Before 28 Days Later (2002), film fans mostly knew English director Danny Boyle for his triumphant adaptation of Irvine Welsh’s Trainspotting (1996) in Scotland and The Beach (2000) in Thailand. But with the 28 Days Later film locations, he’s on home turf in England and features both the capital and countryside in this horror drama.
28 Days Later follows the accidental release of the ‘Rage’ virus that infects people with zombie-like symptoms. Cillian Murphy stars as Jim, a bike courier who wakes from a coma to face a completely deserted London. Jim has to catch on quickly as he travels out of the city, seeking other survivors while fighting off the ferocious subhumans.
I consider 28 Days Later to be somewhere between a cracking British horror film, a successful indie film, and a modern cult favourite. Boyle shot some scenes in Pinewood Studios but there are plenty of locations, too. Many of the 28 Days Later filming locations are incomprehensible (if you’ve seen the film, you’ll know what I’m talking about!).
And, I’m pleased to see my home county of Cumbria get a mention, too. So, ready to follow the rage? Let’s see where all the 28 Days Later locations are with the help of an interactive map.
Where Was 28 Days Later Filmed?
28 Days Later Film Locations in England
1. Central Middlesex Hospital, London
Jim wakes up in St Thomas’ Hospital in Lambeth, London wearing his birthday suit. He’s awoken from a coma totally alone and confused. The hospital he is in is also confusing because it’s not St Thomas’. Nope, two hospitals make up this 28 Days Later filming location and one is the Central Middlesex Hospital in London.
2. Greenwich District Hospital, Woolwich Road, London
The second London hospital that stood in as St Thomas’ Hospital was Greenwich Middlesex Hospital. About a Boy (2002) also shot scenes here before its demolition in 2006.
3. Westminster Bridge, London
Jim wanders out of St Thomas’ Hospital and right onto Westminster Bridge in London. He steps through the discarded Big Ben statuettes and other touristy paraphernalia as he walks.
This is, naturally, an impressive feat of filmmaking because Boyle and his crew actually did shut down parts of London to achieve these deserted shots. At the time of writing in a mid-COVID-19 world, perhaps the sight of deserted city centres isn’t quite so incomprehensible!
4. Whitehall, London
Wearing his borrowed scrubs carrying a small plastic bag, Jim continues his exploration down Whitehall. He passes the George Duke of Cambridge statue as well as an overturned red double-decker bus.
5. Horse Guard’s Parade, London
The next 28 Days Later location on Jim’s unintentional lone walking tour of London is Horse Guard’s Parade. You can see the London Eye in the background, too. He then walks onto Horse Guards Road and stands in front of the Guards Memorial.
6. Waterloo Place, London
Jim follows his human instincts and picks up banknotes strewn up some steps on Waterloo Place. Unfortunately, he doesn’t yet know that money is completely worthless now.
7. St Paul’s Cathedral, London
Very briefly, Jim walks along a bridge with St Paul’s Cathedral in the background. This cathedral has appeared in tonnes of films like the Harry Potter series, Paddington (2014), and in the background of many, many more.
Read next: Harry Potter Filming Locations in London: A Complete Guide
8. The Royal Exchange, London
Again, briefly, Paul walks past the front of the old Royal Exchange building which is now a shopping centre. This 28 Days Later location is right next to Bank tube station and the Bank of England building.
9. Centre Point, London
He walks up to and looks inside an abandoned car (and scares himself silly by setting off the alarm) just outside of the Centre Point building near the Tottenham Court Road tube station. He’ll have trekked across the city for a decent amount of time by now!
10. 205 Wardour Street, London
Jim stops at a ravaged corner shop and picks up a newspaper where he learns about the evacuation of London. This shop is at 205 Wardour Street on the corner of Oxford Street. I’m not 100% sure of the location as some of the buildings don’t quite match, but some lampposts and traffic lights so do I’m going to say this is the location until told otherwise.
11. Piccadilly Circus, London
He’s probably starting to piece together his predicament now, bless him. Jim walks through Piccadilly Circus and the Shaftesbury Memorial Fountain has barriers around it which desperate folk have stuck missing people notices on.
12. St Anne’s Church, Limehouse, London
Can you believe we’re only 13 minutes into the film?! The “Jim walks around a devastated London” sequence is over. Now, he seeks respite in a church, specifically St Anne’s Church in Limehouse, London. And he definitely, definitely should not have done that as a rage-filled priest and hundreds of dead bodies are there to greet him.
There is some profanity etched on one of the walls (“Repent: The End is Extremely F*cking Nigh” if you can’t remember) which I doubt the production team wrote straight onto the wall. So, perhaps they put up a fake wall, or they may have just painted over it afterwards.
13. Canary Wharf, London
Lucky for Jim, he manages to escape the infected congregation chasing him out of the church thanks to his new pals who set them all, and a nearby petrol station, alight. A wide shot of the area shows they are in the general Canary Wharf area in London.
