Was Bodkin Filmed In Ireland?

6 months ago

Delving into Netflix's not-true true crime series

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If you’ve finished Baby Reindeer and you’re looking for a new crime story to sink your teeth into, give Bodkin a go, a darkly comic series delving into the world of true crime podcasting. Backdropped with some breathtaking scenery, Bodkin is named for the small Irish town it is set in. But where was Bodkin filmed? And is it a real village?

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Robyn Cara as Emmy Sizergh, Siobhán Cullen as Dove in episode 104 of Bodkin

Where Was Bodkin Filmed?

Bodkin was filmed in Union Hall, County Cork in summer 2022, a small fishing village on the south coast of Ireland which doubles as the titular town. More of Cork, Wicklow and Dublin also feature in Bodkin.

‘One of the most exciting things about working in Ireland is getting to shoot on location,’ Will Forte (who plays American podcaster Gilbert) told Tourism Ireland. ‘Most of the time we’re out in these beautiful rolling pastures or on these cliff sides. Every scene seems like it’s taking place in this delicious morsel of Irish landscape.’

Robyn Cara as Emmy Sizergh, Will Forte as Gilbert Power, Siobhán Cullen as Dove in episode 102 of Bodkin

A small fishing village located 75 km west of Cork City and with a population under 300 people (according to the 2016 census), Union Hall was the producers’ top choice when location scouting for Bodkin, thanks to its colourful shops, working harbour and surrounding rolling hills. ‘It had to be West Cork,’ series creator Jez Scharf says. ‘You drive around West Cork and around every corner you have to step out of the car and have a look as it’s so beautiful.’

‘Union Hall makes the perfect Bodkin,’ adds Siobhan Cullen, who plays Dove. ‘It’s so stunning and it encapsulates all of what people imagine about the beauty of Ireland. It’s all here, it’s such a stunning place.’

Nearby, another village was used for filming: Glandore, which is connected to Union Hall with the single track Poulgorm Bridge, which has stunning views of Glandore Harbour.

Robyn Cara as Emmy Sizergh, Siobhán Cullen as Dove, Will Forte as Gilbert Power in episode 102 of Bodkin

Bodkin Filming Locations

More filming locations beady-eyed viewers can spot in Bodkin include:

Union Hall, West Cork
Drumadoon Pier, West Cork
Poulgorm Bridge, Ardagh
Glandore, West Cork
Belmont Demesne, Wicklow
Enniskerry Carnegie Library, Wicklow
Sally Gap, Clohhoge
Travelahawk Beach, Wicklow
Fenian Street, Dublin
Howth Village, Dublin
Howth Castle, Dublin
Leopardstown Racecourse, Dublin
Dave’s Diner, Julianstown, County Meath

Brendan Conroy as Cathal, John Olohan as Barry in episode 101 of Bodkin

Is Bodkin A Real Place?

No, Bodkin is not a real place. ‘It’s a fake town, it’s a fake place,’ says Scharf. ‘It’s all fake people. The mystery itself, we worked very hard to find something that is in no way adjacent to a real true crime story. The fictionality of it was very deliberate.’

Is It A True Story?

No, Bodkin is not based on a true story, though it draws heavily on the true crime podcast genre; executive producer Alex Metcalf describes the show as ‘a post-Serial story’, referring to the popular true crime podcast often credited with sparking our renewed global interest in the genre.

Speaking to Tudum, Scharf describes how Bodkin was inspired by his own consumption of this genre. ‘I was thinking a lot about the morality of true crime,’ he says. ‘They’re often very tragic stories, but are parceled up into neat episodes with a good hook at the end.’

David Wilmot as Seamus, Will Forte as Gilbert Power in episode 105 of Bodkin

Today, however, it seems creators ‘just take any crime-ridden, tragic event, and story-ize it to make it palatable and make it an easy- and fun-to-digest drama’, says Metcalf.

‘Actually, of all the true crime podcasts, the one that was most inspiring to us was S-Town. That’s one where you come in thinking it’s going to be about a murder, but then the story just spins out in ways that you don’t expect,’ says Scharf. ‘That was the kind of journey that we were trying to map ourselves against – that the truth is always kind of unexpected.’