The first series of the highly anticipated Amandaland dropped on BBC iPlayer last night- with it already winning rave reviews.
The spin-off of the award-winning Motherland sees alpha mum Amanda (played by Lucy Punch), up sticks from the celeb-loved leafy west London neighbourhood of Chiswick and move a few miles north to South Harlesden – which she refers to as ‘SoHa’.
Marketed as substantially less desirable than W4, post-divorce Amanda has to pull her kids out of private school, move out of a big house and into an upstairs flat, and even get a job.
‘SoHa’, the viewer is told, is much less yuppie than Chiswick, her mother (played by Joanna Lumley) even has to bring in Waitrose goodies because Harlseden, shock horror, only has a Tesco Express.
However, the filming locations were just as green and filled with £5 flat whites as the artsy west London neighbourhood Amanda left behind.
The outside of her home is filmed on Ferntower Road on the border of Highbury and Islington. The flat itself is estimated to have a value of around half a million pounds.
It’s just minutes from Canonbury station, Newington Green and cult bakery Jolene where and coffee and a croissant will set you back around £8.
The local pub, the Snooty Fox, hosts cheese nights where they pair craft ales with cheeses – tickets cost £25.
Meanwhile, the school Amanda’s children are now attending is on filmed on the other side of London in Oaklands School Sixth Form in Tower Hamlets – which sees around 64 per cent of its students get an A*-B grade with many going on to study at top universities.
The outside of her home is filmed on Ferntower Road on the border of Highbury and Islington. The flat itself is estimated to have a value of around half a million pounds
It’s just minutes from Canonbury station, Newington Green and cult bakery Jolene where and coffee and a croissant will set you back around £8
Moving to a new postcode, she reconnects with her former friend Anne (Philippa Dunne) and attempts to blend in with a new school crowd, including laid-back parents Della (Siobhan McSweeney) and Fi (Rochenda Sandall)
Amanda, played by Lucy Punch, is pictured outside the house – a different home is used for the interior
In some episodes Amanda visits her friend Anne Flynn (Philippa Dunne), who travelled the three miles north from Chiswick’s Motherland with her to ‘SoHa’.
The Irish mother-of-three’s home is actually even further east on Chestnut Avenue on Forest Gate.
Its owner Robert Nurden revealed that a BBC location scout put a flyer through his door and asked to film inside.
‘My gaff, for just one afternoon, was going to be lived in by one of the three stars of the show – Philippa Dunne (who plays the put-upon Anne), the kindest of the triumvirate of leading women,’ he told E7.
Later in the show, Amanda gets a job working for a kitchen company. In the fictional world, Amanda doesn’t venture east of Trafalgar Square – but the real life KB&K Kitchen company is on the eastern cusp of London on Leytonstone High Road.
Other shots include Amanda driving Anne past the closed York Arms pub in North Finchley.
Other parts of the episode see the new mum gang travel to Surrey and Oxfordshire for an car boot sale – while they also travel to the New Forest to go camping.
Speaking about her role, Lucy said: ‘Amanda is now living in an upper-level flat, with someone below her which is a hard pill for her to swallow.
Meanwhile, the school Amanda’s children are now attending is on filmed on the other side of London in Oaklands School Sixth Form in Tower Hamlets – which sees around 64 per cent of its students get an A*-B grade with many going on to study at top universities
The school used in the show is actually in Bethnal Green – the otherside of London from Harlesden
Anne Flynn (Philippa Dunne) joins Amanda in the show. Amanda’s mother is played by Joanna Lumely
In some episodes Amanda visits her friend Anne Flynn (Philippa Dunne), who travelled the three miles north from Chiswick’s Motherland with her to ‘SoHa’. The Irish mother-of-three’s home is actually even further east on Chestnut Avenue on Forest Gate
Homeowner Robert Nurden revealed that a BBC location scout put a flyer through his door and asked to film inside
‘She’s moved away from Chiswick and all its treats, like Gail’s.
‘The kids are now in high school, and Amanda is starting over.
‘She’s disintegrated somewhat but has galvanised herself, got a blowout, done her nails, bought a new outfit, and is bringing her full Amanda energy to South Harlesden to whip up a storm.’
While South Harlesden is presented a different world to Chiswick, many of the filming locations are similar to Motherland.
Crews from the Anna Maxwell Martin led series used Southfield Primary School in Chiswick as well as Charing Cross Sports Club in Hammersmith, Little Ealing Primary School, University of West London Brentford and The Post Room cafe in Chiswick.
