Canals and rivers on screen

In the past few years, our canals and rivers have been working hard behind the scenes, you might have seen us in...

House of Guinness This new period drama from Netflix, created by Steven Knight CBE (Peaky Blinders), follows the Guinness family in 19th century Ireland and New York. The National Waterways Museum Ellesmere Port was transformed into 19th century graving docks in Dublin and the toll house became ‘The Angel’ pub complete with Guinness signage.

Mad About the Boy In the latest addition to the world of Bridget Jones films, the Hertford Union Canal towpath in Hackney Wick is the romantic setting for Bridget and her new beau Roxster's date.

Slow Horses (pictured below) based on the Slough House spy novels by Mick Herron, this Apple TV series used the Regent's Canal in Regent's Park as a rendezvous for Taverner (Kristin Scott Thomas) and Lamb (Gary Oldman). Series four ended with a splash at the canal at Kings Cross, as a dramatic cat and mouse chase came to an end.

Day of the Jackal, a reimagining of the 1973 spy thriller for Paramount+ starring Eddie Redmayne featured a nighttime stand off on the Regent's Canal in Camden.

CBeebies Jo Jo & Gran Gran made a special trip to the canal in the episode It's Time For A Boat Ride. JoJo and Gran Gran meet Ned and Monty who are liveaboard boaters.

This Town is a recent BBC drama from Steven Knight CBE (video below, creator of Peaky Blinders) and is set in early 1980s Birmingham and Coventry as the Two Tone music scene is beginning to emerge against a backdrop of conflict at home, in the city streets, and in Northern Ireland. This drama is packed with canal locations including Snow Hill tunnel and an aqueduct on the Tame Valley Canal that spans the M6 motorway.

The second series of boating series Narrow Escapes has just begun on Channel 4. In this 25-part series we meet those who call our canals home. Whether it be retirees looking for freedom, young people searching for an affordable alternative to the cost-of-living crisis, newlyweds, families or divorcees, we’ll be introduced to a new and vibrant community made up of people from all walks of life, ages and backgrounds.

From continuous cruisers to business owners operating from their boats and the workers and volunteers on land who maintain the waterways, Narrow Escapes is a snapshot of modern life on the canals.

Earlier this year we saw see a sixth series of Canal Boat Diaries arrive on the U&Yesterday channel. The documentary with live aboard boater Robbie Cumming shows the reality of life afloat combined with a chilled soundtrack and stunning views of the canals Robbie has visited.