An Aberdeenshire town is competing to become Europe’s top filming location after starring in Peaky Blinders.
Portsoy is one of five locations competing for the European Film Commission’s Network Location Award for 2022.
The north-east town formed the backdrop to BBC gangster drama Peaky Blinders for the final series.
Buildings around the 17th century fishing harbour were given a makeover to replicate scenes from the early 1900s as the town formed the backdrop for the show’s much-anticipated finale.
Film crews descended on the area, with big names including Cillian Murphy, who played Tommy Shelby, spotted on the set.
Fans watched stars of the hit BBC drama series perform at the harbour before taking to the water to film scenes onboard a small red boat.
International recognition for Portsoy
Now, Portsoy has been recognised on an international scale as it competes against filming locations in Switzerland, Greece, Germany and Croatia to win the coveted title.
The town falls under the local Aberdeenshire Film Office which welcomed the production and were able to provide full access to the council-operated harbour for the shoot.
Marie Archer, industry support executive with creative industries with Aberdeenshire Council, said: “The Aberdeen City and Shire Film Office part of Aberdeenshire Council has been working to bring this production to the NE of Scotland since 2019.
“With the backdrop of Covid 19 and the current restrictions, we worked hard alongside the Portsoy community and the production company to enable filming to go ahead.
“It was tremendous seeing Portsoy on screen once again with many of our local community being employed as extras and supporting trades. We hope that lots of people will agree with us and vote for us as the top location for 2022.”
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