14. Canary Wharf Underground Station, London
The two strangers Selena (Naomi Harris), Mark, and Jim leg it down the escalators in Canary Wharf Underground Station on the Jubilee line.
15. South Quay DLR Station, London
The trio walks along the Docklands Light Railway (DLR), the overland railway network in London near South Quay Station.
16. Trellick Tower, Golborne Road, Notting Hill, London
And then there were two. Selena and Jim see flashing lights outside of the building after the infected attack them at the home of Jim’s parents, so they decide to check it out. The exterior of this building is the Trellick Tower on Golborne Road in London, which also featured briefly in Paddington (2014).
Read next: Paddington & Paddington 2 Filming Locations in London
17. River Heights, 177 Glyndon Road, London
Another 28 Days Later location that is no longer there/closed is the River Heights apartment complex at 177 Glyndon Road in London. It stands in as the interior of the building where Selena and Jim meet Frank (Brendan Gleeson) and his daughter Hannah. It’s completely abandoned (probably explains why it’s now closed!) and they use shopping trollies to climb up to safety.
18. Blackwall Tunnel Southern Approach, London
Frank, Hannah, Jim, and a reluctant Selena attempt to find the source of a hopeful message across the other side of the city and beyond. They hop in a black cab and head into the Blackwall Tunnel via the Southern Approach.
19. Limehouse Link Tunnel, London
Though they are still supposed to be in the Blackwall Tunnel, the Limehouse Link Tunnel stood in for the interior of the tunnel. The Blackwall Tunnel is too busy to be shut for the set-dressing and filming days required to shoot this sequence since it connects the north and south sides of London. So, director Danny Boyle had to settle for this stand-in to shoot the scene where they get a flat tire just as the infected people are hot on their tail.
20. Budgens Supermarket, 145 Tottenham Court Road, London
I can’t be 100% sure because the location is no longer there. But, I think the Budgens Supermarket where Selena leads the gang into an amazingly untouched, pristine supermarket for supplies was at 145 Tottenham Court Road in London.
21. Carland Cross Wind Farm, Cornwall
One of the first 28 Days Later film locations outside of London is the Carland Cross Wind Farm in Cornwall. Bit random, considering they are heading north. They drive through the farm after filling up their black taxi cab with petrol.
22. Waverley Abbey, Surrey
The next place they visit is Waverley Abbey in Surrey. Well, the ruins of a 12th-century abbey, anyway. They make a pit-stop here on their life-saving road trip to eat the spoils of their supermarket sweep. This abbey also appears in Hot Fuzz (2007). They see wild horses galloping around the land and take a few strolls to enjoy the scenery.
Read next: Hot Fuzz Filming Locations in England
23. Trafalgar Park, Wiltshire
The team arrive at their destination, the army base, which is supposed to be the “42nd blockage” near Worsley. I’m not sure where the tents and ramshackle huts with corrugated roofs are, but the stately home where the army take Selena, Jim and Hannah (RIP Frank) is nowhere near Manchester. It’s Trafalgar Park in Salisbury, Wiltshire. I’m not 100% sure, but Badminton House in Gloucestershire may also stand in for some shots inside the rundown stately home.
A lot of sh*t goes down in this house and it’s really, really bad. It also features in Sense and Sensibility (1995).
Coming soon: Sense and Sensibility Filming Locations in England
24. Gatesgarthdale Beck Bridge, Honister Pass, Lake District
By some miracle, Selena, Hannah and Jim escape the torturous army barracks and end up in the Lake District. As Jim wakes from his second prolonged sleep, a short sequence suggesting a vehicle flying over a mountain pass appears. This is Honister Pass in the Lake District, and you can see the bridge over Gatesgarthdale Beck. I’ve pinned the exact location on the map at the top of this blog post.
25. Ennerdale Water, Lake District
The trio manages to find somewhere to call home in the Lake District. They are living in a cottage on Ennerdale Water, but unfortunately, I cannot find out exactly where. I suspect the cottage is located near the northwest banks of the lakes near the road, but I’m not sure. I guess I’ll just have to make a trip up there sometime and find out for myself!
Read next: Withnail & I Filming Locations in the Lake District, UK
28 Days Later Film Locations in Germany
26. Schwabenpark, Kaisersbach
This is actually the very first 28 Days Later film location. But since it’s in Germany and is standing in for an English location (and I’m not 100% certain it’s accurate), I thought I’d stick it at the end of this post. This is the origin of the rage. At the beginning of the film, animal activists free infected primates from the Cambridge Primate Research Centre but in reality, it’s Schwabenpark in Kaiserbach not far from Stuttgart. It’s an amusement park with rollercoasters etc. so that’s why I’m not convinced this is the location.
Like, a factory in Dagenham would have cost far less and still done the job, you know? But, my research did also tell me the breed of chimps needed for the shoot was the primary reason for filming here, which would explain things.
And those are all the 28 Days Later film locations in England with one in Germany! Have you watched the movie or visited any of the filming locations? Let me know in the comments below!
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