in Antwerp. The reason behind its presence in the room is unknown, but the local legend says that it may have been used in a nun’s kitchen or during Queen Anne’s visit in the early 1700s.
The Sacristy
Snape’s potion class in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was filmed here.
2. Lily and James Potter’s Cottage
This house was used in flashbacks when Hagrid told Harry Potter the story of his parents and how Voldemort killed them. This house is at the end of Church Street, near St.Cyriac’s Church.
3. Sign of the Angel Pub
The pub became Babberton Arms when Harry and Dumbledore strolled on the streets of Budleigh Babberton at night. Lacock is beautifully visible in the backdrop of Budleigh Babberton.
4. Horace Slughorn’s House
The exterior of this muggle house is where Horace Slughorn hides in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to protect himself from Death Eaters. You will see this house briefly when Harry Potter and Dumbledore go there to convince him to join the teacher’s post in Hogwarts. This property is on Cantax Hill.
Places to visit near Lacock
Castle Combe is another pretty English village that you should visit, and it’s nearby. Also, Bath is a bustling hilly town just thirty minutes away by car and an hour away from Lacock via public transport.
I hope these reasons are enough to convince you to visit Lacock and experience the beauty of the British heritage.
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