WHICH page does Professor Snape ask students to turn to in The Prisoner Of
Azkaban?
This was just one of the quiz questions in the opening pre-amble to The Making
Of Harry Potter studio tour.
It has been running for more than a year but last Saturday the car park at
Warner Bros’ Leavesden complex near Watford was filling up before the first
group went in at 10am.
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Extras put on for Halloween include demos of how the special effects team made
troll snot and unicorn blood.
The Great Hall is a big wow. It is dressed exactly as it was for the films and
all of the real costumes are on display too.
The Big Room next door is a bit more interactive. Here you will find more
sets, including the Gryffindor Common Room and Dumbledore’s office.
Via the magic of video, we had a wand lesson from film fight choreographer
Paul Harris and you can even hop on a broom to star in your own action
sequence.
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You do the tour at your own pace. We took two and a half hours — some have
taken ten!
Top tip: Pack your own lunch. The backlot has hot dogs but you are better off
spending on a butterbeer and an ice cream.
Our favourite bits were larking about with the wands because it was so
hands-on. And the Diagon Alley set because it looked just like it did in the
film.
The animatronics section was good, too. You can push buttons to see some of
the Potter films’ creepy creations come to life.
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Go:
Wizarding
TOUR PRICES: Over-16s £29, kids £21.50, families from £85. STAYING
THERE: No onsite hotels – we stayed 40 minutes away at the
Runnymede-on-Thames Hotel. Family rooms from £223. GETTING THERE: Off
A41, near Watford, Herts. MORE INFO: wbstudiotour.co.uk.
