The past several months have proved a bit of a mixed bag for Jason Sudeikis. While it was announced last November that the actor and his longtime love, Olivia Wilde, had split after nine years and two children together, his professional life conversely hit some definite highs including a February Golden Globes win (his first!) for his portrayal of the titular Ted Lasso on Apple TV+’s surprise 2020 hit. Based on a character Sudeikis created in 2013 for an NBC Sports promo highlighting the network’s broadcasting partnership with the Premier League, the comedic series follows Lasso, a perenially positive Kansas football coach who becomes famous after a video of him celebrating with his team goes viral and is subsequently plunked from the U.S. and hired to lead AFC Richmond, a fictional London-based football club.
Calling it one of the best TV shows of 2020, Salon deemed “Ted Lasso” “10 episodes of pure, unfiltered good feeling.” Joyous and full of heart, the series hit the small screen in August 2020 when the world at large was facing vast uncertainty and chronic lockdowns amid a global pandemic, and soon proved to be just what the doctor ordered! Audiences ate up the positivity and sheer happiness that Ted gleefully projects with a spoon! The show proved so popular, in fact, that it was renewed for a second season only a few days after its debut and was soon picked up for a third season, as well.
As Ted quotes Walt Witman in episode eight, “Be curious, not judgmental.” And curious I was about the series’ locations. Set and shot in the U.K., a few spots utilized include the SkyEx Community Stadium in Hayes and Selhurst Park Stadium in London, which are blended together to portray the AFC Richmond headquarters. Most filming, though, takes place in Richmond, an idyllic town located about ten miles southwest of London. It is there that the exterior of Ted’s apartment can be found at 11a Paved Court. (Interiors were filmed on a set.) The Richmond Theatre, just down the street from the apartment, is where the annual charity gala is held in episode four, “For the Children.” (Only the exterior was featured. Interior gala scenes were filmed about 15 miles away at the Rivoli Ballroom located at 350 Brockley Rd. in Crofton Park.)
And The Crown & Anchor, the neighborhood pub that serves as Ted’s regular hangout as well as the unofficial meeting place of the AFC Richmond players, can also be found in Richmond. As purported on the show, it is just around the corner from Ted’s apartment at 28 The Green. Known as The Prince’s Head in real life, the watering hole exudes warmth and charm, so it is no surprise it wound up onscreen.