Famous by Association

North Wales Coast & Dee Estuary

And now for something completely different... Terry Jones of Monty Python fame was born in Colwyn Bay and is now the patron of Theatr Colwyn.

Isle of Anglesey

See the world through the eyes of an artist by visiting the coast near Newborough, the inspiration for Anglesey-born artist Charles Tunnicliffe, many of whose paintings can be seen on display at Oriel Môn in Llangefni.

The iconic cover photo for Roxy Music's Siren album, famously featuring model Jerry Hall striking various poses, was taken directly below the bridge to South Stack, Anglesey. It's worth a visit to experience the breathtaking sea views from the steep granite cliffs above the lighthouse there.

Menai, Llŷn & Meirionnydd

The scenery of the Snowdonia National Park will almost certainly leave you stirred, if not shaken, as it did both Sean Connery and Pierce Brosnan, who came here to film From Russia with Love (1963) and The World is Not Enough (1991).

Ceredigion

Hollywood famously came to the edge of Wales when Keira Knightley, Sienna Miller and Matthew Rhys and others descended on the fishing port of New Quay, Ceredigion for the filming of The Edge of Love, the Dylan Thomas biopic. New Quay (along with Laugharne) was partly the inspiration behind the village in Under Milk Wood.

Pembrokeshire

Follow in the hoof prints of Hollywood main man Russell Crowe, who visited Pembrokeshire during 2009 to film the cliff top scenes for the battle at the end of the Ridley Scott epic Robin Hood at St Govan’s Head, and beach scenes on the nearby beach of Freshwater West.

The scenes featuring Shell Cottage in the recent Harry Potter films were also shot here. Filming has also taken place at the stunning Marloes Sands for Snow White and the Huntsman.

Carmarthenshire

The seven mile long beach at Pendine in Carmarthenshire has been famously used over the years for land speed trials and is forever associated with Malcolm Campbell and J.G. Parry-Thomas, who set the world land speed record there five times between 1924 and 1927.

Gower & Swansea Bay

Aberavon Seafront and Port Talbot Docks were used as the backdrop for the open air play, The Passion, with Michael Sheen in May 2011, which drew huge crowds to the area. As the locally-born writer of the hit TV series Torchwood, Swansea’s Russell T Davies has had plenty of opportunity to showcase his favourite local locations.

The fourth series of the drama in particular used the dramatic sweep of Rhossili Bay as one of them.

South Wales Coast & Severn Estuary

One of the more unlikely people associated with Wales – and one of the most intriguing locations – is the actor Peter O'Toole, who came to the Merthyr Mawr sand dunes outside Bridgend to film some of the dramatic horseback scenes of the 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia.

Oh, what’s occurin’? No trip to the Vale of Glamorgan these days would be complete without a peek behind the scenes in Barry Island, the location made famous by Ruth Jones, Rob Brydon, James Corden, Joanna Page et al in the hit TV show Gavin and Stacey.

Doctor Who? Cardiff is home to Doctor Who and Torchwood. Why not take a tour which visits some of the filming locations – including where the rift cracked open!

The hugely popular children’s author Roald Dahl was born in Llandaff, Cardiff, and went to school there until he was nine years old. He was christened at the Norwegian Church – now to be seen in Cardiff Bay.