Ahh Summer Bay, how picturesque you are. Your sandy beaches and crystal blue waters are oh-so-enticing. But is what we’re seeing on screen a real and tangible location, or is it simply some green-screen TV magic?
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Home and Away is one of Australia’s most popular soaps.
And while we’re sure its popularity status comes down to all the dramatic storylines and uber-talented actors and actresses, we can’t deny that the beautiful beach cinematography helps its ranking as an Australian classic.
So where exactly are the stunning views located?
Is Summer Bay a real place?
No, Summer Bay isn’t a real place. However, the show is shot at a real location.
Summer Bay is a fictional location for the purposes of the soap. The beach used to film all the dramatic shore-side storylines we all know and love is Palm Beach in Sydney.
Where is Palm Beach?
Palm Beach is located in Sydney’s Northern Beaches in NSW. It has been the filming location for Home and Away since 1988.
The picturesque beach also houses the Summer Bay Diner and Alf’s bait shop, which are really The Boathouse, as well as the fan-favourite Surf Club.
Locals are known to call the location ‘Palmy’ and it’s never surprising to see some famous faces holidaying there from time-to-time.
The good news is you can give the public beach a visit and get a photo with all your favourite Home and Away settings.
We recommend you choose a windy day so you can stand staring wistfully out to sea, your hair billowing behind you, looking all dramatic Summer-Bay-style.
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Is Palm Beach the only shooting location?
No, Palm Beach is just one of the locations where the actors turn on the dramatics; though, the other filming location is not quite as glamorous.
The second shooting location for Home and Away is a studio in Redfern.
Up until 2010, interior shots were filmed at Channel Seven’s Sydney studios in Epping; however, these eventually closed, forcing the Soap to move to the Australian Technology Park in Redfern.
Sadly, according to the tourstogo website, there is “currently no public access to, or tours of, the Redfern studios”.
Filming for Home & Away was, of course, disturbed by COVID last year, with the cast and crew forced to make alternate arrangements during the height of the pandemic.
Speaking to the BBC in June 2020, the series’ producer, Lucy Addario, explained their team had to take a break from Palm Beach due to social distancing.
“To be honest we actually haven’t been back to Palm Beach yet, there’s still some restrictions on the amount of people in public places,” Lucy told the publication.
Location changes even meant that storylines needed to be scrapped and replaced last minute, but maybe it was for the better.
“When we stopped we were in the middle of awesome stories. We just wanted to be true to them and tell them still, but we just had to look at how we can tell them differently,” Lucy explained.
“It’s to do with two of our young couples. We had to change the destination, The way the writers adapted it I thought ‘wow’ and it was so much better. I had more of an emotional reaction to it.”
