A Very Harry Day
I finally got tickets to the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio Tour last week and that day deserves its own post. I’ve been looking for tickets for months but they’re always sold out and my friends and I could never coordinate a good day anyway. So on Monday (Feb 26th) when I saw there were tickets available that Wednesday, I was like ok screw it I’m going by myself. I blew like 15 pounds on my Oyster card for a tube ride, a train, and a bus to get there but I will literally cross the ocean for Harry Potter. Being in London anyway, I basically did.
So for those of you who don’t know, the Harry Potter studio tour is an exhibit of all the production stuff from the movies. The Harry Potter movies employed over 4,000 producers, actors, directors, artists, crew members, (goblins), etc over the course of the ten-year film production. Although some of that work, like some sets, were only built for a day and deconstructed afterward, many of the costumes, makeup, sets, mechanics, paintings, graphic designs, props, etc were left over after the filming of the last movie. What to do with it? MAKE A MUSEUM OF COURSE.
So in the literal Warner Brothers warehouse where much of the movies were shot, a decade of meticulous (and I mean meticulous) work was carefully curated for millions of visitors to see. I really don’t think this level of craftsmanship exists for any other movie or movie franchise. I love Harry Potter, and I love how others’ love for Harry Potter manifests through their unique craft.
I’m glad I ended up going alone because I spent almost five hours there reading every description and tearing up a little at the power of art and how influential the wizarding world has been on hundreds of millions of kids and adults alike (read my Love Letter to Potter here).
The Harry Potter studio experience is a whole different level than the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios in Orlando. I love them both for different reasons. Harry Potter World is interactive (rides, going inside each storefront, eating at the Three Broomsticks, etc) so you feel totally immersed in the wizardry. While the studio tour is more something to look at than interact with, on the other hand, it isn’t comprised of mass-produced tourist memorabilia – this is the real deal, full of hundreds of thousands of hours of work. It was a Potterhead dreamland, and I can’t wait to go back!!
