The Last Bus filming locations in Bristol

Action-packed sci-fi series The Last Bus has landed on Netflix, starring Robert Sheehan and Tom Basden alongside an ensemble cast of young actors. Produced by Bristol-based Wildseed Studios, the 10-episode, family-friendly eco-fable follows a group of mismatched students on a school trip who become unlikely heroes when a robot apocalypse zaps away the rest of humanity.

Image - The Last Bus, credit Netflix & Wildseed Studios

The series opens with the students travelling to the launch of the ‘genie orbs', a new class of robot designed to clean up the environment. When the AI-powered orbs are introduced by tech billionaire Dalton Monkhouse (Robert Sheehan), they appear to vaporise everyone in the audience and thousands of identical events all over the world. The students just manage to make it back through the carnage to their rackety old school bus and head home in search of answers, only to be met by a mysteriously empty world.

Realising they're going to have to fight back, the students embark on a road trip to find Dalton Monkhouse and get some answers to what has happened to their families. Along the way, they're confronted with a succession of increasingly intense challenges – from towering junk monsters to a damaged orb with a seemingly personal vendetta – and the characters overcome their personal differences and private demons to become an improvised family.

Where in Bristol was The Last Bus filmed?

As well as being produced by multi-award-winning Bristol studio Wildseed, the series was filmed at The Bottle Yard Studios on the edge of the city as well as at locations across the South West.

Keep your eyes peeled for Bristol locations such as expansive Clifton parkland The Downs and underground tunnel network Redcliffe Caves. Two schools – Badminton School and Nailsea School – were also used, as well as the lofty Brabazon Hangar, the future YTL arena where iconic aircrafts the Brabazon and Concorde were born.

Image - The Last Bus filming in Redcliffe Caves, credit Netflix & Wildseed Studios

The Last Bus was also filmed in parts of Somerset, including Wookey Hole Caves under the Mendip Hills and nearby Cheddar Gorge. On the coast, the cast and crew headed to Portishead, Esplanade Road, Brean Leisure Park, Northam Farm Holiday Park and Warren Farm Holiday Park.

Wildseed took a fresh approach to studio filming. Behind the scenes at The Bottle Yard, the production team harnessed LED technology to enhance the possibilities offered by the Studios’ 5,000 sq ft green screen, adding in bespoke hydraulic systems on set that broke new ground in what could be achieved in the studio without the need for digital effects.

Image - The Last Bus sets at The Bottle Yard Studios, credit Wildseed Studios

Wildseed’s Managing Director Miles Bullough commented on using the city as a base for filming: "Bristol is Wildseed's home and it was important for us from the outset that The Last Bus should be made here. The Bottle Yard was our ideal facility, with its vast green screen and adaptable spaces. At one point we had five double deckers parked up together inside; an impressive sight, not to mention a parking feat!

"The Studios gave us space and freedom to push the boundaries of what we could do on the green screen using LED, which was a real gamechanger. Plus their onsite college students studying Film & TV with boomsatsuma got to see those sets and learn about the shoot which is so important for new talent coming up. The Film Office made it easy to film at Redcliffe Caves and The Downs, awesome locations right here on our doorstep, and we found all the other locations we needed nearby in the South West."

Image - The Last Bus filming on The Downs, credit Netflix & Wildseed Studios

What else is filmed in Bristol?

Bristol has played a starring role in countless films and TV shows – from period pieces like Sanditon and Poldark, to comedy thriller The Outlaws, to coming-of-age spy drama Alex Rider. It’s part of what makes us a UNESCO City of Film, along with our pioneering film heritage, wealth of industry talent and film culture. Delve into more of Bristol’s on-screen credits here – you’ve probably seen more of the city on screen than you realise.

Watch The Last Bus on Netflix now.

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