Warner Brothers Studio Tour
My roommate Sarah and I are HUGE Harry Potter fans, so we had to take a trip to the Warner Brothers StuHarry Potter exhibit to see all of the props that were used in the movies. We bought tickets for the exhibit, however, it is a bit far from London so we also had to book a special bus to take us from London straight to the exhibit. We took a very early bus so that we could have all day at the exhibit. When we arrived there we immediately went to check out the gift shop – where I purchased an embarrassingly large number of souvenirs… We then were allowed to enter the exhibit, it starts out showing you the uniforms and clothing worn by the students and teachers in the “Great Hall” which then turns to more proups – like the “dorm” rooms for Harry Potter and Ron. As you walk through the exhibit you also will see Dumbledore’s office, Hagrid’s hut, some props such as the door from the Chamber of Secrets and the Horcruxes. The exhibit shows you how quidditch was really played and what the “brooms” looked like in reality. They have part of the exhibit where you can take photos that they photoshop – like the one I had made of me flying over Hogwarts (note: I AM A HUGE NERD.) I am also obsessed with Tom Felton so seeing any clothing he may have ever worn makes me – excited. The exhibit then leads you outside where you can see the Night bus, you can order butterbeer to drink in a souvenir cup and it is so delicious! Hagrid’s motorcycle and #4 Privet Drive (also known as the Dursley’s house) is located outside as well. This is a great area to take a bunch of photographs! When you re-enter the building, this is where some body doubles of the cast are located, along with odd creatures such as the troll from the first Harry Potter film and the basilisk. You then continue through the exhibit to find Diagon Alley, which was probably my favorite part of the exhibit – as you walk down through all the shops it feels as If you are REALLY in Diagon Alley. They have all the shops in the film, even Fred and George’s joke shop. Sarah dropped her phone down between the shops and the railing keeping you from touching or going in the shops but a nice staff member saw her drop her phone and went down to get it. He also pretended to go into a bunch of the shops and told us some cool facts about the shops – like things you could see in the windows and information as such. After this you walk into a room that shows small models of all the buildings that were in the films and then….. you enter a room with a HUGE replica of Hogwarts. It is enormous! They told us how long it had taken to build but I cannot remember, sadly! It’s amazing though to look at and imagine how long it took to build this and how intricate it is. At the end of the day we had to go to class and I did NOT want to ever leave! I had been to a Harry Potter exhibit before (in New York) but this one is just the absolute. Harry Potter nerds – you need to take a visit to the WB exhibit.
London Zoo
After months (literally) of begging my boyfriend to bring me to London Zoo he finally did, and it is honestly like no other zoo I have ever been to in my life. I will write more about it in the future but besides it having an outdoor exhibit where monkeys run and climb around you they also have the snake exhibit in the first Harry Potter movie! However, it is not the same type of snake that is in the film – but they do have a plaque that shows Harry Potter Fans that it was this exact exhibit that Daniel Radcliffe had been filmed at.
Platform 9 3/4
As practically EVERY American that goes to London will quickly notice – if you visit Kings Cross Station in London there is a secluded area which includes a shopping cart halfway in/ halfway out of the wall, which you can choose a scarf of your “house” and take a picture pretending to head off to Hogwarts. Next door they have a gift shop where you can buy souvenirs or the photograph they took of you. Or you can do what I did and just have a friend snap a picture on their cell phone for free.
MOJO
Sarah convinced me to go to this theatrical performance with her, “Mojo”. We had the absolute worst seats imaginable we were so high off the ground I thought I would fall to my death if I leaned forward. The reason I agreed to attend the play with her though was because Ron – or Rupert Grint was performing in it! A lot of friends of ours who were studying abroad with us had the chance to meet him after the play. Unlucky enough for us – Sarah had broken a mirror a few years ago – we did not get to meet him…. Oh well, I had met the actors who played Fred and George Weasley and had basically thrown up with anxiety so maybe this was a blessing in disguise.
Oxford
The program I was with (CEA) took all of us on a day trip to Oxford University – which also will be written about more in depth – but the purpose of this is that they filmed scenes for Harry Potter such as the staircase and the “Great Hall” in Oxford!
London, as I have said before and will say a thousand times again is my absolute favorite place in the world. Every place I visited in England holds an important place in my heart – but the Harry Potter series have also held an important place in my heart since I was very young and the first book came out. My friends and I dressed up and waited for the release of the books. Then eventually we would go to the midnight showings of the movies. These are just a few places I visited in London that were related to Harry Potter, there may have been more but this is all I remember!
Runaway Blond 