Northern Ireland’s stunning scenery is bringing the world’s most famous fantasy tales to life



First Game of Thrones, 
now Dracula Untold: 

Northern Ireland’s stunning scenery is bringing the world’s most famous fantasy tales to life


Following hot on the heels of the hit HBO TV series Game of Thrones, Universal’s Dracula Untold is the latest blockbuster filmed in Northern Ireland. Word is clearly out that Northern Ireland’s cinematic and atmospheric landscapes provide the perfect locations for shooting epic fantasy, be it big or small screen.

So when Universal came scouting for a base to shoot its horror adventure, Andrew Reid, head of production at Northern Ireland Screen, felt confident about the surrounding landscapes: “Given the time period it was written in…we felt that Dracula was generically European enough that we could provide them with what they needed.”

Commenting on why her team chose Northern Ireland, locations manager for Dracula Untold, Catherine Geary, noted, “It was wonderfully atmospheric and grey – stunningly desolate and perfect for the Transylvania plains.”

On Location
Thanks to some clever camera angles and CGI, some of the island’s most iconic National
Trust locations were transformed into breathtaking Transylvanian scenery.
The Giant’s Causeway, a UNESCO Heritage Site, doubled as an eerie Transylvanian mountain; while the formal gardens at Mount Stewart were transformed into the grounds of Dracula’s castle. Epic battle scenes, too, are furiously fought over the open plains of Divis and the Black Mountains. Tollymore Forest Park at the foot of the Mourne Mountains was used to recreate a number of medieval camps.

“It’s not the kind of forest you stumble upon,” says Catherine Geary. “Its position at the bottom of the mountain makes it magical.”

Giants and Narnia: Northern Ireland Fantasy
County Down’s Mourne Mountains are no strangers to fantasy, acting as the inspiration behind C.S. Lewis’s winter wonderland Narnia, while Tollymore Forest Park was just one of the many filming locations used in the TV series Game of Thrones.

Asked during a Q&A session on Twitter as to his favourite location while shooting in Northern Ireland, the film’s star Luke Evans named the Giant’s Causeway as, “A beautiful part of Ireland, a natural phenomenon, we were lucky enough to be allowed to shoot on it.”

The Dublin Connection
Appropriately, the film was directed by Dublin native Gary Shore. It was another Dubliner, Bram Stoker, who first created the Dracula myth.

In Shore’s original tale, however, the infamous Count Dracula is portrayed as a flawed hero, and the story interweaves mythology with history as the film explores how the first vampire came to be.
Playing the mythical vampire, Vlad III Tepes, is British actor Luke Evans. In the film, the Clash of the Titans star turns vampire to defeat a Turkish army invading his homeland.
Starring alongside Evans are Sarah Gadon (Maps to the Stars) as Vlad’s wife and Dominic Cooper (Need for Speed) as a Turkish sultan and childhood friend of the anti-hero.


        Tourism Ireland is the organisation responsible for promoting the island of Ireland overseas as a leading holiday destination.
        Tourism is the island of Ireland’s largest indigenous industry; responsible for in excess of 4% of GNP in the Republic of Ireland and employing approximately 200,000 people.
        In 2013, we welcomed an estimated 8 million overseas visitors to the island of Ireland, delivering revenue of approximately €3.64 billion. Overseas tourism business accounts for 59% of all tourism revenue.
        Tourism Ireland’s international website is www.ireland.com, currently rolling out in 11 different language versions for over 30 individual markets around the world.

The British Irish Visa Scheme will first be available to nationals of India and China.
Further rollout of the Scheme to other countries will be agreed between the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service of the Department of Justice and Equality and the UK Home Office.

·         The British Irish Visa Scheme in practice – the Scheme will operate through a reciprocal visa arrangement, whereby Ireland and the UK recognise short-stay visas issued by the other for travel to their jurisdiction. This will allow the holder of such a visa issued by the country of first arrival thereafter to travel freely between Ireland and the UK, including Northern Ireland, for the duration of that visa.

·         For example, a visa required tourist who wishes to visit both Dublin and Belfast will be able to apply for an Irish short-stay visa which will allow them to travel directly to Dublin and then onwards to Northern Ireland without having to obtain a separate UK visa. Also if they are returning to Ireland following a visit to the UK, they will not require a re-entry visa.

·         The British Irish Visa Scheme will replace Ireland’s Short-stay Visa Waiver Programme, introduced in July, 2011, which has proved to be a significant success. That Programme allows nationals of 18 countries to travel from the UK to Ireland using their UK visa. The number of visitors from the countries in question grew by 68% from 2010 to 2013. The British Irish Visa Scheme will allow travel throughout the UK and Ireland, whereas the Irish Visa Waiver Programme allowed travel in one direction only.

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