'Roald Dahl's Matilda: The Musical' Takes Place in England — Where Was It Filmed?

In an era when plenty of streaming content is filmed largely in studios or on soundstages, it's always refreshing to see something that looks like it was shot at least partially in the real world. Matilda: The Musical, which recently hit Netflix, is an adaptation of the Roald Dahl novel of the same name.

The musical features some of those real-world locations, which has led many to wonder where the England-set movie was filmed.

Matilda was filmed largely in England and Ireland. The exterior of Crunchem Hall Elementary, for example, were shot in Hampshire in England, while some of the other external photography was filmed in Dublin, Ireland, or at the Whipsnade Zoo in England, according to IMDb. Given the English nature of the production, it only makes sense that much of the photography would take place there.

This, of course, gives viewers a very different aesthetic than the one created in the 1996 version of Matilda directed by Danny DeVito. Although an adaptation of this book already existed, Matilda: The Musical has received largely positive reviews from critics, and also has the benefit of taking the novel back to its British roots.

In addition to using actual exteriors for key sequences, including one at Bramshill House in Hampshire which was used to film a key musical sequence featuring the film's young cast, the crew of Matilda also reportedly took inspiration from some real locations in designing its own look and feel.

The windmill that is featured in the movie, for example, was inspired by the Cobstone Windmill.

The windmill in the film is based on that actual windmill, and was built on location in Dunstable, a small market town in England. All the scenes featuring the windmill were actually shot in a parking lot in the small town, which was made to look newly picturesque for the film. The magic of the movies is evident here, even as many of the vistas and other pieces of outdoor scenery in the movie are entirely real.

Although Matilda: The Musical is not necessarily about nature, many people wanted to know where the movie was filmed in part because the landscapes that the movie captures are so pastoral and beautiful. While many people may be familiar with what large cities like London look like, the rolling green country that takes up sizable chunks of England and Ireland's land mass may be less familiar to many Americans.

Matilda: The Musical is also a great example of why filming in real locations can be so crucial. Computer-generated images can be impressive, but they often pale in comparison to the sights and sounds available in the natural world. It can be hard to appreciate those views in the moment, but seeing them on a big screen, even if it's at home, can make anyone want to travel there in person.