An unlikely English town, with striking landscapes and noteworthy architecture, has built up quite a reputation. So much so that it has been dubbed the 'Hollywood of the North' due to being a celeb-spotting hotspot.

The Town of Bolton in Greater Manchester was long known as a powerhouse of the textile industry, particularly for cotton, during the Industrial Revolution. In recent years, with the hard industries gone, a different kind of trade has come in.

A catalogue of major TV shows has utilised the distinctive town, with its Victorian architecture and historic streets coming together to create a prime filming location.

Popular shows, such as Netflix's Fool Me Once, BBC's Peaky Blinders, and Happy Valley, have all been notably filmed in Bolton, with TV crews reportedly spending 88 days filming in the town during 2023. This has welcomed the likes of Michelle Keegan, Cillian Murphy and Sarah Lancashire into the town, while Ewan McGregor, Adrian Dunbar and Jodie Whittaker have also been spotted.

TV dramas It's a Sin, Nolly, Brassic, The Reckoning, A Gentleman in Moscow, Ridley, and Alma's Not Normal, have also used the noteworthy town as their backdrop. Bolton's success as a filming location has not only brought stardom to the town but has also generated more than £1 million in income for Bolton Council, as they shared earlier last year.

Bolton's distinguishable curved Le Mans Crescent, which houses the Bolton Museum, Aquarium, and Archive, has often been featured in TV titles, including Peaky Blinders, as it doubled as London for various scenes. Not to mention, its appearance in ITV's iconic soap Coronation Street when it's used as the Weatherfield Crown Court.

Other locations, albeit some rather peculiar areas in Bolton, have also been used as a film set, including The Mosley Arms in Breightmet, which was disguised as the Rockingham Arms in Kettering for Netflix's series Toxic Town. The Victoria Hall, which hosts various community events and theatre productions, also garnered attention when the building was used for A Gentleman in Moscow just a few years ago.

Additionally, the Mercury Motel in Westhoughton, Bolton, also set the scene for the ITV thriller Passenger, thanks to its American-style exterior and lounge that served as a vintage canteen for the show. And it's not just TV shows, as movies The Ipcress File and The Full Monty, have also been shot in the famed Bolton.

Away from its famed locations and celebrity spotting hotspot, Bolton is known for its industrial heritage, particularly when it comes to textiles. The town was renowned as a major hub for cotton spinning and was home to over 200 cotton mills during the Industrial Revolution. Furthermore, it holds its culinary speciality and native fast food snack, the pasty barm, made from a buttered barm cake (meat and potato) with a pasty filling. The pasty barm was reportedly created by Bolton schoolboys in the 1950s as a "cheap dinner" alternative.

The town of Bolton is filled with high-street shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues, while also boasting the largest retail park in the UK, located at Middlebrook Retail & Leisure Park. The area is also surrounded by rural landscapes, making it a great base for a venture and a hike a little further afield, including the foothills of the stunning West Pennine Moors.

For those looking for family activities, Bolton offers the chance to zip through the woodland at Go Ape Rivington, or take a visit to the Bolton Steam Museum and Bolton Museum. There's also the option to take a leisurely stroll through Moss Bank Park or Jumbles Country Park, or even catch a game at the renowned Bolton Wanderers Football Club.