Over the last year or 2, I’ve been continuing to visit various Harry Potter film sights around the country (dragging Rob along with me). This post almost finishes the whole list of Harry Potter sights I aimed to see!
Let’s start at the beginning. One of the more iconic sights from the first few films is Platform 9 3/4 – a brick wall between train platforms. However, for the first couple of years I was in Cambridge, Platform 9 3/4 was hidden behind scaffolding while King’s Cross Station was being renovated. How frustrating! Well now the half trolley is out in the main foyer for tourists to visit. Easy peasy!
Finally we were visiting the original entrance to the Leaky Cauldron from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Previously, we had visited the ‘other’ entrance to the Leaky Cauldron used in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban in Borough Market, but its not as iconic. This one is in Leadenhall Market in London and is actually an optometrist! The market is closed in the weekend as its in the middle of the financial district, but you can still wander through the market.
Like Platform 9 3/4, this sight wasn’t actually used in the film I don’t think, but is still worth a post. This street, Artillery Passage, *might* have been used for filming some scenes of Diagon Alley. More likely, it was inspiration. Regardless, its a tiny dimly lit passage that is quite sweet.
In Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (the 6th film), Deatheaters launched various attacks on London, including demolishing the Millennium Bridge – a popular pedestrian bridge across the Thames. I love the fact that St Pauls is perfectly lined up at the other end of this photo, but it wasn’t super prominent in the film itself.
Now moving out of London to Oxford, visiting our last Harry Potter sight there. When we last visited Oxford, we didn’t make it to New College where Malfoy was turned into a ferret in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The cloisters of New College were used for a few scenes general school scenes too. They were beautiful cloisters, and a lovely college to visit too.
The last Harry Potter film location for this post is up in Durham at the wonderful Durham Cathedral. Rob and I visited this the cathedral over a year ago and didn’t know it was a Harry Potter film location! We since found out that many of the sights attributed to Lacock Abbey online were in fact filmed at Durham Cathedral. The only reason we know it was Durham was because of the shapes of the windows in the cloisters – they’re quite different! Here’s a picture of the cloisters and Durham Cathedral tower.
Here’s a zoom of the cloister windows with their simple but unique shape. You can see them in the background of these film shots from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
The cloisters themselves were used for corridors of Hogwarts in the first 2 films. The first film shot was modified to have windows on both sides, though, but its still Durham Cathedral from the shape of the windows.
Harry Potter might be a geeky thing, but the film locations the directors selected for the various films are lovely parts of the country. Wandering around London, visiting beautiful colleges in Oxford and grand cathedrals in Durham – we’re hitting all the tourists spots just by following the film locations.
But we have ONE Harry Potter sight left on our list of Harry Potter film locations. This June, we’re hopefully going to visit Professor Flitwick’s Charms Classroom which was a 17th century classroom at Harrow School. The school offers public tours once a quarter, and the next one is June! I’m looking forward to it – it’ll be the end of a geeky touristy era.
But that’s then. We’ve just come back from a holiday to Luxembourg and the Nederlands so want to tell you about the cities there first.
Until next time,
xxx
[…] and the Prisoner of Azkaban was in Borough Market. DONE! See this blog posts –> a) London, Oxford and Durham – Platform 9 3/4, the Leaky Cauldron and more b) Harry Potter […]
I think you are missing some spots still! Surbiton train station in London was the station where Dumbledore collected Harry at the beginning of Half Blood Prince. Also there are some spots in Ireland from what I understand – the cave where Dumbledore and Harry went to find the horcrux is at the foot of the Cliffs of Moher. And the rock they apparate onto is Lemon Rock in county Kerry (actually many miles away from the Cliffs of Moher!)
Yes, we missed the Irish sights, you’re right. We missed a few really, so I acknowledge this isn’t an exhaustive list. There are lots of interesting additional sights that could be visited (like Goathland railway station in Yorkshire) but we had to draw a line somewhere. The list above is where we drew it before we moved back to NZ. 🙂
PS – thanks so much for the link about the tours at Harrow School though – did you actually go into Flitwick’s classroom??
We did go to Harrow School and the classroom was fab. Blog post about it will be coming sometime this year, I promise!
This is just awesome. I am a huge and I mean huge potter fan and was wondering if anyone had a complete list of site locations and if you know if video taping is allowed at most of these sites.
Sorry for the *super* delayed reply, but no, I don’t know if anyone has a *complete* list anywhere. I compiled mine from various other fans, and even I don’t have everything (ie I’m missing a Hagrid’s hut location in the Scottish Highlands and a few other things). Most of these locations do allow videoing, just like they allow photography. A few exceptions (ie the old library in Oxford don’t allow any recording devices). Are you planning a trip? There are some great Harry Potter tours you can join if you’re short on time.