Bolton Council hopes to attract more TV and film productions to the area and connect them with local suppliers with its first dedicated film office.
Officially launched at the Bolton International Film Festival, the Bolton Film Office aims to build on the town’s growing reputation in film and TV.
More than 140 hours of film and TV were shot in the area last year, generating £109,300 in profits in the year to November 2024. Production companies spent £1.3m on Bolton shoots over the past three years.
Netflix dramas Toxic Town (Broke & Bones, main picture) and Missing You (Quay Street Productions), Tall Story Pictures’ ITV series Bancroft, and AMC's upcoming fantasy series The Talamasca are among the recent productions filmed in the town.
Newly-appointed Film Office manager Fiona Fung said she wanted to enhance the council’s offering beyond rubber-stamping filming permits.
“What matters is building trust and relationships, so that location managers say, ‘Let’s go to Bolton, because they’re really helpful’,” she said.
“Even if a crew doesn’t find the exact location, they’re after, the creativity of TV means Bolton can stand in for anything. We want to ask productions directly: what do you need, and how can we support you?”
The office is planning to set up a verified database of local suppliers that producers could hire, such as caterers, electricians, hairdressers and carpenters.
“What we’re talking about here is hopefully increasing those filming days, but more importantly being able to monetise this, and manage what that means for the town,” Fung said.
“Instead of people coming all the way from London with their catering, why can’t we have catering from a local company?”
Creative England production liaison manager Chelsea Foster added: “Being able to tie in all of those individual relationships, whether you are a local creative, local talent, or a local business that might be able to support production, means you benefit directly when filming comes to town.
“Bolton is a very proud community, and it’s exciting to show off the diverse, cultural and creative people who live in this part of Greater Manchester.”
The comments were made on a panel held last week at the festival, as reported by The Bolton News.
