Gozo Filming Locations: The Village-by-Village Guide
By Kerry Gaffney | Last Updated 15/07/2026
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Gozo has been standing in for other places since 1952. It has played Greece, France, Morocco, California, Central America and at least one mythical island, usually without the audience ever noticing. More than 100 productions have filmed here, from Game of Thrones and Troy to The Madame Blanc Mysteries, which has now shot five series on the island.
This guide covers Gozo’s filming locations village by village, starting at Mġarr Harbour, the first place every visitor sees, then working around the island. Every location is free to visit unless noted, and most sit within a short drive, or bus ride, from each other. Gozo is only 67 square kilometres, which is part of the reason film crews love it.
Why Filmmakers Keep Coming Back
Gozo’s coastline, valleys and honey-coloured villages can pass for most of the Mediterranean, and directors have taken full advantage. The practical draw is just as strong: Malta offers a 40% cash rebate through the Malta Film Commission, along with experienced local crews and film-friendly regulations. It adds up to a small island with an outsized filmography.
Għajnsielem and Mġarr Harbour
Most filming in Għajnsielem centres on Mġarr Harbour, the gateway to the island. The mix of ferries, fishing boats and waterfront restaurants gives productions an instant sense of place, and the credits here run from wartime epic The Battle of the River Plate to Birds of a Feather, whose 2016 Christmas special brought Sharon, Tracey and Dorien to the harbour as they escaped from Morocco to Spain.
Films and shows shot in Għajnsielem
Qala
Films and shows shot in Qala
Qala is Gozo’s easternmost village, with views across to Comino from the coast below. Its screen time is modest so far, but the cameras have found their way here too. Dan Cole and Paddy Docherty had a whale of a time kayaking from Ħondoq ir-Rummien and one of Madame Blanc’s investigations took her to Qala’s Council office, which was the setting for the Sainte Victoire University.
Xewkija and Mġarr ix-Xini
Xewkija is home to the Rotunda, one of the largest church domes in the world, but its filming credentials belong to Mġarr ix-Xini, the narrow gorge inlet it shares with Sannat. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt spent weeks here shooting By the Sea, and more recently the bay played the harbour of a tiny Greek island in Two Weeks in August, with plenty of Gozitan locals appearing as extras in both productions.
Top Tip: Mġarr ix-Xini has a small seasonal kiosk, a year-round restaurant and very little shade. Go early, swim, and be gone before the boat trips arrive.
Films and shows shot in Xewkija
Sannat
Sannat’s village square was the original Sainte Victoire in The Madame Blanc Mysteries, providing the police station and the village bar, La Couronne, for series one. Production moved to Għarb when the square was dug up for renovations between 2021 and 2024, but the buildings themselves are unchanged and instantly recognisable, so series one fans should still make the trip.
It seems Sannat is a bit of a hub for British filmmakers, with Regan and Carter’s Flying Squad tracking down an armed gang to one of Gozo’s five-star properties, Ta’ Ċenċ Resort & Spa, in Sweeney 2, A couple of decades later. British institution Coronation Street paid a visit, although this time the same hotel was cast as a budget-friendly option!
Films and shows shot in Sannat
Munxar
Munxar is one of Gozo’s quietest villages, sitting between Sannat and Xlendi above some of the island’s finest clifftop walking. The Madame Blanc Mysteries has filmed here too. Though to be fair, I think there might only be one village where the Madame Blanc hasn’t yet set the cameras up.
Films and shows shot in Munxar
Xlendi
Xlendi’s high cliffs and compact harbour make it one of the most photographed corners of Gozo, on screen and off. The bay also has some of the best restaurants and bars on the island, which is handy when you’ve finished location-spotting. Sean Connery shot his last film here, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, which used the cliffs to get an endless view over the Med for the scenes on the conning tower.
Top Tip: Walk up the steps cut into the cliffs on the right of the bay for wonderful views over the bay, and they also lead to the secluded cove where nuns once swam.
Films and shows shot in Xlendi
Fontana
Fontana takes its name from its natural springs, and the old washhouse on the road down to Xlendi from Victoria is still its best-known landmark. The village earned its screen credit back in the 1960s with Death is a Woman.
Films and shows shot in Fontana
Victoria
Victoria, the capital (known locally as Rabat), has appeared in countless productions, with the Citadel doing most of the heavy lifting. Christopher Columbus: The Discovery filmed just above Cathedral Square, and in a stranger turn, The Curse of Oak Island came to the Citadel chasing a possible Knights Hospitaller connection, examining symbols carved into the Old Prison wall.
The rest of Victoria has had a good few appearances too, there are over a dozen locations for The Madame Blanc Mysteries, Coronation Street had a good wander round when it was here in 2007. Filmwise, plenty of productions have made good use of the narrow lanes.
Top Tip: If you can, get to the Citadel as early as possible. You’ll have the place to yourself and it’s a wonderful place to watch the sunrise. If you prefer a lie-in, the sunsets are pretty spectacular from here too.
Films and shows shot in Victoria
Kerċem
Kerċem’s historic streets suit period drama, though not always the period you’d expect. For the 1981 classic Brideshead Revisited, the village stood in for Central America.
Films and shows shot in Kerċem
Santa Luċija
The tiny hamlet of Santa Luċija, in the countryside near Kerċem, is about as far from a film set as Gozo gets, which is presumably why Maltese-Canadian filmmaker Valerie Buhagiar chose it for her 2021 film, Carmen.
