Filming started at Bristol’s Bottle Yard Studios this week on the much anticipated BBC drama Poldark – the latest major series to use the region’s largest film and TV production space.
Aidan Turner, pictured, (The Hobbit Trilogy, Being Human) and Eleanor Tomlinson (Death Comes to Pemberley, The White Queen, Jack The Giant Slayer) star as Ross Poldark and Demelza in Debbie Horsfield’s adaptation of Winston Graham’s acclaimed sweeping saga set in 18th century Cornwall. It is made by Mammoth Screen and directed by Ed Bazalgette (The Guilty, Endeavour).
Bottle Yard will be home to Poldark’s production team for the next six months as they shoot in Bristol and Cornwall. 
Poldark Producer Eliza Mellor said: “We chose The Bottle Yard Studios as they have great spaces for our set builds, give us outstanding access to Cornwall where we film over the summer and are increasingly a thriving production centre which makes it a really good base for the Poldark team.”
Bottle Yard managing director Fiona Francombe added: “We’re delighted to welcome Mammoth Screen, the latest new customer to choose the studios as the best facility for its shoot. Poldark’s production team have been busy building sets onsite and creating the comprehensive costume department that will help bring this highly anticipated drama to the screen. The Studios are bustling with activity – just the way we like it.”
Other productions to shoot at The Bottle Yard Studios recently include Channel 4 Restoration drama New Worlds (showing now), two part ITV drama The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies (due for broadcast this Spring), the second series of Channel 4 comedy The Mimic (due for broadcast this Summer) and Channel 4 gameshow Deal or No Deal (showing now).
The eight x 60-minutes Poldark series is adapted by Debbie Horsfield and made by Mammoth Screen for BBC One. It is produced by Eliza Mellor and the executive producers are Debbie Horsfield, Karen Thrussell and Damien Timmer for Mammoth Screen and Polly Hill, Head of Independent Drama, for the BBC. Filming will take place across Cornwall and Bristol over the coming months and the series will transmit in 2015 on BBC One.
Also in the cast are Jack Farthing (Blandings) as ambitious banker George Warleggan, Kyle Solder (Anna Karenina) as Ross' cousin Francis Poldark, Warren Clarke (Red Riding) as Ross’ uncle Charles Poldark, Phil Davis (Whitechapel) as Ross’ lazy manservant Jud and Beatie Edney (Poirot) as Jud’s wife Prudie, Alexander Arnold (Skins) as Ross’ farm hand Jim Carter and Robert Daws (Holby) as Dr Choake. Robin Ellis, who played Ross in the original television adaptation of Poldark, will be joining the cast for two episodes to play Reverend Halse.
