(CNN) – A TikToker whose video shows where the real house from the hit film Saltburn is said she had “no idea” her footage would go viral.
Rhian Wiliams, a 47-year-old marketing and public relations consultant in the United Kingdom, told CNN that the TikTok algorithm added “rocket fuel” to her posts about Drayton House, the stately home that forms the palatial setting for much of the written film added” and was directed by Oscar winner Emerald Fennell.
This weekend, the owner of the old building in Northamptonshire, central England, gave an interview to the British tabloid Mail on Sunday in which he said he had been forced to hire extra security because crowds had turned up to take photos and each other record yourself in front of the property.
The influx of visitors appears to be due to two TikTok videos Williams created and posted earlier this year.
One of the clips shows Williams posing in front of the property, with the description “if you live near Saltburn House.” The second contains specific instructions for those who “want to visit Saltburn House”. Williams then gives detailed instructions on how to get to Drayton House, showing maps, points of interest and even a good car park. Together, the clips have garnered 5.6 million views.
Visitors flocked to Drayton House, the English country estate where the hit film Saltburn was filmed. Courtesy of MGM/Amazon Studios
She told CNN she decided to post the content online to highlight landmarks in her area. In an email she wrote: “As a business owner in Northamptonshire who also has a passion for films, stately homes and gardens, I couldn't help but stop by early on New Year's Day when the country was hungover.”
“It’s fantastic to see such a hidden corner of our beautiful Northamptonshire in a great film like Saltburn. Our county is very beautiful but is often overlooked in favor of the countryside in places like the Cotswolds or Cornwall, but it is very beautiful. “I’m a big supporter of Northamptonshire as a county to live, work and visit.”
Williams, who has fewer than 3,000 people following his account under the name “Better Be Known,” said: “I had no idea that the two videos I made would be viewed 5.6 million times, and it all happened very quickly. I don't know.” I have a lot of followers on TikTok, so I didn't think it would go viral, but because of the way the TikTok algorithm works, it gave my posts extra momentum than hundreds of people started sharing and commenting on my video.”
The film stars Irish actor Barry Keoghan as a schoolboy invited to spend a summer at a wealthy classmate's estate, Saltburn. In an interview with CNN, Fennell said that the film is in many ways a take on “classic British country goth,” inspired by films like “Brideshead Revisited” and “The Go-Between.”
The palatial property dates back to the late 13th century and is a private residence not open to public tours. Courtesy of MGM/Amazon Studios
There is little publicly available information about the property, but according to national heritage authority Historic England it dates back to the late 13th century.
Charles Stopford Sackville, owner of Drayton House, told the Mail on Sunday he underestimated the level of interest the film had generated in his property.
“I never imagined how much interest there would be. “It’s pretty strange,” he said. “I don’t think it’s flattering.”
He told the newspaper that hundreds of people flock there every week to pose for videos and film themselves dancing outside in tribute to a scene in which Keoghan dances naked around the villa. The property is not open to the public, so visitors are not permitted entry.
Rhian Williams created a video on TikTok showing Saltburn fans how to find Drayton House, where the film was actually filmed. Rihanna Williams
Most were respectful, but the behavior of some led him to tighten security, he said, adding that more than 50 people were pulled off public roads.
Williams told CNN that she neither encourages nor condones this type of behavior. “Whatever the circumstances, visitors should stay on the public path (not in the trash) and be good 'citizens'. “There is no reason for people to move off public roads,” he said.