Make sure you have a camera to hand as the castle is very picturesque, I can see why it has been used for television purposes. Anyway, in this instance the castle doubles up as Natty Longshoe's Comical Castle, an attraction within Hedgewick's World of Wonders, the biggest and best amusement park ever, where Clara uses her resources and troops in defence against the Cybermen. All the shots seen from outside the castle and within the courtyard are from Castell Coch, but from previous experience, the shots of The Doctor playing chess are from Caerphilly Castle, which I visited HERE. Be aware that this post is picture - heavy. All screen shots are sourced from the BBC.
By reading this, I'm guessing you have either a) managed to go through all of the photos, or b) scrolled straight through them without a second glance. Either way, thanks for stopping here for a quick breather as I can now tell you that the following interior shots were from the same episode, Nightmare in Silver, but the scenes were actually filmed at a separate location, a few miles down the road at Caerphilly Castle, where I visited last year.
Back to Castell Coch, as previously mentioned, the Series 5 episode entitled The Vampires of Venice also used the area as a backdrop for the scene during which Rory and The Doctor are searching to find Amy. However, they soon find themselves surrounded by the mysterious vampire creatures.
And finally, the following interior shots from Castell Coch are recognisable in the Series 4 two-parter finale entitled Journey's End, when Martha Jones flees to a castle in Germany to enter a secret UNIT bunker.
And here's the next time trailer for Nightmare in Silver to remind you of the plot -
Well done for trawling through to the end of this post, I understand it was VERY photo-heavy, but I thought the castle scenery was too picturesque to miss out on. I should also point out that because of its location high upon a hill, if you peer through the right castle window on a sunny, clear day, there are views right across Cardiff to the city centre. It really is a fairy tale castle, I'd love to get married in a location like this one day!
All in all I really recommend giving Castell Coch a visit. It's not off the beaten track and about 10-15 minutes from Cardiff's city centre. It's easy to navigate to and relatively cheap to enter. There is also a cafe located inside the castle walls, where you can grab a cuppa and a bite to eat if you're feeling peckish. Everyone was very friendly and even though we visited during midday, the castle was virtually empty so we could really take in our surroundings.
Since I last wrote I have completed my few days at my local BBC station, been awarded a 2:1 classification in my degree and I managed to finally get my hands on two tickets to the Doctor Who Proms, so I'm pretty darn happy right now :-)
As always, thanks for reading. Any queries go to my Contact page or drop me a line via Twitter @PluckyKelly
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