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Sites in London
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Beyond London
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Flying through London
Few tourists can hop on broomsticks and fly along the Thames, but in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix we
get to see some of London's famous sights from this unique perspective. The wizards wiz past Canary Wharf, Tower Bridge,
the HMS Belfast, and pull up to soar over Parliament.
Visitors who want this view of London must stick to tourboats on the river...and have those cameras ready, just in case you
get buzzed by wizzards on broomsticks!
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Off to Oxfordshire
Several scenes in Order of the Phoenixwere filmed on the grounds of Blenheim Palace near Oxford.
Blenheim and Oxford are terrific places to visit, even without HP connections.
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Gringott's Bank
The exhibition hall in Australia House—the Australian embassy in London—was used as the basic model for the bank.
Of course, the real building is a lot less spooky than the Gringott's. Australia House is located on the Strand (road) near
the Temple Underground station.
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Hogwarts Express
You'll have to head to Scotland to see and ride the steam train that was used as the Hogwarts Express in the movie. For info,
check
the railway's website. You can also find other restored steam train lines much closer to London that would be a lot like this one.
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Diagon Alley
Some people claim that parts of Charing Cross road may look a little like Diagon Alley.
Friendly Snakes
Don't expect any snakes to escape while you are there, but the reptile house of the London Zoo was featured in the second
movie.
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Gloucester
Some inside Hogwarts scenes were filmed in Gloucester Cathedral. Gloucester is a neat town about 100 miles from London.
The Kings School.
in Gloucester was also used in the film (and some of their students appeared as "extras" in HP movies).
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Mind The Gap
The ticket turnstiles at Westminster Underground station confounded Arthur Weasley as he and Harry headed to the Ministry
of Magic in The Order of the Phoenix. Harry appeared to be a practiced Tube patron though.
The Ministry's secret entrance telephone booth scene was filmed near Scotland Yard.
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Hogsmead Station
Just outside of York is Goathland Station, part of the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, which served as Hogsmead Station in
a HP movie. York is a wonderful sidetrip about 2 hours north of London by train. The old, walled city has a "Harry Potter"
feel to it. The Shambles section of the old town looks a lot like Diagon Alley too.
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Kings Cross Station
Platform 9 and 3/4? The sign says so, but muggles will have a hard time getting through this bricked-up archway at Kings Cross
station. Filming was actually done on other platforms (1 and 2, I think). But with the popularity of the series, the operators
of Kings Cross station have placed signs for Platform 9 3/4. Makes a good photo op, but if you see He Who Cannot Be Named,
alert station security!
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Hogwarts
Alnwick Castle, way up north in Northumberland, was used for some outside shots of Hogwarts School. For details see the
Alnwick website.
Honestly, it's a great castle, but it is a long way to go for a visit. You can find other castles nearer to London that have
a similar look and feel.
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The Leaky Cauldron
An empty storefront on Bull's Front Passage in historic Leadenhall Market was used as the front of the Leaky Cauldron in the
second film. The Market is along Leadenhall Street (logically enough) between Gracechurch Street and Lime Street, not far
from the Bank Underground station.
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Durham Cathedral
Some Hogwarts classroom scenes and exterior shots in HP movies were filmed at Durham Cathedral—another long trip from
London (about 4 hours by car, 3 hours by train).
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Potter Portrait
The National Portrait Gallery has a portrait of Harry Potter movie star Daniel Radcliffe. Daniel is the youngest person ever
to have a portrait hung in this huge museum.
Potter In Wax
And young Mr. Radcliffe also now appears in Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum.
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Oxford
The city of Oxford is only about an hour by train from London. You can visit the
Bodleian Library which was used as the Hogwarts Library and the Divinity School which appeared as Hogwarts hospital wing. Christ Church's
Great Hall in Oxford is another location used in the Harry Potter films.
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The Prisoner in London
In The Prisoner of Azkaban, south London's Borough Market was used for location shots and the Knight Bus—a traditional
London doubledecker with a unique paint job—tooled around streets in South London during filming.
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Scotland
Many location shots for the Prisoner of Azbaban and The Order of the Phoenix were filmed in the Highlands of Scotland, including
Hagrid's cottage which was constructed in Glencoe, near Ft. William.
The Highlands are beautiful, but they are definitely not a daytrip from London.
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