United Kingdom under armed occupation: Filming on location for Army of Shadows

Manchester serves as the series' primary production base, with filming spreading across the city. America Ferrera and Kit Harington were spotted filming on New York Street in Manchester – the Media City-adjacent back lot street whose Victorian industrial facades have stood in for dozens of American and British cities across multiple productions. For Army of Shadows, it appears to be doing the same work again: a British city dressed as somewhere else in a story about a Britain that has itself become unrecognisable.

Ashton-under-Lyne arrived on the Army of Shadows location map as an unexpected but distinctive choice. Filming took place on Stamford Street, Wood Street and in and around the recently renovated Clarence Arcade. An army truck and several upturned cars were visible on set. Roads were closed, pedestrians were redirected and residents were leafletted about night shoots. Ashton has not previously been a regular filming location compared to Manchester or Stockport – which is precisely why the production's arrival attracted attention.

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On August 8, after three days filming inside Liverpool Town Hall, Kit Harington and America Ferrera moved to a very different Liverpool setting: Liverpool Marina and Coburg Dock. Cameras rolled around the moorings and boatyard for what appeared to be a major action sequence. A small motor launch made its way towards the moorings, accompanied by a high-speed police RIB carrying armed officers. As the launch approached, plain-clothes characters carrying weapons quickly moved towards the vessel in what appeared to be an arrest or interception operation. 

Filming also took place on Lark Lane, where armed officers were photographed emerging from a blacked-out van outside the Old Police Station. St George's Hall on Lime Street is also confirmed as a filming location.

Around September 19, Tithebarn Street was transformed into what appears to be London – the Victorian commercial streetscape dressed and populated as a stand-in for the occupied capital.

The most dramatic Liverpool transformation is Sefton Park. A large film set appeared inside the park – towering structures, barbed wire fencing and a watchtower dramatically changing the appearance of one of Liverpool's most beloved public spaces. The Liverpool Echo reported on the transformation on September 18 as preparations for filming got underway. A normally picturesque Victorian park is now, at least temporarily, a prison camp.

Church Street and High Street in nearby Great Budworth, Cheshire were similarly locked down on July 6, with Budworth Lane near Brownslow House closed entirely.

The production is also planning to cross the Channel to Paris – a nod, perhaps, to the story's origins in Melville's France, or a plot thread that extends the resistance narrative beyond British borders. Paris is confirmed in the official production announcement from Channel 4 and StudioCanal, though specific locations and scenes remain undisclosed.

Army of Shadows airs on Channel 4 and Canal+. A global release date has not yet been confirmed.