FILM crews descended on the upper dale once again with a veritable village of vehicles parked at Low Force.
Fleets of minibuses have been shuttling cast and crew to High Force, which has been closed to the public for “maintenance works” , from their field base adjacent to Bowlees visitor centre.
Speculation about what is being filmed at the two beauty spots is rife with some upper dale residents saying they have been told it’s a children’s sci-fi series and others an adult fantasy programme.
Although security staff at the site were tight lipped when the Mercury turned up, they did confirm it was a Netflix production.
However, a dale resident, who doesn’t wish to be named, said when he stumbled across the production crew setting up a fake wooden bridge at Low Force, they confirmed they were shooting scenes for the second season of the supernatural series The Witcher, starring Henry Cavill.
Other people say they have been told the same.
The first season of the series, which has been likened to Game of Thrones, was filmed mainly in Poland and the Czech Republic.
Mr Cavill, who plays lead in the show, has been spotted several times in the Lake District in recent weeks but not seen in Teesdale yet.
Two years ago, stunt and film teams spent several weeks at Low Force shooting footage for Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes’ First World War epic, 1917.
Newbiggin farmer Malcolm Walton said he had been informed that filming would be taking place.
He said: “They’ve been here since last week. I have been watching what’s going on – I don’t know what they are filming.
“They said they’re going to be doing three days of filming. Some people say it’s a children’s thing, but I don’t know.
“There is a lot more people than when they filmed 1917 and the little buses are coming in and out all through the night.”
Some security staff have told members of the public that they were not allowed to take photos despite there being no law against it because the filming is in a public place.
A spokesperson for Raby Estates said: “We are delighted to have attracted more filming to the area. We know what a truly special and unique place upper Teesdale is and to be able to showcase it to a wider audience will certainly benefit those of us living and working in the area.
“We have worked hard to ensure that everything operated in a safe and secure way and hope that we can bring more productions of this nature here in the future.”
