STAFF REVIEW: HARRY POTTER WALKING TOUR OF LONDON
Staff Review: Harry Potter Tour of London
I think we can all agree that Harry Potter is the franchise that got us all into loving magic. I am sure you could at least name one spell from the films like “Lumos” which you must know is the charm to turn on the lights! Many scenes from Harry Potter were filmed in the centre of London, and I could not wait to see them all on this Harry Potter Walking Tour of London, during which we’d be able to see where all the magic took place!
We arrived in London Westminster at 14:00pm to begin our awaited journey, away from the muggle world. Connor and I had the chance to join a very friendly fanatic group of people, along with a lovely guide! The tour started on time with various facts about the films and how the city of London inspired the movie’s hallowed locations.
Our first location was Parliament Street, which was used in the films to represent the Ministry of Magic. This location has now become a famous landmark in this part of London as affluent and important people (like the Prime Minister!) currently live in the middle of the area. After our short escapade through Downing Street and considering it was raining, we knew it was time to fix this weather with some magic.
The guide picked a customer on a voluntary basis, took out utensils from his bag and made the crowd delve into the world of wizardry within seconds. Trust me, I wish Connor was the one to get picked by the guide.
Imagine how funny it would have been to watch him turn into a wizard and recreate the famous scene between Voldemort and Harry Potter (“The boy who lived… has come to die”) to be honest I just really wanted to see Connor ridicule himself in front of everyone for a good laugh - that’s not wrong of me, right? I mean we are colleagues and friends, that should be enough of a justification, right?
Anyway, the participant who was actually selected wore the cloak, the wand and even the glasses to resemble Harry Potter as much as possible. He performed to perfection for a good laugh, not because he was ridiculous but because he had great acting skills - and maybe some magic skills too, as the weather then changed to a bright sky. Not only did we get to explore the story behind the choice of the area which was portrayed in J.K Rowling’s books, but we also got to see the inspiration behind Harry Potter which was fascinating.
The next part of the tour took place on Great Scotland Yard, where we had an insight of the fifth film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
Both Connor and I were astonished at how much the street resembled the Polyjuice Potion scene from the film. We thought everything was green-screened, but our tour guide corrected us and mentioned that the scene was filmed right where we were standing. He also added that the cast stayed over at the famous Corinthia Hotel for a few days whilst they were shooting, which was just a couple of steps away. I know this sounds really cringe, but can you imagine, we walked on the steps of the actors and producers of Harry Potter. Connor and I felt special for a minute.
Next was Trafalgar square, right below the South Africa House which was the inspiration behind Gringotts Wizarding Bank - and although it doesn’t look as wonky as it does in the films it was the initial inspiration, and looks 10 times bigger than you think. It was fascinating to look at.
The tour took another turn when we reached a secret path that served as Diagon Alley in the films. Connor and I felt like we were Hogwarts 1st year students doing our stationery shopping for school. It felt magical. We also spotted the symbol of the Deathly Hallows all over the windows and saw majestic owls reminding us of Hedwig until the end of the street.
Another area which gave inspiration to J.K Rowling’s idea of Diagon Alley is Cecil Court, where we had the chance to see magic money and a very expensive poster from Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets, worth more than £2000 pounds. The guide also showed us multiple stores that solely sold Harry Potter products, which ranged from books to brooms. If you are a collector, it is the perfect place to shop.
The tour finished with a visit to the famous Leicester Square. It was amazing to see how popular this location was! There was a queue of people lining up to take pictures, and employees were even dressed up like characters from the films to help take pictures. Directly next to the M&M’s shop was the Harry Potter statue, which was surrounded by Harry Potter fans taking pictures.
Overall Connor and I had an amazing time on this Harry Potter Tour and would like to say thank you so much to the tour guide and the group! We learnt so much about the films and had a fantastic tour of London. I would recommend this experience to Harry Potter fans and muggles alike!
