Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility, first published anonymously in 1811, is back on the big screen in a new adaptation directed by Georgia Oakley, with Daisy Edgar-Jones as Elinor Dashwood and Esmé Creed-Miles as Marianne. The film reached UK cinemas in late September and opens in Italy on 22 October, which is why Vanity Fair Italia has just mapped out its locations. The good news for Austen fans is that almost every house in the film is real, and many of them can be visited.
Lived-in houses, not studio sets
Oakley shot entirely on location and wanted the homes to feel inhabited rather than polished. Location manager Ian Hutchinson told Vanity Fair Italia that the brief was to keep things rough and natural, a clear contrast with the neat lawns of Ang Lee’s 1995 version. Norland Park, the Dashwood family home, is Kingston Russell House near Long Bredy in Dorset, a 17th-century manor that had never been filmed before. Oakley told The Independent she loved its long grass and the daisies growing out of the front steps. It is still a private family home, although its south wing can be rented as holiday accommodation.
Nearby Parnham Park supplied the lake where Elinor and Edward skip stones, while Ditsworthy Warren on Dartmoor became the more modest Barton Cottage. Broughton Castle in Oxfordshire plays Barton Park, the Middletons’ house.
Ballrooms, galleries and a Devon beach
The lively country dance was filmed in the Baron’s Hall at Penshurst Place in Kent, built in 1341 and topped by a chestnut roof about 18 metres high. The BBC reports that the scene was shot over the August bank holiday weekend with a large cast of extras and eight dogs, and the choreography was by Holly Blakey. Penshurst’s house is open to visitors until 1 November, so there is still a little time this season.
In London, the National Gallery stands in for the Royal Academy, Rainham Hall’s Georgian rooms become Mrs Jennings’ townhouse, and the ballroom scene uses West Wycombe Park in Buckinghamshire. Knebworth House in Hertfordshire plays Cleveland, where Marianne falls ill, and Mothecombe Beach on the Flete Estate in South Devon is where she twists her ankle and first meets Willoughby.
See the costumes up close
Rainham Hall, run by the National Trust, is hosting Filming Sense and Sensibility until 19 December, with costumes and accessories worn by the Dashwood sisters, Mrs Jennings and Willoughby, plus props such as letters and drawings. It is included in normal admission; check opening days before you travel.
If the film’s soft Regency palette appeals, a single pearl or a delicate drop goes a long way. Browse our pendant necklaces, earrings and bracelets for a quietly romantic finishing touch.
Sources: Vanity Fair Italia, “Ragione e Sentimento: le location del nuovo film” (22 October 2026); The Independent, “Where is Sense and Sensibility set? 10 filming locations to visit”; Time Out, “Where is Sense and Sensibility filmed?”; BBC News, “Sense and Sensibility dance scene filmed at Penshurst Place”; Kent Film Office. Featured image: AI-generated illustration, not an actual filming location.
