BBC Merlin Filming Locations

Merlin Meet Up, Pierrefonds | 16-17 August | twitter.com/Pierrefonds13

Join us in Pierrefonds for our second annual Merlin Meet Up! The village is holding a medieval fair, so there'll be lots to enjoy quite apart from meeting up with your fellow fans and reliving old memories. Read this post on the website for a full report on last year's Meet Up!

Thank you to Sarah for making it happen all over again!

The wonderful Sarah is organising a Merlin Meet Up for all the Merlin Family, with the aim of getting together in Pierrefonds for the weekend of 17-18 August 2013.

See merlinmeetup on Live Journal and/or @Pierrefonds13 on Twitter for more information!

Another brief report on today's filming in Pierrefonds!

This includes spoilers of the casting / character and costume variety, and also some sketchy scene details.

We had a much pleasanter day in terms of the weather, so that made it easier for everyone - fans, cast and crew!

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And ... the photos are now uploaded to Flickr!

We have a Locations Geek on the ground in Compiegne!

Thanks to archaeologist_d for her report posted here on LJ.

It now seems that actual filming will only happen for the period Tuesday 11 to Thursday 13 September.

A very short block indeed!

While researching all the touristy possibilities of the Pierrefonds area, I found that one in particular got me particularly curious. The Clouise Stone is a large flat rock, which can be found in the Retz Forest (Foret de Retz) not far from Villers-Cotterets.

There is very little information on the internet about the stone - or not that I've found. If anyone can tell me more, I'd be very interested.

The Clouise Stone has been classified as a historical monument since 1889, and is listed as a menhir. That, to me, implies there was some human agency in creating or placing the stone, and perhaps it was even a standing stone at some stage. Or perhaps it implies that that's what they thought back in 1889! However, there is a tumble of other rocks with flat surfaces in the area, and it all looks as if it could well have happened naturally, so at this point I am not sure either way. In any case, it seems that the stone has been used for pagan rituals - dating back to a complaint from a pastor (cure) in 1653 - and there is certainly no denying that it has a spiritual or at least a natural allure.

The forest around it is gorgeous, and the stone itself is astonishing. It's fairly close to the main road, and doesn't involve much of a walk. There's a slope to climb down and then up again when you're done, but it's nothing compared to the climb up to the Chateau de Pierrefonds! I would recommend you giving this a try if you are feeling at all interested.

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Please be warned that these reports and the photos on Flickr now contain some totally serious casting (guest and recurring), costume, and prop spoilers.

Well, today was a perfectly lovely day in which to sit around doing nothing... which was just as well, as that was the slowest (filming) day I've ever spent in Pierrefonds! But then there was ♥♥♥ Rupert ♥♥♥. {swoons}


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No doubt the highlight of the day, for me and for many, was Rupert. He arrived with family members, dressed in 'civvies' as his own good self. I think they must have taken the opportunity to tour the Chateau. Afterwards, despite presumably having a day (or at least an afternoon) off, he was gracious enough to sign autographs and pose for photos with all the fans who wanted to. Which was quite a few! He really is a kind-hearted and delightfully friendly sort - and a terrific ambassador for this production, which already has a reputation for being a good and happy team. But then I would say that, wouldn't I? Sweet on him as I am...

So the photos today are all of Sir Rupert ♥♥♥, with a lone exception: the back of the camera truck, aka the good ship Flaming Virago. You can find the photos here.

G'day! I had a lovely weekend. On Saturday I tramped around a very damp field and got rained upon in an effort to locate the field where the Dragon comes to talk to Merlin... and pretty much gave up on that as impossible without asking for direct info from the production itself. I also found some wheatfields with poppies, which looked spectacular. Then I visited the Chateau de Compiegne on Sunday.

But you want to hear about what happened today at the Chateau de Pierrefonds! There are no real spoilers in this post - only mention of continuing cast, crew and creatives.

Alas there isn't much to report.
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Bonsoir! Your correspondent was privileged to be in Pierrefonds for the first day of filming at the Chateau. It was a lovely day, made lovelier by the company of yavannauk. The day began with rain, and was overcast for most of the day - despite which I still managed to get red-faced from too much 'sun'. {sighs}

There is little to report, but I'll tell you anyway. And I didn't take any photos, but I'm sure you'll be happy to know that yavannauk did. The following includes some mild casting and costume spoilers.


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For those of you whose sense of adventure outweighs their love of creature comforts (i.e. not me, alas!) here's some rather alternate accommodation near Pierrefonds. A fan named Arie brought this to my attention via the website, and called it 'remarkable'! Obviously you need to be mobile to make use of it, but here you are: le Nid dans l'arbre, which means 'the nest night in the tree'.

Yes, we're talking tree houses in an oak wood near Pierrefonds! You can find their website here. There doesn't seem to be an English version of the site, but it assures me, via Google Translate, that you can forget in complete safety the laws of gravity. Hurrah!

Google Maps places them here.

What larks!