Tourism in a small village in Wiltshire is booming, all because overseas visitors are mistakenly believing it’s the location of the hit TV series Downton Abbey.

The village of Downton, just south of Salisbury and close to the New Forest, has fans of the show flocking to its pubs, reportedly acting as unofficial tourist offices, in their quest to visit the home of the Crawley family, which in reality is filmed in multiple locations across the UK.

Despite the fact that the show is described as being set more than 200 miles away in Yorkshire, it hasn’t stopped fans of the show travelling to Downton to explore the area.

The series which is starts its fourth season 22 September, has gained worldwide popularity - including 14 emmy nominations.

Pub landlords from Downton have said that over the past six months they have had at least two people a week inquiring as to the whereabouts of Downton Abbey.

Filming for the show has taken place at Highclere Castle in Hampshire - the location of ‘Downton Abbey’ - which is about an hour away from the real Downton, while the fictional Downton is actually based in Bampton, Oxfordshire. In addition, filming has taken place at locations such as Lincoln Castle, Halton House in Buckinghamshire and Horsted Keynes railway station in West Sussex.