Oscar-winning screenwriter Julian Fellowes wrote the screenplay for The Young Victoria, which is released on DVD next week, and he tells us why one the film’s primary locations, Ham House, provided the perfect double for Kensington Palace

The location scouts were trying to find something roughly contemporary with Kensington Palace, because it was very much expanded in the 1680s and Ham House was similarly embellished around that period.

My first memory of the house was through one of my great aunts. It used to be owned by a family called Tollemache and she was friendly with Leonie Tollemache. My great aunt used to go and stay with her - she said it was the most haunted house she had ever been in.

There is something about the darkness of Ham House, with the wood panelling, that rather lends itself to the oppresiveness of that whole period of Victoria’s childhood when she was being manipulated by her mother and Sir John Conroy.

That Stuart magnificence that Ham has seemed to me to be appropriate, rather than later Georgian lightheartedness or Georgian magnificence that is splendid but doesn’t have that same oppresive quality.

Ham House allowed ‘Kensington Palace’ to become a character in the film which is exactly what you want and working there was great for the actors.

In film acting you are always trying to create the reality of the moment and be in it. You have to almost hypnotise yourself away from the cameras and cables and the 150 people standing around.

When you are in a perfect setting that gives you back the reality of what you are doing and I think the actors loved being at Ham House.

The Young Victoria is out on DVD on July 13. Julian Fellowes’ Past Imperfect is out now in paperback.