The Canary Islands are a natural scenario highly claimed in the cinematographic world for their numerous locations and remarkable tax incentives. Great Hollywood movies such as Fast and Furious 6, Jason Bourne or Rambo V have been filmed in different scenarios in the Canary Islands. Apart from the big screen, there has also been place for national and international television shows which have ended up impressing the critics both for the plot and the locations. In today’s post we bring you a tour around some successful international tv shows filmed in the Canary Islands. If you want to discover those series filmed in the Canary Islands, keep on reading!
The Witcher
The Witcher is a Netflix super-production released in 2019 which became the tv show with the most successful debut within its catalogue. This is an adaptation of the popular saga of fantasy novels starring Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill: Superman), the wizard created by Andrzej Sapkowsk.
Many of the exterior scenes were filmed in the Canary Islands, specifically in Gran Canaria, La Gomera, La Palma and Tenerife. In fact, only the first and third episodes do not contain scenes filmed in the Archipelago. As for the rest, we can find locations from Gran Canaria such as the ravine of Fataga, Acusa Seca Caves, Roque Nublo or the impressive Dunes of Maspalomas.
We can see the rest of the islands in the enchanted forest in which Ciri, the young princess and her escape partner penetrate. This magical space is a mix of images taken from different places, such as La Zarza in Tenerife; El cedro in La Gomera; or La Galga and the incredible forest with waterfalls of Los Tilos in La Palma.
On the other hand, the Caingorn Mountains in which the hunting expedition takes place during the sixth episode, correspond to other locations in La Palma, such as Cumbrecita, Llano del Jable and Roque de los Muchachos, which is also the highest peak of the island. Also, the Gors Velen beach which appears in the last episode is actually, Guayedra Beach, which is close to the village and port of Agaete in Gran Canaria.
Hierro
Other of the successful international series filmed in the Canary Islands ia Hierro, a Movistar+ original Spanish tv show released in 2019 which is also being cast in various European countries. The plot revolves around a murder which occurs in El Hierro, the most remote island of the Canary Islands. Within this story of suspense, the island becomes just another character in the film because of the many references to the traditions of the people of the island, the landscape, volcanic land, cliffs, banana tree plantations and the ocean.
The locations for Hierro were so important that from the very beginning there were integrated in the script spaces such as El Sabinar, the parochial church of Nuestra Señora de la Concepción or La Peña Observatory. Although, in the first season you can practically see the entire island: La Frontera, Valverde, El Pinar, Jinama, Arenas Blancas, the Chapel Virgen de los Reyes, and so on.
In the early 2020, Movistar+ announced that the second season of Hierro is already being filmed in the Canary Islands, although there still isn’t a fixed date for its release.
The Peacemaker
The Finish show tells the story of Ann-Mari Koistinen (Irina Björklund), a peacekeeper working relentlessly in Turkey to re-establish permanent peace between the Turkish and the Kurdish.
The Peacemaker is a tv show about political drama set in places such as Turkey, Berlin, or New York but it has been filmed almost completely in Gran Canaria. Of the 100 days of shooting, only seven were carried out in Finland and another four in the Mainland. The rest is set in locations such as Cabrón Beach, Meloneras or Arinaga, in Gran Canaria.
The trust put by the company Matila Röhr Productions Oy in the Canary Islands as a filming destination was such that 4,5 out of 7 million euros of budget were invested in this natural set, including the participation of a fixed team of 60 people and up to 2000 extras, the majority of them being locals.
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a worldwide acclaimed British science-fiction show by the BBC. During its 12 seasons, the team members of the show have chosen the Canary Islands several times to film their episodes.
In 2014, Kill the moon was filmed in Lanzarote, in locations such as Timanfaya National Park, Volcanoes National Park and La Geria. A year later, in 2015, the team of Doctor Who came back to the islands in two occasions. The first one was to film the first two episodes of the 9th season in Tenerife: The Magician’s Apprentice and The Witch’s Familiar. Later, they came back to film the season finale in the arid spaces of Fuerteventura.
Lastly, some episodes of the 12th season were filmed in Tenerife. The Production Company of Doctor Who have claimed in numerous occasions that “ the island is perfect to film because the appearance of the landscape in El Teide is like taken from another planet, and they needed a location with a colonial aspect, such as Garachico”. For the shooting there were more than 50 people who travelled from the United Kingdom to Tenerife and counted on the collaboration of another 40 people and 12 local actors. Additionally, the team in charge of the British tv show requested the services of local companies for audio-visual equipment, security, transport, and catering.
Moreover, the team of the BBC does not dismiss coming back to the Canary Islands to enjoy its many advantages and locations again.
Black Mirror
Black Mirror is another British cult show. The masterful science-fiction series was created by Charlie Brooker in 2011, who has been capable of showing the political and social concerns of the population which chose the Canary Islands as a filming set in two occasions.
The episode National Hate, the 6th of the third season, shows images taken in the municipality of Tejeda, in Gran Canaria. After this great experience, a team of 80 people came for the fourth season to film the third episode, where you can see Los Hervideros, Playa Bermeja and other Southern points at Volcanoes National Park.
If you liked this tour of series filmed in the Canary Islands, you can also see in our blog the top 8 Hollywood movies filmed in the Canary Islands. Do you want to know more locations in the Canary Islands? At Las Hormigas Negras we can help you find them through our location service.