There’s no argument. The Outlaws has been the best Bristol-set TV series since Skins. But we’ll go one better and say it’s the best representation of the city we’ve seen yet. Okay, the teen drama covered all the iconic locations, but Stephen Merchant’s crime comedy is a love letter to Bristol. Its diverse cast of characters maps real places and lifelike people onto our screens.
The Outlaws follows a group of strangers from different walks of life forced together to complete a community payback sentence in Bristol. The series burst onto our screens in 2021, followed by series two in 2022 and series three earlier this year. Alongside Merchant, the show’s core cast stars Oscar-winner Christopher Walken, Gamba Cole, Eleanor Tomlinson, Darren Boyd, Clare Perkins, Jessica Gunning and Rhianne Barreto.
Commenting on the release of series three in May 2024, Stephen Merchant said: “When people approach me when I’m out and about, they talk about how much they love the show, and they always mention the roads that they recognise, the buildings they recognise, the art on the walls that they love. I think that’s really nice, because we wanted to make sure that the whole of Bristol felt a part of this story, it didn’t belong to the Outlaws, it belongs to Bristol.”
While largely filmed at The Bottle Yard Studios (near Hengrove Park), a lot of The Outlaws was filmed on location throughout Bristol. Thanks to the Bristol Film Office, everywhere from The Galleries (which appears in the opening shot of series one, episode one) to St Werburghs City Farm (where a big chunk of series three takes place) and Redcliffe Sixth Form Centre features.
We won’t pretend that the series completely ignores Bristol’s more touristy sights – Harbourside, College Green and Park Street all make notable appearances. But so does Shirehampton’s The George Inn – where Christopher Walken’s character sings karaoke – and the high-rise tower blocks on Commercial Road, Francombe House. The show has become a spot-the-Bristol-location puzzle for fans.
You can now walk in the footsteps of Stephen Merchant’s unlikely lawbreakers with the release of a new map. Bristol Film Office has partnered with Visit Bristol and Bristol UNESCO City of Film to present ‘The Outlaws in Bristol’ Movie Map, featuring some of the city’s best filming locations used in the making of the BBC comedy-thriller. To see the map head here.