Hollywood Cambridge

Orphaned at the tender age of nine, prodigious introvert Beth Harmon discovers and masters the game of chess in 1960s USA. But child stardom comes at a price.

The crew from The Queen’s Gambit chose this historic Galt neighbourhood to stand in for Lexington, Kentucky, where the main character Beth Harmon made her home. Shooting in this neighbourhood took place over 6 days and it was one of only a handful of Canadian locations for this series which filmed primarily in Europe. You might not recognize the hero location at 15 Brant Road S which painted bright blue to facilitate the shoot, but has since been returned to a brilliant white. Fun Film Fact – in the series, there are a number of outdoors scenes where it appears to be raining, but it didn’t rain a drop during filming! The inclement weather was courtesy of a rain machine, a water truck and the bulk water station at Public Works.

A magical journey with Cassie Nightingale and her daughter Grace. When Dr. Sam Radford moves in next door to Grey House with his son, they are charmed by the 'magical' mother-daughter duo.

The Good Witch filmed in Cambridge beginning in season 6, where they were the first film crew to EVER film in the clock tower at Historic City Hall. The Cambridge Market became “Historic Middleton”, while the interior of City Hall became the Blairsville Museum of Fine Art. Filming also took place inside the Old Post Office location of the Idea Exchange, which is Cambridge’s innovative “Bookless Library” and maker space. Fun Film Fact - One of the most exciting locations they used though was one that few Cambridge residents have EVER seen. The cast and crew of The Good Witch were the first to be granted permission to film in the clock tower of Historic City Hall, and safety improvements they made to the interior of the property still protect city staff when they enter to perform maintenance in the tower.

A high-octane conspiracy series that follows the mystery of Flight 716 - a passenger plane that vanishes over the Atlantic Ocean.

Departure filmed many scenes for its first season in Cambridge, where City Hall stood in for Scotland Yard. One of the building meeting rooms was turned into an office and the corporate training room was turned into a high-tech data centre. Filming also took place around and under the Main Street bridge, where actors spent a chilly fall day rowing back and forth under the bridge. Fun Film Fact – The crew of Departure actually had to build a set of stairs under the bridge to ensure that Christopher Plummer was able to access the area where they were filming with ease. Mr. Plummer was so vibrant and animated that people would often forget he was in his 90s at the time.

When the Hardy boys, Frank and Joe and their father, Fenton arrive in Bridgeport they set out to uncover the truth behind the recent tragedy that has changed their lives, and in doing so, uncover something much more sinister.

The Hardy Boys filmed scenes for their first season in Cambridge (and have since returned to film season two!!), where a variety of storefronts along Ainslie Street North were dressed, including one being transformed into a hunting store. Cambridge became Bridgeport, where Frank and Joe Hardy live with their aunt. Filming for this series also took place overnight at the Queens Square location of the Idea Exchange. Fun Film Fact – The Hardy Boys were the first production company permitted to film within the vault at Cambridge archives, the Corporate Records and Archive Analyst, Dan Schmalz, was on set the entire time to ensure that the community’s historic assets were treated with the care and respect they deserve.

A semi-retired couple who work for a clandestine monster hunting agency discover dark family secrets and the truth about their employer after their magically inclined nigh adult kids reawaken a witch bent on revenge.

Almost every episode of October Faction has a scene filmed in Cambridge! This underrated Netflix series filmed all over the community, with the Lion’s Club on Ainslie St N becoming the Barrington on the Bay Sherriff’s Office. Fun Film Fact – the Galt Arena Gardens (one of the oldest continuously operating arenas in the world, and the oldest operating arena in Ontario) was used as the exterior as the exterior of a grocery store, the interior of the grocery store was local independent grocer Di Pietros. For continuity purposes, Di Pietros signage was installed on the exterior of the arena during filming.

Set in Toronto at the dawn of the 20th century, Murdoch Mysteries is a one-hour drama series that explores the intriguing world of William Murdoch (Yannick Bisson), a methodical and dashing detective who pioneers innovative forensic techniques to solve some of the city's most gruesome murders.

Murdoch has filmed episodes in Cambridge for almost 15 seasons and continues to be one of the community’s most favourite film crews. As Murdoch is set in the early 1900s, they favour Cambridge’s historic neighbourhoods and architecture. In season 8 Detective Murdoch and Dr Ogden finally tie the knot, and while the interior church scenes took place in Toronto exterior scenes for this episode took place right here in Cambridge! Fun Film Fact – After 15 seasons, the series finally showed the exterior of the rival Police Station No. 1 and it was located in the Preston area of Cambridge.

Set in a dystopian future, a woman is forced to live as a concubine under a fundamentalist theocratic dictatorship.

The Cambridge community is probably the most well-known for its role as the fictional Gilead in Hulu’s adaptation of The Handmaid’s Tale. Various areas of the community have been used in this series, with the majority being located in the Downtown Cambridge BIA. While everyone knows what those red capes mean now, the first year the program filmed in Cambridge staff received reports of satanic rituals occurring by the river! Thankfully staff were able to assure residents that it was just a film project. Fun Film Fact – The Main Street bridge marked Cambridge’s first appearance in the Super Bowl, where it starred in a commercial for Season 2 of The Handmaid’s Tale.

The inspiring story of trailblazing African American entrepreneur Madam C.J. Walker who built a haircare empire that made her America's first female self-made millionaire.

The story of Madame CJ Walker played out in Hespeler at the historic Forbes Estate and was one of the first projects to use the space (which has since been used in numerous film projects). Octavia Spencer was nominated for a Prime Time Emmy award for her role in this series! Fun Film Fact – The crew built a fake wall façade in front of the brick so they could film a scene where the house catches fire! The “faux fire” was created using propane “fire bars” and the house received no damage. Special effects are a wonderful thing!

Check out the interactive map below for locations!