In short, Sunday 15th March was the best day ever.
In long, I'm gonna tell you all about my day spent at the Harry Potter studio tour! Warning: This post is going to be pretty photo heavy...
I'm probably one of the biggest Harry Potter fans on the planet, so you can imagine how I jumped at the chance to go to the studio tour for a discounted rate, thanks to the Harry Potter Society at my uni! I have actually been to the tour before, a couple of years ago, but there's just so much stuff there that it's just as good to go a second time (and I'm already planning the third visit...)
We had to get up bright and early on Sunday morning (7.45 for me...) to travel to the tour, but obviously it was all completely worth it! Somebody also had the bright idea to bring the Harry Potter films with them, so we had a bit of a marathon in the coach on the way there and the way back. Once we arrived we were given cute little tour passports, and of course took a couple of obligatory selfies outside the studios! Although we went on the tour with the uni society, I spent most of the time with my friend (and future housemate) Katie.
As with all things like this, it started off with a queue, but you really don't notice the waiting time as there's already so much to be looking at! There are loads of photos dotted around the entrance hall, as well as the flying car dangling from the ceiling (didn't manage to get this in the photo!) and also the cupboard under the stairs which you can peek into as you wind your way through the queue!
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| Where it all began - the cupboard under the stairs... |
Once you're done queueing, you're led through a couple of rooms where you watch a couple of different short films about the making of the Harry Potter series. Definitely enough to give you goosebumps! Then, once the second film is done, the screen lifts up and behind it is the entrance to the Great Hall! Soooo cool.
The Great Hall is super cool, although smaller than it looks in the films! What's amazing is that it's all made out of proper stone, which really makes you feel like you're inside a castle.
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| Gryffindor costumes - Neville's cardigan! And the robes on the very far right were Daniel Radcliffe's first ever Hogwarts robes which he wore in the first film! |
Next, we moved through to a section with lots of different costumes from the films! They're all the authentic ones which were worn by the actors - I just wanted to be able to try them all on for myself, especially Luna's costumes and Hermione's Yule Ball dress!
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| Yule Ball costumes |
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| Hair and makeup |
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| Luna's costumes |
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| The Golden Trio |
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| Gryffindor boys' dormitory |
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| Gryffindor common room |
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| Mirror of Erised... All I saw in it was myself! |
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| "Sherbert lemon"... Can I come in now, Dumbledore? |
We also got to see the set of Dumbledore's office, with a mannequin that had one of Michael Gambon's costumes on it. You can't see it in the photo below but they also had a mannequin with one of Richard Harris' costumes on in the background, which I thought was a really special touch.
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| Dumbledore's office |
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| Potions classroom |
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| Hagrid's hut - it was so tiny! |
One of my absolute favourite sets from the film has got the be The Burrow - it's just so cute and characterful! Again, there really was so much thought and detail put into this set. None of the walls are built at a right angle which makes it oh-so very Weasley, and I love how everything is mismatched and jumbled up - none of the chairs or crockery match! It's also extremely clever how some of the props were built. When you see The Burrow in the films, there are lots of things in the kitchen magically moving, such as the pots and pans drying themselves. I always thought this was just clever animation, but it turns out they actually designed the props to move themselves, which is something that you can see at the studio tour!
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| The Burrow |
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| Death Eater Target |
Something else that I found amazing was how close all of the sets are to each other - you'll just be looking at The Burrow then turn around to find yourself in Malfoy Manor! It really gives you an idea of what a film set is actually like.
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| Malfoy Mansion |
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| "Magic is Might" statue |
Another of my very favourite sets is Umbridge's office! I just absolutely adore how everything fits together so perfectly - so pink and full of cats! I am very envious of the prop designer whose job it was to go out hunting for all of this vintage furniture and these pink cat plates.
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| Umbridge's office |
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| Tom Riddle's grave |
In the middle of the tour, there's a little cafe which gives you the chance to stop and refresh yourself for a bit. They also sell Butterbeer here! Although I'm not actually a huge fan of Butterbeer (I prefer the frozen one they sell at the Wizarding World in Orlando), I only felt it was right to have a glass - after all, they only sell it in two places in the whole world! Although I'm sure it is possible to find a recipe and make your own somehow...
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| Butterbeer! |
Once we'd refreshed ourselves a bit, we ventured outside to the backlot of Leavesden where they have a lot of outdoor sets! This also includes things like the Knight Bus and the flying car...
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| The Knight Bus |
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| Number 4 Privet Drive |
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| The bridge! |
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| Katie reenacting Hermione's hair swish on the bridge in Goblet of Fire! |
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| Godric's Hollow |
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| The chess pieces from Philosopher's Stone |
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| The flying Ford Anglia |
Next, the tour moves inside to look at things like prosthetic masks and models of all of the crazy creatures in Harry's world! It truly is amazing how much work went into these films, I can't get my head around it!
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| Goblin masks |
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| Hungarian Horntail |
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| (Moving) Buckbeak! |
And after that we moved straight into Diagon Alley - one of my favourite parts of the tour! This place truly is magical (no pun intended).
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| Gringott's |
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| Slug & Jiggers Apothecary |
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| Ollivander's |
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| Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment |
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| Weasley's Wizard Wheezes - Puking Pastilles - the pastilles were actually moving from the girl's mouth into the bucket! So clever! |
After Diagon Alley there's a little section full of sketches, paintings and miniature models of the different scenes, sets and props from the films. I loved the paintings so much, there were some that I just wanted to take home!
And, finally, when you turn the corner at the end of the tour, you are greeted by the most wonderful sight - the model of Hogwarts. This model obviously isn't to scale as it's what they used to film shots of the entire castle for the films, but it's still pretty big and the most amazing sight to see Hogwarts in its entirety. In the room, they play quite emotional music from one of the films and it's pretty difficult not to tear up! I didn't cry this time as I knew it was coming, but the first time I visited I was so completely blown away that I just burst into tears at the sight of this castle that I've loved so much for so long! It is truly magical.
As you're leaving the tour, you pass through a room filled with wand boxes, each labelled with the name of a member of the cast or crew. Such a lovely idea and there were so many boxes, which really makes you realise just how many people worked on these films.
"The stories we love best do live in us forever, so whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home." - J.K. Rowling.
When you exit the tour, you come out into the gift shop which is absolutely stuffed to the brim with Harry Potter merchandise! A Potterhead's dream.
Although the merchandise is very expensive as there aren't many other places you can buy it, I had been saving up for a while so that I could get myself a few things - plus, you can't exactly go to the Harry Potter Studio Tour and not get yourself a souvenir! I bought a Gryffindor notebook (plain pages inside - something I've been looking for for ages), a Deathly Hallows keyring which is now proudly on my keys, a Hogwarts postcard, a magnet for my friend and a Chocolate Frog! I got Dumbledore...
The Studio Tour really was the most magical experience, even if it was the second time I visited! It's a definite must-do for any hardcore Potterhead and, although it can be an expensive day, it really is worth it. If you're interested in visiting Leavesden Studios, you can buy tickets online here!
Hopefully you're all not too sick of me after this super-long, photo-heavy post, but I just had to share my love of Harry Potter! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend too!
