After wandering through all the prop and set displays, we turned a corner and found ourselves on Platform 9 3/4 with the Hogwarts Express right before our eyes!
Our little wizards and witches took turns pushing their luggage cart through the platform wall
We passed by a display of all the books used throughout the films on our way to lunch. I wish my text books looked at cool as theirs did, maybe I would have read them a little more...
By now we were about 2 hours in and were pretty hungry. A lot of us had really been looking forward to getting some official, frothy, overly sweet, butter beer. It lived up to the hype.
After fueling up, we were off to see more magical Harry Potter sets!
Then we entered The Creature Workshop to see how they made all the magical, and some super creepy, creatures come to life for the films.
I was terrified and fascinated by this mechanical Hagrid head. I am blown away by how movies are made and all the special behind the scenes things that have to happen to make a movie of such epic proportions.
Totally terrifying Mermaid
Werewolves
Dementers!
We flew through the Creature Workshop pretty quickly, it was totally interesting but I was getting pretty creeped out. Plus, I was excited to stroll down the one and only Diagon Alley!
This was my favorite window display, I wanted every single thing in there!
Pygmy Puffs! I love when Ginny gets her Pygmy Puff, Arnold, in HP 7. If I was a witch, I would probably get one too.
Next came a display of extremely intricate set models. They were beyond amazing!
The Owlery
Hagrid's Hut
And lastly, Hogwarts. This set model was just the beginning, the next room had the real Hogwarts in it!
"This 1:24 scale model, with details taken from the original sets at Alnwick Castle and Durham Cathedral, that was used for external shots during filming, will be the final trump card played at the end of Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter, which opens this month.
It took 86 artists and crew members to construct the first version which was then rebuilt and altered many times for the next seven films. The work was so extensive that if one was to add all the man hours that have gone into building and reworking the model, it would come to over 74 years!"
"All the doors are hinged, real plants are used for landscaping
and miniature birds are housed in the Owlery.
The model, which sits at nearly 50 feet in diameter, has over 2,500 fibre optic lights that simulate lanterns and torches and even gave the illusion of students passing through hallways in the films.
To show off the lighting to full effect a day-to-night cycle will take place every 4 minutes so visitors can experience the changing atmosphere at the castle."
Picture from the internet to show the scale! It was ginormous and took up the entire room!
The tour ended in the most perfect way, with Ollivander's shop, full of all the names of the wonderful people who brought the magical world of Harry Potter to life.
Then it was time to explore the gift shop!
And with bags full of magical goodies, we said goodbye to the one and only, world of Harry Potter, for now.
wow! What a fabulous experience! I am glad I got to get a feel for what you saw! I can see how if you had read the books and seen the films this would be fantastic!
ReplyDelete