NEW Netflix drama The English Game, partly filmed in the district and featuring more than 100 local children, is released this month.

The six-part series, by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes, explores the origins of football in northern England in the mid 19th century, and how footballers crossed a class divide changed the game, making it accessible to all - from the public school elite to men working in factories - and established it as the world’s most popular sport.

Filming took place last year in Saltaire, Little Germany and Keighley railway station. More than 100 children from Articulate, Bradford-based stage school and casting agency, appear in the period drama, which stars Edward Holcroft from the Kingsman film series, Kevin Guthrie from the film Sunshine on Leith, Line of Duty actor Craig Parkinson and Game of Thrones actress Charlotte Hope. Holcroft and Guthrie play, respectively, Arthur Kinnaird, known as the ‘First Lord of Football’, and Glaswegian Fergus Suter, considered the first recognised professional footballer.

Set in 1879, against a backdrop of industrial unrest, The English Game centres around a young football player who moves to the Lancashire town of Darwen to play for the local team. It explores the formation of Blackburn Rovers FC, a founding member of the Football League, and Darwen FC, a working-class football team and early pioneer of professional football. The series begins on Netflix on March 20.

Cast and crew spent two weeks filming in Saltaire last summer. Crowds watched as properties on Victoria Road were dressed in 1800s shops, including greengrocers, butchers and Darwen Post Office. More scenes were shot in a nearby house. Filming also took place in Little Germany and Bradford city centre, with horse-drawn carriages and actors in Victorian costume filming outside City Hall. Bradford UNESCO City of Film team provided support for the production.

The English Game is the latest high end drama shot in the district. Scenes for the new series of Last Tango in Halifax were shot at Booths supermarket in Ilkley, with Articulate youngsters including Tilly Kaye in the cast, and last year’s hit series Gentleman Jack was partly filmed in Little Germany. Such shows, along with hit TV dramas Peaky Blinders and Victoria and films Official Secrets and The Duke are boosting tourism and the local economy. Screen Yorkshire chief executive Sally Joynson said: “The value of filming activity to the region is substantial, with budgets for productions we’ve supported over the past year averaging between £10m and £20m per project.”