Heidi The Bridge or Bron-Broen, as the title originally sounds, is a popular Nordic Noir series that takes place in both Malmö and Copenhagen. The Öresund Bridge is the key location. In the first episode a corpse is found on the bridge, right on the border between Sweden and Denmark. Detectives Saga Norén and Martin Rohde are put on the case.
Why should you watch The Bridge? For the lovely Swedish and Danish language (I watched every episode several times for this), for the exciting stories and the clever directing and acting!
Actress Sofia Helin is Saga Norén in a unique and sublime way. Saga has Asperger’s syndrome – a form of autism, although this is not mentioned in the series. As a detective, this is one of her strengths, but in everyday life it challenges her. The Swedish police officer drives a Porsche. She seems to be wearing her leather pants and green jacket every day, all year round.
The Bridge: film locations
The Bridge filming locations are mostly in Malmö. For the first season they were filming in Copenhagen as well but for practical and economic reasons they mostly stayed in Skåne for the other seasons. Most interior scenes were shot in the film studios of Ystad. But I love to share some places you can visit yourself in Malmö.
Everything revolves around the bridge. It is also where the story begins. The bridge connects Sweden and Denmark since 2000. Malmö can be reached easiest from Kastrup, Copenhagen Airport. With the Öresundståg (train), it just takes 20 minutes to get to the other side. More about this bridge and the train can be found here.
The bridge plays an important role in the tv serie. Remember the last episode of the first season? When Martin, Jens and a young girl that is taken hostage by Jens, stand on the bridge and Saga tries to lie when she says Martin’s son is still alive? These scenes are captured in Pepparholm. This is an artificial island where the bridge changes into a tunnel.
Limhamn
When we see Laura sailing with her small boat in the first episode of the second season, we are in the small port of Limhamn. This is close to the Strand Hotel where Saga checks in for a two nights stay and some me-time.
In Limhamn you also could find the old cement factory where the eco-terrorists were found dead in a container in the second season. Nowadays there are apartments on this spot. For a good view of the bridge, go to Luftkastellet at Utsiktsvägen.
Further inland, in the district of Hyllie, the construction of Arena Hotel (Hyllie Boulevard 2) was the setting for some scenes of the first episode of the third season. The construction site is where the first murder happened.
Västra Hamnen
From Limhamn we continue towards Västra Hamnen. This modern district is one of my favourite places in Malmö. In addition to the Turning Torso which you often get to see in the series, you will also find a few other key locations.
Saga’s apartment
The scenes that take place inside the apartment of Saga are filmed in a film studio. But the outside is shown as well. The apartment from Saga is located in Ankargatan, at number 9.
Ribersborgs Kallbadhus
I already wrote an article on Ribersborgs Kallbadhus . It is a key location in the first season of The Bridge. In one of the final episodes Saga and Martin go to Ribersborg to interrogate the waitress, a friend of Mikeala, the former wife of Jens. It is during this interview, Martin realizes that all events are actually directed against him.
It’s here he confesses to Saga that he was the man Mikeala had met and for whom she would leave Jens.
More Västra Hamnen and Universitetsholmen
In the second series a scene is set in the restaurant Årstiderna By The Sea. This restaurant is located in Västra Hamnen (Dockgatan 1) and is known for its New Nordic cuisine with lots of fish and shellfish.
In Dockgatan you find the outside of the IT office of Julian from the second season. The indoor scenes of the IT company took place in the office of Ramböll (Skeppsgatan).
Nearby, at Skeppsbron, they filmed the traffic control and their vain attempts to summon the wandering ghost ship in the first episode of the second season.
The place where, in season 2, the police invades in the hide-out of the eco-terrorists but where they had already left, is Norra Neptunigatan (number 21).
Malmo Live
Journalist Daniel Ferbe of Aftonposten has his office in the new Malmö Live, this hotel and conference center is located just outside Västra Hamnen, on Universitetsholmen. More about this hotel can be read here (a visit to the sky bar on the 25th floor is a must!). The parking opens on Nordenskjöldsgatan. This is the place where Saga and Martin phone with Daniel who is trapped in his own car with explosives.
The Harbour
In the port they often film. The hotel where Martin lived after his divorce is actually the Scandic Segevang hotel.
Restaurant Saltimporten Canteen (Grimmsbygatan 24) was the place where the crew often had lunch. In the third season they also filmed here. Restaurant Bord 13 was also featured in the final season but is now closed.
Möllevången
The Malmö police office
The ‘police office’ can be found in Barkgatan near Möllevångstorget and Folketspark. This building is in fact a yoga studio and an administrative center. In the first series they park their cars behind the corner. In the second season it looked like in the picture below. Just imagine it is the Porsche of Saga instead of the Audi in the picture. The indoor shooting took place in a film studio.
Jalla Jalla
This kebab restaurant is for real and is still open, it is indeed highly recommended to eat falafel here! Jalla Jalla had a small but notable role in the second series. It is from within this snack bar that Saga is dumped by telephone by her boyfriend and she asks him if they can still have sex. The snackbar is situated near the ‘police station’, on the main road, Bergsgatan 16.
