Finding Alice filming locations: where is the smart house in the ITV drama starring Keeley Hawes - and is it real?

Sunday (17 January) saw the debut episode of Finding Alice, ITV’s new grief drama that follows a woman whose husband suddenly dies.

The show features some eye-catching locations, not least the ‘smart’ home at the centre of the show, which turns out to play a pretty integral role in proceedings early on.

But is it a real house? And where else was Finding Alice filmed?

Here is everything you need to know.

What is Finding Alice about?

The titular character – played by Keeley Hawes – has just moved into the weird and wonderful smart house her husband has designed and built, but what should have been a dream turns into a nightmare.

Alice finds her spouse dead at the bottom of the stairs on their first night there – and so begins the difficult journey of coming to terms with a shocking loss.

In the wake of the tragedy, Alice finds herself struggling not just with grief and her family – who keep popping round uninvited – but with navigating her new ‘smart home’.

And to add to her list of problems, the police are asking questions about the night Harry died, and with unexpected visitors knocking on the door, Alice begins to realise that her late husband had some big secrets.

Where was Finding Alice filmed?

The series is set in the fictional town of ‘Manning’, which we’re told is located within Surrey.

On location shoots took place mainly in London and Surrey itself, with cast and crew spotted setting up for a day’s filming at Rosebery Park in Epsom.

A spokesperson told Surrey Live: “The production team and some members of the cast were filming some exterior scenes within a park which will appear in one of the later episodes.”

Various locales around the town Farnham also stood in for a lot of Manning, and the production team also made use of the old Richmond upon Thames College building.

Is the smart house in the show real?

Much of Finding Alice’s dramatic action takes place within the smart home that Harry himself designed, a location which plays a central part in the intrigue of the series.

The house – at least from the outside – is a real dwelling, and is Aylesford House in Farnham, Surrey.

The building is certainly modern, and construction was only completed in 2019. It was designed by Surrey-based architect Kate Stoddart, and is described on TheModernHouse.com as “an extraordinary five-bedroom property secluded by the surrounding pine woodland, with breathtaking views from Beacon Hill, across the valley below.”

It has approximately 3,378 square feet of internal space.

A building has been on the plot since the 1960s, and Stoddart likened the project to “upcycling”, a “contemporary reinterpretation of the 1960s dwelling.”

It's a private residence, and so cannot be visited or hired as accommodation; Hawes has said the team “loved shooting there”, and that “the wonderful couple [who own it] with their pug were very generous and inviting and patient with us.”

Zoopla estimated the price of the house to be around £1.62 million.

However, interior shots of the house were filmed elsewhere, on a studio set at West London Studios near Hayes.

The set was based on the actual interior of the real house, but designers used artistic license to add in the building's smart elements, as well as the bannister-free staircase which ultimately serves a vital purpose in the show’s story.

Who stars in it?

BAFTA-nominated Hawes (The Durrells, Bodyguard, Line of Duty) stars in the role of Alice, and is joined by a star-studded cast including Joanna Lumley (Gangster Granny, Absolutely Fabulous) and Nigel Havers (Benidorm, Coronation Street) as Alice’s parents Sarah and Roger, and Jason Merrells (Agatha Raisin, Safe House) as her husband Harry.

Also on the cast are Gemma Jones (Gentleman Jack, Unforgotten) and Kenneth Cranham (Hatton Garden, Bancroft) as Minnie and Gerry, Alice’s in-laws.

Rounding out the core cast is Isabella Pappas (Paranoid) as Alice and Harry’s 16-year-old daughter Charlotte, and Sharon Rooney (The Capture, No Offence) as Harry’s sister, Nicola.

When can I watch Finding Alice?

The first episode of the six-part drama was shown on ITV on Sunday 17 January.

That episode is available to catch up on now through ITV Hub. You can also watch all the episodes of series one there now.

If you prefer to consume your TV at a more ‘traditional’ pace,further episodes will be broadcast on Sunday nights at 9pm.