Lucy Punch herself was born in Hammersmith and later attended the prestigious private school, Godolphin and Latymer School, before heading to University College London to study history.
She now however lives in LA with her husband.
Lucy shares Rex, nine, and a three-year-old son whose name has not been revealed, with artist Dinos Chapman, and admitted she struggles with ‘juggling’ life.
Later in the show, Amanda gets a job working for a kitchen company. In the fictional world, Amanda doesn’t venture east of Trafalgar Square – but the real life KB&K Kitchen company is on the eastern cusp of London on Leytonstone High Road
The scenes were filmed in Leytonstone – miles away from Harlesden
Amanda cycles across from Soho to get the job working in a kitchen centre
After losing her car – Amanda has to cycle to her new role
She previously told the Mail: ‘ [Motherland] is so relatable and familiar to everyone who’s ever been there,’.
‘There’s all the juggling with work and childcare, and there’s always that perfect mother – often there are one or two. I secretly wish it was me.
‘They’re perfectly turned out with perfect children, but no one can really be like that, without any flaws, can they?’
She admitted that even as she was filming the series, she was living an imperfect life.
‘My home’s in America, but when I was filming I stayed in London with my son and enrolled him in a different school.
‘He was jet-lagged and not sleeping, so I was rattled and exhausted. I was in the perfect mood for the show. I’m fascinated by how other working mums do it and look so normal.’
More recently, Lucy was left fearing for her family’s safety after being caught up in the horrendous Los Angeles wild fires.
The actress revealed she was forced to evacuate when the fires took hold and while her home miraculously managed to avoid being destroyed by the flames, she confessed she is torn on whether to stay put or to return to her native London.
Opening up about the ordeal that has hit Los Angeles, she told the The Times: ‘It was shocking and devastating for a lot of friends. It’s like imagining east London flattened – schools, neighbourhoods just gone. How do you get that back? It’s going to be years and years.’
Many shots are filmed outside Amanda’s house on Ferntower Road in Islington
The scenes show Amanda, her mother and children outside the road
Other shots include Amanda driving Anne past the closed York Arms pub in North Finchley
She also told how she has ensured her partner and son, who remained in LA have their belongs packed in case they needed to ‘run out the door again’, after the family were forced to escape to Joshua Tree desert last month.
The TV star added that the fires combined with the recent voting of Donald Trump into office, she is now considering whether to quit the US after almost 20 years as she told how she’s struggling to ‘commit’ to a place.
Lucy, who moved to LA in 2006, shared: ‘I’ve always got one foot out the door, wherever I am. I never got round to getting a green card. I’m on these rolling visas, which is ridiculous: I have a home there and I have two American children. But I can’t commit to anywhere. I get itchy feet. I like being a little bit here and a little bit there.’
When asked if the school-gates culture is similar in the UK and US, she remarked: ‘Oh, absolutely. And the WhatsApps are off the scale — they are insane. I’d say they are probably 50 per cent Amandas. Everyone’s very glossy.’
The BBC show has won rave reviews – including by the Mail’s Christopher Stevens – who gave it five stars.
However, the cast are missing the original line-up of Anna Maxwell Martin, Paul Ready and Diane Morgan, who played Julia, Kevin and Liz respectively.
Many took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share their thoughts.
The gang also venture outside of London to go cmaping
Many scenes also take place in a local field where the children pay football
Anna Maxwell, Diane Morgan and Paul Ready as Julia, Kevin and Liz on Motherland
One said: ‘It’s missing the ‘mother’ of Motherland and her sidekick Kevin. Weird new series, like having left-over from a previous meal…#Amandaland.’
Another added: ‘Yeh I’m missing Julia.’
A third chimed in: ‘Missing the essential ingredient. The Motherland cast.’
‘#Amandaland was everything I expected and more! Lets hope for a series two commission with cameo appearances from Julia, Liz and Kevin,’ a fourth confessed.
A fifth tweeted: ‘Amandaland is funny-ish (it’s Anne’s world and we’re just living in it), but way too vanilla. Could we have Liz, Julia, and Kev back instead of dull Della, Fi, and JJ?’
And it’s bad news for fans as it sounds like they won’t be returning anytime soon.
During a stint on The One Show, presenter Alex Jones asked Motherland star Anna Maxell if it was something that could happen.
Alex asked: ‘Can Julia come and have a little cameo at least, a little coffee?’
Anna told her: ‘No, I don’t think Julia or Kevin or Liz are popping in.’
Motherland premiered in 2016 and went on to have 19 episodes across three seasons.
