The Art of Location: Creating the World of Bridgerton by Elissa Morton

Writer and scenic artist Elissa Morton visited the Old Royal Naval College and the University of Greenwich to hear from the people behind the iconic visual world of Bridgerton.

After waiting for a moment in the venue's gift shop, purusing tote bags and pencil cases, I knew it was time to enter the hall. Not because there was any kind of announcement, but from the eruption of cafe chairs scrapping across the floor as guests rushed to the hall's entrance. As we made our way in, the excitement of the audience was palpable; you could almost hear a sizzle of anticipation.

I'm not exaggerating when I say my jaw dropped when we entered the Painted Hall, it is breathtakingly beautiful. Huge 300 year old paintings dominate the room, painted directly onto the walls and ceiling with an epic renaissance boldness. The organisers had lined the hall with candelabras and had Bridgerton's notorious pop-turned-classic soundtrack luring us to our seats. It was the perfect setting for a panel on period design in entertainment.

The discussion, moderated by Dr. Deborah Klikova (University of Greenwich) was insightful but casual, the feeling of an informal conversation between friends rather than a purely professional, technical discussion. The speakers; Tony Hood (Supervising Locations Manager) and Will Hughes-Jones (Production Designer) shared anecdotes from the duration of their film careers to answer Klikova's questions and paint the clearest picture for the audience of the realities of working in film and TV.

Hughes-Jones was the original production designer on Bridgerton and worked on the first two series. He discussed colour and subverting the more traditional muted natural palettes of period TV to create Bridgerton's striking palette. It was interesting to hear how unsure Hughes-Jones was regarding whether audiences would be on board with his choice: "It went against everything in my body about what period TV should be."

Tony Hood joined the Bridgerton Locations team in Season Two and has worked on the show ever since. He delved more into the real locations of infamous settings in the show and how the locations team navigates protected, historical sites.

The talk perhaps leaned more into filmmaking as a practice, rather than giving too many in-depth insights into Bridgerton specifically. My own years spent working in the industry has made me impatient to talks of "making the perfect cup of tea" as a means to having a successful film career. By Hood's own admission, he only got work in the locations department through talking to a friend in a pub who gave him a job, reaffirming what anyone who has tried to break into the film world already knows; it's not about what you know, but who you know.

Still, it was inspiring to spend an evening discussing design and the power of location surrounded by the painted murals of 'Britain’s Sistine Chapel'.