It has been the brash, sweary and unashamedly raunchy surprise Disney+ hit of the year, complete with a liberal sprinkling of 1980s attitudes and full-frontal nudity.
But while the mind-bending plot turns and frenetic action have gathered the most attention, the lavish locations should also receive at least equal billing.
Although Cotchester, Rutshire - in which the Disney+ series is set - is fictional, its real-life double is Tetbury and is featured in many of the scenes.
Rivals - which is an adaption of a 1988 novel of the same name - includes big-name actors such as David Tennant, Aidan Turner, Emily Atack, and Danny Dyer.
And while the filming locations may be less well-known that hasnt stopped viewers from trying to track them down to visit after being enraptured by the drama.
From The Bottle Yard Studios to Berkeley House and Chavenage House in Tetbury, MailOnline looks at the real-life places behind the scenes - and why some may seem familiar.
Rupert Campbell-Blacks home - real location Ammerdown House
Rivals main character is MP Rupert Campbell-Black and his home on the show is the location for many memorable scenes
The rogueish Rupert Campbell-Black, played by Alex Hassell, left, and Basil Bas Baddingham, played by Luke Pasqualino, right, outside the house
The sprawling Ammerdown House in Somerset is the setting of the hit shows fictional Penscombe Court (above)
Some reports claim that some of the other estates used in the show were so massive that producers simply re-used parts of them for the backdrop to his home.
The estate shows a honey-stoned building surrounded by greenery in which Campbell-Black has his family holding.
But in reality, the sprawling Ammerdown House in Somerset is the real-life setting of Ruperts Penscombe Court.
Since being built in 1788 it has been expanded twice - in 1857 and 1877 by James Wyatt.
The house is rarely glimpsed, as the one and only public opportunity to see inside came briefly in 2012 when funds were being raised to restore the Georgian ceilings.
Originally owned by landscape designer Thomas Samuel Jolliffe, the Grade I listed building is surrounded by walled gardens and an orangery.
It has a 20th-century Italianate formal garden of about six hectares, designed by Edwin Lutyens.
The house comprises three storeys and is constructed in Bath stone ashlar.
The stables were renovated in 1973 and have been turned into a study centre.
The current residents of the house are Diana Jolliffe, daughter in law of the 5th Baron Hylton, the current Lord Hylton, and her children.
Tony Baddinghams house - real-life location Neston Park
Claire Rushbrook as Lady Monica Baddingham and David Tennant as Tony Baddingham
Neston House is the home of Sir James Fuller, heir to the Fuller brewing dynasty, and was also used as the home of Tony Baddingham - played by David Tennant - and his wife Monica - played by Claire Rushbrook - called The Falconry
The ruthless managing director of Corinium Television Tony Baddinghams character lives in the Falconry on the show
The ruthless managing director of Corinium Television Tony Baddingham - played by David Tennant - and his wife Monica - played by Claire Rushbrook - were filmed at their lavish home called The Falconry.
In real life, this is set in Neston Park, which is an English country house and estate in the village of Neston, south of Corsham, Wiltshire.
The estate was also used for filming scenes in BBCs 2008 Larkrise to Candleford and ITVs 2007 Persuasion.
However, the property is a privately owned stately home and is not open to the public.
The Grade II listed house dates back to 1790 and has had several extensions since then.
The grounds include an organic home farm, and a herd of Jersey and Aberdeen Angus-Jersey cross bred cattle.
It also has an ancient Roman road from London to Bath around 700ft from the house.
The Neston Estate was built by Thomas Tropenell and passed to the Eyre family and then by marriage to the Baronets Hanham. They sold it to John Fuller, who built Neston House.
It then passed to John Fuller and remained in his family, whose descendants became famous for the Fullers Brewery in London.
In the 1990s, the estate went to a Countryside Stewardship Scheme, and has since been used for many filming locations.
Declan O’Haras house - real-life location Chavenage House
Declan and his fictional family and friends are seen outside The Priory during the series, seen here later in the run of episodes
Its real-life location is Chavenage House, where groups can visit for £12 a head and individual bespoke tours are even available - if you have £250 to spare
Declan O’Hara, who is played by Aidan Turner, is one of the more heroic characters in the hit series and lives The Priory
The home of Declan O’Hara, who is played by Aidan Turner, was a no-brainer for the producers.
Eliza Mellor previously worked with owner Caroline Lowsley-Williams on Poldark and thought the Elizabethan Grade I listed Chavenage House would fit perfectly.
She also introduced the producers to the owners of the house where they shot the notorious naked tennis scene - which has never been a set before.
In the scene, Emily Atacks character and Campbell-Black play tennis on the lawn of a country estate.
The O’Hara Cotswold manor has remained virtually unchanged for 400 years, according to the website.
Groups can visit for £12 a head and individual bespoke tours are even available at a base rate of £250.
The earliest recorded owner of Chavenage was Princess Goda, the sister of Edward the Confessor.
A community of Augustinian monks from Tours in France later settled at Horsley, which since Anglo-Saxon times had encompassed Chavenage.
After the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII, the manor and estate were granted to Thomas Seymour, who shortly after Henry VIIIs death married his widow Katherine Parr and subsequently became Lord Seymour of Sudeley.
When Thomas was executed the property then reverted to the Crown, was granted anew in 1553 to Sir Walter Denys of Dyrham and in 1564 Sir Walters son, Richard sold the estate to Edward Stephens of Eastington.
