{"id":961205,"date":"2026-05-15T09:10:21","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T09:10:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/961205\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T09:10:21","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T09:10:21","slug":"return-to-rutshire-bath-newseum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/961205\/","title":{"rendered":"Return to Rutshire \u2013 BATH NEWSEUM"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s back \u2013 it\u2019s finally time to return to Rutshire.<\/p>\n

Tonight sees the start of the second season of ITV\u2019s Rivals, and last night, cast members Katherine Parkinson, Annabel Scholey, the creative team from Happy Prince, the Mayor of the West of England, RTS West of England and The Bottle Yard Studios hosted a special screening and panel\u00a0in Bristol, in celebration of the regional\u00a0impact of production in the area.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Production of the\u00a0hit Hulu Original series, based on Dame Jilly Cooper\u2019s beloved\u00a0Rutshire\u00a0Chronicles, is based at The Bottle Yard Studios (TBYS) in Bristol. <\/p>\n

95%\u00a0of the\u00a0locations featured\u00a0in the series\u00a0were filmed within\u00a0a\u00a030-mile radius\u00a0of TBYS,\u00a0across Bristol, Bath and\u00a0North East\u00a0Somerset, South\u00a0Gloucestershire\u00a0and North Somerset, all supported by\u00a0a network of Film Offices across the West of England. The hit series is produced by Happy Prince, part of ITV Studios.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Speaking ahead of the event,\u00a0Deborah Armstrong, Country Manager, The Walt Disney Company UK & Ireland,<\/strong>\u00a0noted:\u00a0\u201cRivals has captured\u00a0the attention\u00a0of the nation\u00a0whilst\u00a0showcasing\u00a0the very best of British\u00a0and Irish\u00a0talent across cast, crew and beyond. The West of England,\u00a0and Bristol\u00a0in particular,\u00a0have\u00a0been integral\u00a0to\u00a0the show\u2019s success. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cDisney is proud of the role we play in Bristol\u2019s thriving creative ecosystem. Our presence spans the production of local Originals such as Rivals and National Geographic documentaries, as well as bringing audiences together through live experiences, including our recent sell-out stage show, The Greatest Showman.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England<\/strong>, said:\u00a0\u201cThe West Country is proud to be the real-life\u00a0Rutshire, somewhere seen by people all around the world \u2013 and something which is inspiring more visitors to come to, and fall in love with, our region.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe should celebrate the immense on-screen and off-screen talent that goes into making programmes like Rivals, and so it was really special to bring together so many of the people who made this production possible.\u00a0Like Her Majesty The Queen, I was blown away last year while visiting Dame Jilly Cooper\u2019s unrivalled universe first-hand at The Bottle Yard Studios in south Bristol.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe economic impact of filming TV is huge for jobs and businesses in the West of England, which we want to super-charge through our new \u00a325 million Creative Places Growth Fund. Rivals being made here has\u00a0directly and indirectly\u00a0helped\u00a0add\u00a0millions of pounds\u202fto the country\u2019s fastest-growing regional economy. We look forward to continuing to work with Disney+, Happy Prince, and ITV Studios in the future to create more magic in our part of the world.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

In a speech welcoming guests, including the Tourism Minister and the British Film Commission, to the West of England,\u00a0the Mayor praised the Bristol City Council-owned Bottle Yard Studios and the network of supportive Film Offices run by local councils across the region, and the impact of skills programmes like All Set West \u2013 which saw local trainees take their first steps in the industry working on Rivals, learning from world-renowned cast and crew. She also made a plug for a pair of Rivals\u2019 iconic red heels to find a home in Bath Fashion Museum when it reopens in the coming years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Alexander Lamb,\u00a0Executive Producer, Rivals and Creative Director at\u00a0Happy Prince, added:\u00a0<\/strong>\u201cBoth\u00a0Rivals series 1 and 2 were\u00a0entirely made possible by the talent, ingenuity,\u00a0tenacity\u00a0and good humour found in the West of England. Just like Declan O\u2019Hara\u2019s Venturer Television, Happy Prince is committed to\u00a0showcasing\u00a0the\u00a0very best\u00a0of the region, to bring its perfect locations and the work of\u00a0its\u00a0gifted crew to screen for the rest of the world to enjoy. We are eternally grateful for the continued warm welcome afforded to our cast and crew and hope to be making further series of Rivals in the West of England for many years to come.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Bottle Yard\u2019s Head of Studios, Katherine Nash,<\/strong>\u202fadds:\u00a0\u201cRivals is a flagship scripted title for Bristol and the West, and what a pleasure it has been to celebrate this with Disney+\u00a0and the\u00a0show\u2019s brilliant cast and creative team this evening. A returning booking of this calibre is what every Studio and filming region aspires to\u00a0secure and\u00a0is testament to our world-class facilities and the responsive support of our Studios Team and regional Film Offices from early prep through to wrap.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWelcoming Happy Prince and\u00a0ITV Studios back for Season 2 was an honour made all the greater by Her Majesty The Queen\u2019s set visit during filming. The benefits this international hit is bringing to our film sector are substantial; from local crew and supply chain engagement, to supporting industry entrants through All Set West, spotlighting our stunning locations and driving wider economic spend across the region. The Bottle Yard is proud to be Studio home to Rivals, a West Country success through and through.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s back \u2013 it\u2019s finally time to return to Rutshire. Tonight sees the start of the second season…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":961206,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8818],"tags":[381,748,393,4884,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-961205","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-bristol","8":"tag-bristol","9":"tag-britain","10":"tag-england","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116577818909445382","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/961205","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=961205"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/961205\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/961206"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=961205"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=961205"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=961205"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}