Where was Top Boy season 3 shot? Filming locations of Netflix's drama series explored

Top Boy, Netflix's acclaimed series, returned with its action-packed final season on Thursday, September 7, 2023. The crime drama centers around the notorious drug gangs of East London and chronicles their misdeeds and violence.

Season 3 of Top Boy witnesss the return of Sully (Kane Robinson) and Dushane (Ashley Walters) as high-stakes drug dealers after the shocking season 2 finale. Jaw (Jasmine Jobson), Shelley (Little Simz), and Stefan (Araloyin Oshunremi), among other actors, also make a comeback one last time.

The previous season was set in international waters, but for the latest series finale, the drama returned to the Summerhouse Estate, where it all started. As per sources like the Radio Times, the London-based show has had multiple filming locations over the years, with its primary setting being the fictional housing estate located in Hackney, London.

---

Netflix's Top Boy has primarily been filmed in Hackney over the years

As previously mentioned, Top Boy is largely set in Hackney, northeast London, on the fictional Summerhouse Estate. This estate was so crucial for the narrative and major crux of the series that the first two seasons, which aired on Channel 4, have been renamed Top Boy: Summerhouse on Netflix. Radio Times reported that the idea for Summerhouse was taken from Hackney's De Beauvoir estate.

The outlet further reported that over the years, there have been several replacements for the Summerhouse. The Heygate Estate in Elephant and Castle, London, served as the primary setting for exterior scenes while the show was airing on Channel 4. However, the property was demolished in 2014, prompting the need for a new location when the crime drama returned in 2019.

From that point, the exterior sequences have been filmed on the Isle of Dogs' Samuda Estate. In fact, locals offered their apartments for the shooting of certain interior scenes, including some of the characters' bedrooms.

Similarly, the Hackney-based De Beauvoir Estate, which was mentioned earlier served as the inspiration behind the Summerhouse, has been a site for multiple scenes. Other locations in Haggerston, Dalston, and Newham have also contributed to the drama's recognized authenticity as East London landmarks.

Elsewhere, the Walworth Academy in Southwark, where most of the school sequences were shot, and Whipps Cross Hospital in Leytonstone are two other locations that serve a significant purpose and can be seen throughout the series.

Top Boy's famous Number One Cafe is a real, functional cafe situated in London Fields. Meanwhile, the primary marketplace setting where Jaq, Kieron, and other members of the gang hang out and also deal drugs is the Ridley Road Market in Dalston.

In the more recent seasons, the bench where Jamie (Michael Ward), Aaron (Hope Ikpoku Jnr), and Stefan go to sit and talk to their deceased parents has also become a significant part of the show. These scenes are filmed in Victoria Park's Old English Garden and will be revisited in the latest season 3. Aside from these, Shelley opened a new nail shop in the previous season, which is also a real nail salon in Canning Town and goes by the name Kiki's Nail Salon.

As per the Radio Times report, Margate and Ramsgate in Thanet, Kent, where Sully previously spent a two-episode arc, are among the more distant shooting locations in the UK. Other members of the cast and crew also spent time in Jamaica for the shooting of sequences in which Dushane was hiding out.

The show expanded its scope further by using destinations like Morocco and Spain to film the drug trade's full extent. However, for the final season, keeping the loyatly trademark in mind, Top Boy returned to the Summerhouse for a proper farewell and a fitting finale.

---

Top Boy season 3 is now available to stream on Netflix.