Hertfordshire has provided the set for many big and small screen productions, so here's 11 films and TV shows you didn't know were shot in the county.

1. Wonka! – St Albans

We'll start with what is set to be the latest film appearance for Hertfordshire.

Wonka! - the prequel to the 1971 classic Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory - is out this December and stars Timothée Chalamet, with shots for the film capture in Verulamium Park.

Crews arrived in February last year, with filming taking place in March as fans flocked to catch a glimpse of the young Hollywood star.

The Comet: Timothée Chalamet in St Albans for the filming of Wonka!Timothée Chalamet in St Albans for the filming of Wonka! (Image: © Terry Harris)

"A group of teenagers went mental, screaming, because they just caught a glimpse of Timothée Chalamet," said our reporter Pearce Bates, who visited the set.

The Warner Bros. film has an all-star cast, which also features Hugh Grant, Olivia Colman, Rowan Atkinson, Keegan-Michael Key, Matt Lucas and Tom Davis.

2. BBC ident – Hitchin

Hitchin residents might have noticed a familiar sight when watch BBC One over the past year.

BBC film crews were spotted filming at the top of Windmill Hill last April, capturing shots looking out over the town.

Different benches and actors, with varying weather and lighting were filmed over a number of days, including the scene of a young man and his dog walking on the hill and family sat on a bench.

Footage capture by the cameras has been used for idents, short for station identity, which are the little clips shown before the start of BBC programmes.

3. My Policeman – Hitchin

Another bit of filming that took place in Hitchin caused quite the frenzy.

In June 2021, rumours began to spread that music and film star Harry Styles was in the town to film scenes for Amazon Prime's My Policeman.

The Comet: Harry Styles and Emma Corrin at Hitchin Outdoor Pool in My Policeman.Harry Styles and Emma Corrin at Hitchin Outdoor Pool in My Policeman. (Image: (C) Amazon Content Services LLC)

The filming took place at Hitchin's outdoor pool, with a large production crew setting up on neighbouring Butts Close to capture the footage they needed.

The pool appears in a scene with Styles and co-star Emma Corrin, who play key roles in the film all about forbidden love and changing social conventions in 1950s Britain.

4. The World’s End – Letchworth & Welwyn Garden City

Following on from the success of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and director Edgar Wright rounded off their Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy with The World's End.

In the film, five friends return to their hometown to reattempt a pub crawl they failed 23 years earlier, only to discover the town is in the midst of an alien invasion.

The Comet: Locations in Letchworth and Welwyn Garden City were used for The World's End.Locations in Letchworth and Welwyn Garden City were used for The World's End. (Image: Archant)

Locations in Letchworth that were used in the film include former retail store Wendy's Shop, The Three Magnets, The Colonnade, The Broadway Cinema, Thai Garden Restaurant, The Arena Tavern, Letchworth Railway Station and The Gardener’s Arms.

Welwyn Garden City locations seen in the movie include The Peartree, Doctors Tonic, The Cork and The Parkway Bar.

5. Saving Private Ryan – Hatfield

Directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Hanks and Matt Damon, Saving Private Ryan is considered an all-time cinema classic.

The film concludes with Hanks' character, Captain John Miller, finding Private James Ryan - played by Damon - to bring him home from the war after his three brothers are killed in action.

The Comet: The set for the town of Ramelle was built in Hatfield.The set for the town of Ramelle was built in Hatfield. (Image: TM & © (2015) PARAMOUNT PICTURES AND DREAMWORKS LLC AND AMBLIN ENTERTAINMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

The scene and ensuing battle take place in the ruined town of Ramelle, which was built on the old Hatfield aerodrome, the former home of the de Havilland Aircraft Company, with filming taking place in 1997.

Saving Private Ryan was released a year later, and the rest is history.

6. Band of Brothers – Hatfield

Hanks and Spielberg clearly enjoyed their time in Hatfield, as they would be back not long after for the filming of another Second World War epic.

HBO’s ground-breaking and award-winning miniseries, Band of Brothers, was also shot in Hatfield, with most of the filming for the 10 hour-long series taking place on a mammoth set at the old Hatfield aerodrome.

READ MORE: 9 things you didn’t know about the making of Band of Brothers

The Comet: Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg returned to Hatfield for Band of Brothers.Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg returned to Hatfield for Band of Brothers. (Image: ©2001 Home Box Office, Inc. All rights reserved. HBO® and all related programs are the property of Home Box Office, Inc.)

Eleven different sets, including a 12-acre village and an indoor forest, were created for the filming, with costs eventually running up to £120 million.

It was all worth it though, with the show winning the Emmy and Golden Globe awards for best miniseries, securing its legacy as one of the all-time great TV shows.

7. Z Cars – Hatfield

Long before Line of Duty and Happy Valley, TV's top police show was Z-Cars, which focused on the work of a mobile uniformed police unit in the fictional town of Newtown, based on Kirkby, near Liverpool.

Hatfield featured on the show in episode 7 of series 8, screened for the first time on December 3, 1973.

Landmarks that feature in the episode include St John's Church and homes in Falcon Close.

8. Porridge – St Albans

Another 1970s TV classic was Porridge, an iconic sitcom about prison life starring Ronnie Barker.

When the show's producers ran into a filming problem they turned to St Albans.

Due to the British government barring filming either inside or outside a real prison, it was looking like capturing exterior shots for the fictitious HMP Slade was going to be impossible.

The Comet: 1970s sitcom Porridge is a classic show from the era.1970s sitcom Porridge is a classic show from the era. (Image: (C) BBC)

The former St Albans Prison provided the shot though, with the building’s large black doors featuring in the intro of every episode of the series, which ran from 1974 to 1977.

9. The Crown – Hatfield, Knebworth & St Albans

Hertfordshire provided plenty of filming locations for Netflix's popular series, The Crown.

Hatfield House stand in for Marlborough House, with the mansion's Long Gallery and Library being used to replicate several rooms in Windsor Castle.

READ MORE: 8 filming locations of Netflix royal drama The Crown in Hertfordshire

The Comet: Scenes from The Crown were filmed across the county.Scenes from The Crown were filmed across the county. (Image: Netflix 2020, Inc)

Knebworth House often doubles on screen for the interior of Balmoral Castle and that's also the case in The Crown.

St Albans Cathedral doubled for Westminster Abbey, with the wedding of Princess Margaret and the baptism of Edward both shot there.

10. After Life - Hemel Hempstead

Ricky Gervais' emotional, tear-jerking Netflix series sees the comedian star as a reporter for the Tambury Gazette, but his life is upended when his wife dies from cancer.

The Comet: Ricky Gervais' After Life was filmed in Hemel Hempstead.Ricky Gervais' After Life was filmed in Hemel Hempstead.

Tambury is a fictional location, so Hemel Hempstead was used for a lot of shots in the show, with scenes of all three series were filmed on location in High Street near St Mary's Church and The Old Town Hall.

11. Johnny English – St Albans

Remember the climactic Westminster Abbey crowning scene in Johnny English? Well I'm sorry to break it to you, it's not actually Westminster Abbey.

Much like in The Crown, the scene was actually shot in St Albans Cathedral.

The Comet: Johnny English

The early-2000s spy spoof starring Rowan Atkinson is a fan-favourite of the era, ensuring the cathedral will get plenty of screen time in the years to come.