Set into a steep valley hill with stone houses tumbling down to the canal-boat-lined River Calder, Hebden Bridge is arguably West Yorkshire’s prettiest mill town. It’s also got a unique bohemian spirit, with vegan cafes, artist studios, New Age shops and a thriving LGBT+ community. Productions that have filmed at Hebden Bridge in recent years include Happy Valley and Ackley Bridge. Local restaurants were also given makeovers in the Series 2 Semi-final of BBC2’s Interior Design Masters.
Climb to the top of the valley behind town and you’ll find the cute cobbled village of Heptonstall, where Sylvia Plath is famously buried in the rambling churchyard. Beyond that, there’s the National Trust estate of Hardcastle Crag, with walking trails through wooden glens and thick ravines that culminate at the 19th-century riverside Gibson Mill.