Tourists have been flocking to a tiny village on the Essex coastline after its stunning landscapes were filmed for a hit ITV drama series.
An aerial shot of the marshland at Tollesbury Marina, which is located between Colchester and Maldon, was used at the beginning of TV show Liar.
The opening scene of the first episode of Liar saw the lead character, Laura Nielson, canoeing through the Essex Marshes.
Fans of the show have been heading to Tollesbury Marina to see for themselves where it was filmed.
Marina director, Louise Goldie, said: “We provided a meal at The Harbour View restaurant for 50 of the cast and crew when production first began and since the airing of the programme we have had a stream of visitors.
“There have been many enquiries into what is available at Tollesbury Marina, including canoeing into the marshlands which you saw in the beginning and end of the programme.”
She added: “We think it is great and rather exciting that Tollesbury Marina has been used as a location for such a great drama.
“We thoroughly enjoyed having the crew and cast on site along with the Hollywood press.
“All the cast and crew were really friendly and said how lucky we all were to have such great views to look at on a daily basis.
“We all enjoyed watching the intense drama and seeing our daily place of work come to life.”
The storyline is based around main character Laura and her relationship with Andrew Earlham.
Teacher Laura, who is played by Joanne Froggatt, goes on a date with surgeon Andrew, played by Ioan Gruffudd.
The date leads to Laura accusing Andrew of rape and reporting him to the police.
To make things worse Andrew’s son Luke, who is played by Jamie Flatters, is a pupil at Laura’s school and Laura’s sister Katy, played by Zoë Tapper, works with Andrew at the hospital.
Andrew St Joseph, who represents the Tollesbury ward for Maldon District Council, was delighted the drama was filmed at the marina.
“The series brilliantly captured the atmospheric views of the local landscape and an increase in visitor numbers has been noticeable,” he added. “It is good to see a rising appreciation of this complex coastline during the autumn months when curlew and wild geese call to you from the safety of their muddy, squelchy network of invisible tidal channels.
“The coast becomes their home through the winter seasons and there are miles of coastal paths from which to enjoy their quiet company, knowing there is a warm welcome back in the village once you have blown your own cobwebs away.
“The intimate twists and turns of the more than 500-year-old seawall - more than five times as long as Hadrian’s - have changed little since the Romans slipped up these creeks to make Colchester their first capital.
“Locals can never quite understand why they moved to London but their successors may still visit us if they wish and of course they will be welcomed back!”
Liar is not the first show to have been filmed on the marshlands.
In 2011, the BBC production of Great Expectations also shot its opening scenes there. The show was a three-part adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel.
The cast included Ray Winstone, Gillian Anderson, David Suchet and Douglas Booth.
Liar was written by Jack and Harry Williams who also wrote popular BBC TV drama The Missing.
The series kept viewers guessing as to who was telling the truth and turned the audience into the judge and the jury while trying to figure out what actually happened.
The psychological thriller was full of twists and turns, shocking revelations and betrayal.
A second series of Liar has been confirmed however it is not set to be filmed until 2019.
You can see the Tollesbury scene in Liar here.
Tollesbury is situated on the Essex coast at the mouth of the river Blackwater.
It is nine miles east of the historic port of Maldon and 12 miles south of Britain’s oldest recorded town Colchester.
The Tollesbury Wick Marshes have been adopted by the Essex Wildlife Trust and designated a protected conservation area. It has 600 acres of marshland, reed beds and mud flats.
The village is a major attraction for sailing enthusiasts with its thriving marina and boat yards.
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