After the rampant success of Normal People, it’s safe to say that hype for Conversations With Friends – the next Sally Rooney novel to get the TV treatment – is sky-high. Starring Jemima Kirke, Joe Alwyn, Alison Oliver and Sasha Lane, the series premiered last night (May 15).
But where was Conversations With Friends filmed? Well, like Normal People, most of the series is set in Dublin. Main characters Frances and Bobbi (Oliver and Lane) are both students at Trinity College, so expect to see the likes of the Berkeley Library, Front Gate and plenty of the rest of the campus caught on camera.
Frances’s flat was filmed on Hardwicke Street, a narrow lane just north of the city centre, but she’s also seen in nearby neighbourhoods like the riverside Temple Bar area. The other two characters in the ‘love quartet’, Melissa and Nick (Kirke and Alwyn), live in a much snazzier pad in the city’s Monkstown neighbourhood, which is near Seapoint Beach, where Frances and Bobbi go swimming in the first episode.
But not all of Conversations With Friends was filmed in the Republic of Ireland. Some was filmed up north in Belfast, too. Bits of Queen’s University and Campbell College were used to stand in for parts of Trinity College. Meanwhile, some interiors were also shot in Belfast, such as in the Lyric Theatre and The Mac, two of Northern Ireland’s most important cultural landmarks.
Sticking with Northern Ireland, The Boyd Arms and House of McDonnell in County Antrim also star in the show, while the Causeway Coast route serves as a backdrop to a beachside walk or two.
Now, as you’re bingeing Conversations With Friends, you’ll also no doubt notice that a couple of mid-series episodes see the characters go on holiday. These bits were shot on the Croatian island of Hvar, as well as in the town of Stari Grad on the island’s north side. With its rocky coves, turquoise waters and balmy sunshine, Hvar serves as the ideal spot for a paradisiacal getaway.
Keen to find out what all the fuss is about? Well, luckily for you Conversations With Friends is out now and ready for watching on Hulu and BBC Three.
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