Triangeln
Sankt Johanneskyrkan, the church at Kapellgatan plays a role in the third season. If you pass at Möllevångsgatan, have a look at number 42. You’ll recognize the apartment of social worker Stefan who is threatened and kills the man with an iron (first season).
A few streets away you will find the parking where Anja, the girl who ran away from home and ends up at the apartment of one of the truth warriors, is shot in the first season . In reality you’ll find a shopping mall with a decent parking at Norra Skolgatan 23. To see where the poisoned apples were sold (season 2), make a small detour to Simnishamnsgatan.
Pildammsparken
A little further west, you’ll find Pildammsparken. The place where Claudio in the second season meets his ‘client’ is not in Copenhagen as the director wants us to believe, but near the Margareta Pavilion in Pildammsparken.
In the area you will also find the old stadium of Malmö. It is here that Laura is shot in the second season and where Saga and Martin bring her back hoping that she would remember something.
Copenhagen, Ystad, Lund
The team also filmed in the wider area of Malmö. The studios were located in Ystad. Some outdoor shots were also done there. Furthermore there was a facade in the Klinikgatan in Lund that was used as the building of the forensic expert.
The house where Martin and his family lived in, in the first season was not in Denmark but in Ljunghusen at Falsterbonäset, south of Malmö. The villa of the brokers widow (with the wig) was also in this neighborhood.
On the other side of the Öresundsbridge you can also find some film locations in Copenhagen:
- Politigården at Polititorvet is the real headquarters of the police in Copenhagen. You can easily spot it if you are in the neighbourhood of Glyptoteket and Tivoli. You can not enter the builing to see the inner court.
- In Blågårdsgade you’ll find the small grocery store from the first series.
- Laura from season 2 goes to school at Örestad Gymnasium (Örestads Boulevard 75).
Ett Malmö som inte finns
In 2017 you could visit a special The Bridge exhibition in Tekniska Museet & Sjöfartsmuseet (Malmöhusvägen 7A). The museum is a must visit, even without the The Bridge exhibition. The exhibition from The Bridge was rather limited but all the info was also available in English.
You could see the green Porsche from Saga, her leather pants and green cloak and many other props from the series.
Of course, the half body from season one, the animal masks from season 2 and gala attire from season 3 were also there. Furthermore, a lot of files, and even the detectives cards were on display.
Did you watch The Bridge? Are you a fan of Saga? Let me know if you’re going to Malmö to discover some film locations!
P.S. Don’t forget to pin this article for later reference! Do you know other The Bridge-fans? I bet they would be happy if you would share this with them 😉
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I’m staying now in Malmö and tomorrow I’m going to visit this exposition you wrote about. I love Saga and love Malmö already because of her! Thank you for this excellent information
Thanks for your comment 🙂 I hope you will enjoy the exposition! Have you already discovered some other spots where The Bridge was filmed?
Thank you for this article, I have one question though:
Towards the end of season1, episode 9 I think, Saga and Martin track their suspect to an ababdoned blue volvo. The car is abandoned in what looks to be a forest, but he trees are like walls, straight up and down and there is a park bench in the background..is this a city park in Malmo? Even though it was winter it looked beautiful..any ideas?
Sorry Kasey, no idea. I should watch the series again. Maybe it is Pildammsparken?
it is pildammnsparken. In malmo
I love the Bridge 🙂 possibly my favorite crime show ever, Sofia Helin’s performances are sublime, thank you for compiling this list
Hi All,
Do you know where is exactly Johnny’s house in the season 3?
My daughter and I love Scandi noir. We are flying to Stockholm February 17th for 3 days where we will visit the Millennium triology filming sights, then taking the train to Copenhagen for 3 days to see the sights from Forbrydelsen and Bron/Broen before flying to Tromso for 4 days to see the Northern Lights and try some winter activities because we’ve never done any since we live in a warm weather climate. We stocked up on cold weather gear. Thank you for pointing out where we need to go in Malmo and Copenhagen. I so wish the exhibition was still there. We’ll be the crazy tourists running around Sweden and Denmark dressed as Libeth Salander, Saga Noren or Sarah Lund. The real highlight of our trip would be happening upon a crime scene. Fingers crossed! I’m certain we could be of great help to the Swedish and Danish police. Sadly, I do not believe we’d be much of much assistance in Tromso.
This is the best ever article on the net I could find. WELL DONE! And thank you so much for your work!
Saga does not “suffer” from Asperger Syndrome, she merely “has” it. Let’s move beyond this old way of thinking please.
Hej Tom, You’re absolutely right! I changed the words. Thanks for reaching out. Have a nice day, Heidi.
Where is Mette Rohde’s office? Season 1 Episode 8 I think…
I’m sorry, have no idea about this location.
If you mean where they lived (Martin Rohde etc.) in the first season, i.e. in a big wooden house, it is down in Ljunghusen. It is my brother´s (with family) house.
Hi Johan,
thanks for your answer. I absolutely love that big wooden house and would love to see it one day (being an architect…) but it was actually the office block where Mette works and meets Jens that I was interested in when I asked the question.
Best wishes from Scotland
Hans