TV HOTSPOTS

AUSSIES ARE FLOCKING TO SEE THE REALLIFE SITES OF THEIR FAVOURITE SHOWS. HERE’S WHERE TO GO

SEE BIG LITTLE LIES’ COAST

Although Big Little Lies is based on a book by Liane Moriarty set in Australia, the TV adaptation is filmed in California’s Monterey County. Those dramatic ocean and cliffs can be explored by driving up Highway 1 from Los Angeles (or down from San Francisco). The Monterey County Visitors Bureau has put together a handy self-guided road trip map for anyone wanting to see the filming locations.

Make the first stop Old Fishermans Wharf and sit down at Paluca Trattoria, the inspiration for Blue Blues Cafe where Jane (Shailene Woodley), Madeline (Reese Witherspoon) and Celeste (Nicole Kidman) like to meet up. Next, head to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which is housed in a former sardine cannery on Cannery Row. In Big Little Lies, Jane and her son spend a day there marvelling at the sealife including sharks and turtles.

Of course, the main attraction is that spectacular coastline. The driving scenes in the opening credits were filmed at Bixby Bridge in Big Sur, 30-minutes’ south of Monterey. And the beach scenes were filmed at Del Monte Beach in Monterey. In Season 2, Carmel River State Beach also features.

As for seeing those gorgeous houses the characters live in? Most of the internal shots were filmed in and around Los Angeles, including Malibu, Pasadena and Calabasas. Only one of the spectacular featured houses is actually on the Monterey Peninsula – Celeste’s mansion, worth about US$6 million (A$8.7 million).