Set in Glastonbury, Finders Keepers filming locations include Glastonbury Market Place and High Street, Glastonbury Tor, the Somerset countryside, Notting Hill, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire.
Originally titled the Hoard, the 2023 Channel 5 drama follows Martin Stone (Neil Morrissey), a metal detectorist with a dilemma. When he takes his son-in-law, Ashley (James Buckley) along on his latest search in the Somerset countryside, the duo uncover a Saxon hoard worth half a million pounds.
Ashley, Martin, Martin’s daughter Laura (Jessica Rhodes) and his wife, Anne, (Fay Ripley) know they should they report the hoard, according to the law. But with bills to pay, Martin is tempted by Ashley’s suggestion to sell it on the black market.
They’re soon in over their heads once ex-con Grey ‘Rocky’ Rock (Shane Attwooll) and antiques dealer Denys Elland (Brendan Coyle) get involved. And they may not have got away with it, with DS Carole Doyle (Rakhee Thakrar) on the case.
“…when I first read it, I really felt like it was a bit like Breaking Bad, where all this serious stuff was happening, but it was two idiots that were well out their depth, and they shouldn't be in that situation at all, whatsoever.”
James Buckley, Ashley
Where Was Finders Keepers Filmed?
2024 Channel 5 series Finders Keepers was filmed in Somerset under the name The Hoard around Glastonbury Tor, Glastonbury Abbey, High Street and Market Place, the Somerset countryside, Station Road in Aldbury, Hertfordshire, Westbourne Grove in London, the Grand Union Canal in Rickmansworth and Stoke Court in Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire.
The series also features local businesses around the town centre. BBC Radio Somerset reported on The Hoard’s location shoot, and the everyday people and places who inspired the series.
“Part of this drama’s about showing people who are living and working in Somerset who are ordinary, working class people, business owners, and a story about them.”
Dan Sefton, Writer
Finders Keepers 2024 Filming Location List
High Street
Glastonbury : Market Place by Lewis Clarke, CC BY-SA 2.0
The Finders Keepers high street location is Glastonbury’s Market Place, which is known for its ancient heritage and eclectic independent shops. Filming took place around the Market Place, High Street and Glastonbury Abbey area in May 2023.
Somerset Countryside
The Saxon hoard in Finders Keepers is discovered in the Somerset countryside. Neil Morrissey and James Buckley were given metal detector training for the location shoot, with hints to help them convince the experts.
“I learned how far the detector has to be off the floor, the pace you can move it and how you get a ‘read’. But detectorists are quite passionate so I’ll probably get letters saying I did something wrong!”
Neil Morrissey, Martin
Glastonbury Tor
Glastonbury : Glastonbury Tor by Lewis Clarke, CC BY-SA 2.0
The impressive tower location in Finders Keepers is Glastonbury Tor. This 15th Century tower is the last remaining part of the ancient church of St Michael, which stood at the top of the hill. And the view seen in the Channel 5 metal detector drama is pretty impressive.
Glastonbury Tor doesn’t just offer views across Somerset, you can see as far as Dorset and Wiltshire, and across to Wales. As if that wasn’t enough of a claim to fame, the Somerset landmark is also said to conceal the entrance to a fairy realm and the Holy Grail.
Martin’s Village
Channel 5’s Finders Keepers village filming location is Aldbury in Hertfordshire. It’s first seen at the beginning of Episode 1, with the Station Road and the pond visible as we’re introduced to Martin and Anne’s life. And yes, those are indeed stocks visible onscreen. Aldbury’s original medieval stocks still stand in the village - though thankfully, they haven’t been used since 1835.
Canal Lock
Peter O'Connor aka anemoneprojectors, CC BY-SA 2.0
Finders Keepers’ canal lock location is on the Grand Union Canal at Rickmansworth in Hertfordshire, near Watford and the M25. Somerset has its own canals, so while there’s a screen swap at work here, the setting is an appropriate one.
Neil Morrissey and James Buckley are seen standing on Grand Union Canal Bridge 175, which crosses the canal with the lock gates in the background. This part of the Grand Union Canal is on the edge of Stocker’s Lake Nature Reserve, within Colne Valley Nature Reserve.
Middlebrow Historical Society Meeting
Ian Petticrew, CC BY-SA 2.0
Exterior shots of the village hall historical society meeting in Finders Keepers were filmed in Aldbury. This time, we’re looking at the opposite side of the pond and the historic building behind it. Martin is seen entering the half-timbered house on Stocks Road - one of several 16th Century cottages in the conservation area.
Wedding Venue
The wedding venue location in Finders Keepers is Stoke Court in Stoke Poges, Buckinghamshire. Located just a short distance from Pinewood Studios, the manor is a popular filming location. It started as a cottage in 1455. But the stucco manor shown in Anne and Laura’s wedding venue scene dates back to 1845 and 1873, with modern additions following a fire in the 1970s.
Stoke Court once belonged to a distant relation of George Washington, and continued its theme of political connections for centuries. It was owned, and later sold, by a descendant of the founder of Pennsylvania, and eventually fell into the hands of Winston Churchill’s wife’s cousin.
London Antique Shop
In Episode 1 of Finders Keepers, the London antique shop location is on Westbourne Grove in London’s Notting Hill. Look out for it when Martin and Ashley show the hoard to the black market antiques dealer, after covering their tracks by claiming each was making a separate trip to London.
Westbourne Grove has a longstanding name for antique shops, making this a spot-on filming location for the antiques dealer scene. Now that’s in addition to the area’s many independent shops, restaurants and famous markets.