Films and shows shot in Santa Luċija
Għarb
Għarb took over as Sainte Victoire from series two of The Madame Blanc Mysteries, and it remains the face of the show. The exterior of the police station and the village bar both sit on the square, making it the single most rewarding stop for any fan. On filming days the square quietly turns French: flowers, greenery and statues appear, a tricolore goes up outside the police station, and the red telephone box just to the right of the bar has to be hidden from view.
This village has also been the backdrop for scenes from By the Sea, F*ck Valentine’s Day, K3 and the Song of the Mermaid and Brideshead Revisited.
Films and shows shot in Għarb
San Lawrenz and Dwejra Bay
San Lawrenz is home to Dwejra Bay, the most-filmed location on Gozo by some distance. More than 30 productions have shot here, from Sailor of the King in 1952 to Two Weeks in August and F*ck Valentine’s Day. The Dothraki wedding from the very first episode of Game of Thrones was filmed at Dwejra, and the Azure Window, before its collapse in 2017, appeared in everything from Clash of the Titans to The Count of Monte Cristo (2002). The tradition continues: in Enola Holmes 3, the establishing shot of “Malta” is actually Gozo, sweeping past Fungus Rock and over Dwejra Tower, with a few CGI crenellations added for good measure. Our full Dwejra Bay guide covers the bay, the Inland Sea and the Blue Hole in detail.
Films and shows shot in San Lawrenz and Dwejra Bay
Għasri
Għasri is the smallest village on Gozo, with around 500 residents, and it’s one of the quietest, which is exactly why crews like it. In F*ck Valentine’s Day, Gina’s mother’s house sits in the countryside here, with a wonderful view of Ta’ Pinu Basilica. The 1997 miniseries, The Odyssey, filmed at Għar tal-Qrewis on the coast, and the Wied il-Għasri stood in for the lost continent in Warlords of Atlantis.
Films and shows shot in Għasri
Żebbuġ
Żebbuġ is home to the salt pans of Xwejni Bay, a stretch of coast that has been harvested for 350 years and filmed for rather less. The pans give productions a landscape that exists almost nowhere else and has been used as both alien landscapes, and the Californian coastline.
Films and shows shot in Żebbuġ
Marsalforn
Marsalforn’s waterfront has featured in several productions, and in Carmen, we see the protagonist wake up on its coastline and Hartwig Seeler look moodily into the distance. Its most significant scene, though, is up the valley. The crash that opens the very first episode of The Madame Blanc Mysteries, the event that brings Jean White to Sainte Victoire, was filmed in Marsalforn Valley. Several series later, it all started here.
Films and shows shot in Marsalforn
Xagħra
Xagħra is one of my favourite spots on the island, and its filming history runs deeper than most visitors realise. The red sands of Ramla Bay run between Xagħra and Nadur, and they have seen plenty of stars over the years. Michael Caine shot Pulp here and, by all accounts, did not enjoy the experience, finding the islands barren and short on trees. Joan Collins had it worse: filming Can Heironymus Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe and Find True Happiness? reportedly convinced her to divorce its director.
Films and shows shot in Xagħra
Nadur
Nadur sits above some of Gozo’s best beaches, with San Blas, Dahlet Qorrot and the eastern end of Ramla Bay all within its reach. Overlooking Ramla is Tal-Mixta Cave which has hosted several productions including Made in Malta, Firebird, and Island of Oblivion.
Films and shows shot in Nadur
Comino
Comino deserves a trip of its own, and film crews agree. Even Popeye made it here: the boat chase scenes from Robert Altman’s 1980 musical were filmed around the island, spillover from the Sweethaven set over on Malta.
The Blue Lagoon
The Blue Lagoon is Comino’s most famous spot, and its clear water has appeared in productions from Swept Away to The Count of Monte Cristo, a story so attached to these islands that we’ve given its many adaptations their own guide.
Top Tip: Visit early in the morning or later in the afternoon to avoid the crowds. In peak season, “crowds” is an understatement.
Santa Marija Tower
Santa Marija Tower features in both the film and TV adaptations of Dumas’ classic as the isolated Château d’If. The tower is dramatic enough on its own; the views across to Gozo and Malta are the bonus.
Top Tip: Comino is more than the Blue Lagoon, pack some decent shoes and take a walk around the island.
Films and shows shot in Comino
Seen on Screen, Filmed Elsewhere
Not everything set on Gozo was shot here. The Good Ship Murder devoted an episode to the island but filmed almost all of it on Malta, with only glimpses of Mġarr Harbour, Ramla Bay, Marsalforn and the Blue Lagoon making the cut. If you’ve heard a rumour about a production we haven’t listed, check The Apocrypha for the unverified maybes and Not Filmed on Gozo for the myths we’ve already busted.
Take the Guide with You
Ready to explore Sainte Victoire for yourself? Our Gozo in a Day Film & TV Location Guide takes you to 80+ filming locations across Mġarr Harbour, Victoria and Dwejra Bay — including all the key Madame Blanc spots — with self-guided walking routes and practical tips from someone who lives here.
FAQs
Plan Your Own Set-Jetting Trip
Ready to see it all in person? Our Gozo filming location maps show which village each production shot in, and our Ultimate Travel Guide to Gozo covers getting here, getting around and where to stay.
Or browse the map below for places to stay.
We’d love to hear about your visit. Send us an email or tag us on social media with #SceneOnGozo. Happy exploring, and may your Gozo journey be as magical as the movies.