He started the massive project of a major reconstruction of the site. He gutted the medieval building he found, and put on the two wings and the porch to create a manor house of the classic Elizabethan style.
By 1576, the date carved with his initials and those of his wife Joan were carved above the front door when his work was finished.
The estate is now in the Lowsley-Williams family.
Cameron Cooks house - real-life location Berkeley House
Berkeley House in Tetbury - used as the home of the TV producer Cameron Cook - is also available for fans to stay in
Nafessa Williams plays Cameron Cook on the show, a character who is at the centre of almost every scene she is in
Talented American TV executive Cameron Cook - played by Nafessa Williams - has an affair with Corinium TVs owner, Lord Tony Baddingham.
Her home is bought by Baddingham for her as part of the deal of Cameron moving to the UK.
Berkeley House in Tetbury is a traditional Cotswold stone Grade II listed home valued at £1,650,000 which is available for fans to stay at for a holiday rental.
The series supervising location manager Joel Holmes was keen to make use of some of the real life locations in the general area the book was set.
He explained: We could have come up with a version of the Cotswolds in the south-east, but you would have missed out on the Cotswolds stone.
Freddie Jones and wife Valeries home - real-life location Woodbank House
Danny Dyers character Freddie Jones was one of the stand-out stars of the series and his characters house was just as good
Woodbank House, Monmouthshire, north of Caerleon, was used as the location for his home on the Rivals series on Disney+
The exterior of the property was used in some of the shots on the show and was mentioned frequently earlier on but not shown until nearer the end of the run
Freddie and Valerie Joness home on Rivals is a much mocked part of the earlier episodes as some of the snobby other characters tease them.
In real life the location is Woodbank House in Monmouthshire, a Georgian-style mansion near a golf course.
Its owners are not known but way back in March it was up for sale for an impressive £2.85million.
At the time the estate agent described it as a 19th century cottage that could have started life as a former shooting lodge for a local country estate.
They added that it had been expanded over the years into the impressive structure that now stands on the land.
It offers some 9,580 square feet of space, seven bedrooms, six bathrooms, and 19 acres of land
Rupert Campbell-Blacks introduction - real-life location Aerospace Bristol
The drama opens with a memorable introduction to the character of Rupert Campbell-Black - him having sex on a plane
The series was filmed on Aerospace Bristol on board an actual Concorde plane. Pictured is a concorde supersonic passenger jet aircraft in the hangar at Aerospace Bristol
The drama opens with a scene of Campbell-Black having sex on a plane, but it was filmed in a hangar.
Instead of flying back from New York, the actors were parked, but on an actual Concorde plane - the last one to take the the air.
Fans can even visit - it was filmed at Aerospace Bristol which offers ticketed visits.
For an adult, it costs £19.50 and children £12. For students, its a discounted £18.
Aerospace Bristol is an aerospace museum at Filton run by the Bristol Aero Collection Trust and houses a varied collection of exhibits, including Concorde Alpha Foxtrot - seen in the Rivals.
Corinium Television HQ - real-life location The Bottle Yard Studios
For the Corinium TV HQ, a replica 1980s television studio (pictured on the show) was built, for the Declan chat show
Pictured is The Bottle Yard Studios in Bristol, which was opened in 2010, where the shows fictional studios were built
For the Corinium Television HQ, a replica 1980s television studio was built at The Bottle Yard Studios in Bristol.
The set was completed with a control room on one of the stages.
A second stage was used for other Corinium TV interiors, such as the Priory kitchen and sitting room and many other small sets.
The Bottle Yard is the largest dedicated production space in the West of England and as of 2022, it has eleven stages across two sites, with floor areas of 22,000 sq ft and heights of up to 34ft.
Bristol City Council opened The Bottle Yard Studios in 2010 as demand for studio space began to increase.
Rivals is in good company, as it has also hosted the filming of A Good Girls Guide to Murder, The Outlaws, Tipping Point and Poldark.
Eliza Mellor, the shows producer, told the i: Bristol and The Bottle Yard Studios were the perfect production base for Jilly Coopers Rivals, which is set in the glorious countryside of the Cotswolds.
We were very excited to be the first production to use the two main stages of TBY2 and they certainly lived up to our expectations.
We were able to build the TV studio, complete with a 1980s control room on one of the stages, and used the second stage for other Corinium TV interiors, the Priory kitchen and sitting room and many other small sets that were needed across the series.
The awards ceremony - real-life location the Harbour Hotel
The awards bash is featured in later episodes of the series and was actually filed down in Bristol for the show
Another Bristol location which was used for filming an awards ceremony is the Harbour Hotel - which is also on Corn Street. It is a Grade II listed concerted bank with a spa in the vaults
Another Bristol location which was used for filming an awards ceremony is the Harbour Hotel - which is also on Corn Street.
The building is set across two former bank buildings and includes luxury accommodation, a restaurant, Gold Bar and a spa hidden in the old vaults.
Rivals fans who want to stay at the swanky hotel for the full experience can expect to pay around £200 for the building opposite St. Nicholas Market.
The grand converted bank is Grade II listed and was built in 1856.
It used to be a Lloyds bank and is modelled on Jacopo Sansovino’s 16th-century library in St Mark’s Square, Venice.
It has an elaborate facade, complete with angels, lions, ships and cherubs.
The previously derelict building was converted into the hotel along with the 19th-century former Midland Bank next door.