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New Details Revealed for “Discovering Hogwarts” at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London
Posted by Megs

New details about the “Discovering Hogwarts” event at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London have been revealed this morning. To celebrate the Studio Tour’s 11th year we will be invited to experience Hogwarts as Harry did in his first year. From 2nd May – 4th September 2023 fans can take part in new experiences like creating an origami Sorting Ceremony chatterbox, an opportunity to practice and learn the movement behind casting the Wingardium Leviosa spell, taking a seat in a new photo opportunity of Harry’s first boat journey to Hogwarts and a live demonstration of how Hagrid’s body double was fitted with stilts and a prosthetic head.

Just like a Hogwarts student would, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London will celebrate its 11th year with an invitation to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Brand new for 2023, visitors will be invited to explore Harry’s early years at Hogwarts with some of their favourite scenes brought to life at the Studio Tour for this special feature.
 
For the first time since filming, over 400 floating candles will adorn the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall, giving visitors a chance to step into the set just as the cast would have seen it during Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. During filming over twenty years ago, real, lit candles were used for the scene. However, for the safety of the cast and crew, Producers decided to add them later during post-production. For this special feature, the candles (which have been adapted by the talented Special Effects Department to use a light effect instead of a live flame) have been hung with over three miles of wire.
 
During the feature, fans will be welcomed into one of Harry’s first experiences of magic; Professor Flitwick’s Charms class. A new set depicting the iconic scene in which a young Harry, Ron and Hermione learn to master Wingardium Leviosa will be revealed, sharing the filmmaking secrets behind the floating feathers. Created using practical effects, rather than CGI, the magic was as simple as stringing a feather onto a fishing line. A technique described by Special Effects Supervisor, John Richardson, as ‘’going back to the silent movie era.” Fans will also have the chance to practice their wand skills as they learn the movement behind casting the famous Wingardium Leviosa spell.
 
Among the first wizards Harry meets was beloved half-giant Hagrid. While actor Robbie Coltrane stood at 6ft, he was not quite tall enough to portray a half-giant. During many scenes, 6ft 10” England rugby player Martin Bayfield was used as a body double fitted with stilts and a prosthetic head to achieve Hagrid’s towering height. During Discovering Hogwarts, a live demonstration of this process will show visitors how the half-giant was brought to life right in front of their eyes.
 
Interactive experiences throughout the feature will tell the story of Harry’s first experiences in the wizarding world. Fans of all ages are invited to get hands on and create an origami ‘Sorting Ceremony’ chatterbox to take away, as well as taking a seat in a new photo opportunity depicting Harry’s first boat journey to Hogwarts.

Filed Under: Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter
New 4 Privet Drive Room Announced for Magical Mischief feature at WB Studio Tour London
Posted by Megs

Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter has announced a brand-new room inside 4 Privet Drive, showing the scene where Harry met Dobby the house elf for the first time, as part of their Magical Mischief feature. From 21st January – 18th April 2023 fans can enjoy special exhibits all featuring Mischief and Magic!

Fans can learn about the filmmaking techniques used to bring Dobby to life on-screen, created by the Creature Effects Team, which visitors will be able to see during their visit. Returning for a second year, other highlight scenes in this feature include: 

  • Fans can get hands-on to make their own origami howler, just like the one Mrs Weasley delivered to Ron in the second film
  • The Great Hall dressed for the Weasley prank on the peaceful O.W.L.s exam 
  • The secrets behind the disappearing effects of the invisibility cloak and Harry’s flying acceptance letters are revealed 
  • Dolores Umbridge from The Order of the Phoenix in her infamous pink two-piece suit

The full press release may be read below:

Returning for a second year, filmmaking trickery, magical pranks and wizarding mishaps will be revealed as part of the Studio Tour’s Magical Mischief feature. 

Brand new for 2023, visitors will be able to take a look inside Harry’s bedroom at number 4 Privet Drive, as the fan- favourite scene in which Harry meets the mischievous house elf, Dobby, is on display. Fans will recall Harry and Dobby’s first introduction at the Dursley home during Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, as Dobby attempts every trick to stop Harry from returning to Hogwarts. A variety of filmmaking techniques were used to bring beloved Dobby to life on-screen including the creation of models, used to give actors a reference point on-set, lovingly created by the Creature Effects Team, which visitors will be able to see during their visit. 

Demonstrations will take place throughout the Studio Tour uncovering secrets behind the disappearing effect of the invisibility cloak and Harry’s flying acceptance letters. Visitors will even be able to get hands on to make their own origami howler, just like the one Mrs Weasley delivered to her son in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. 

Visitors to the Studio Tour will also learn how their favourite mischievous moments from the films were brought to the screen in this exciting feature. Entering the Great Hall, fans will recognise the set dressed for a Weasley prank on the peaceful O.W.L.s exam, complete with the swinging pendulum under the watchful eye of Dolores Umbridge. From the fan-favourite scene in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the infamous pink two-piece costume of Dolores Umbridge will be centre stage and visitors should look above to see the playful Weasley twins’ costumes on their broomsticks suspended from the Great Hall ceiling. 

Filed Under: Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter
Warner Bros. Studio Tour London Announces 2023 Events
Posted by Megs

Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter has announced its features for 2023, including a brand new event! Fan favourites Magical MischiefDark Arts and Hogwarts in the Snow will return as well as the new Discovering Hogwarts. Discovering Hogwarts brings visitors back in time to experience Harry’s early years at Hogwarts. Read on for details on each event!

Magical Mischief 

21st January – 18th April 2023 
Returning for a second year, filmmaking trickery, magical pranks and wizarding mishaps will be revealed as part of the Studio Tour’s Magical Mischief feature. Demonstrations will take place throughout the Studio Tour uncovering secrets behind the disappearing effect of the invisibility cloak and Harry’s flying acceptance letters. Visitors will even be able to get hands on to make their own origami howler, just like the one Mrs Weasley delivered to her son in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
 

Discovering Hogwarts

2nd May – 4th September 2023
Just like a Hogwarts student, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London will celebrate its 11th year with an invitation to the Wizarding school. Brand new for 2023, visitors will be invited to step back in time and learn the secrets behind Harry’s early years at Hogwarts. From his first acceptance letter to being sorted into Gryffindor and learning his first spells, this special feature running throughout Summer will shine a spotlight on Harry’s first years at Hogwarts. 
 

Dark Arts

15th September – 5th November 2023
Returning for the spooky season, Dark Arts will see the Great Hall ceiling decorated with over 100 floating pumpkins as well as a Hallowe’en feast of lollipops and red apples dressed along the tables. Visitors are invited to follow the Dark Mark trail, try their wand combat moves against Death Eaters in a live duel as they storm the Studio Tour, all before walking down a darker Platform 9 ¾ and an eerier Diagon Alley.
 

Hogwarts in the Snow

11th November 2023 – 14th January 2024
2023 will conclude with the return of the Studio Tour’s beloved Hogwarts in the Snow feature. Starting at the Great Hall, bedecked in the gold decorations from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, all the way through to Hogwarts castle model, fan-favourite sets throughout the Studio Tour will be displayed in their festive finery.  Learn the secrets behind ice that never melts and fire that doesn’t burn and see a blanket of filmmaking snow covering the Forbidden Forest, Diagon Alley and the magnificent Hogwarts castle model. 

Filed Under: Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter
Tom Felton Visits the Brand-New Greenhouse Feature at WB Studio Tour London
Posted by Megs

We posted back in April that Professor Sprout’s Greenhouse would be opening at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London this July. Today we have some photos of Tom Felton checking out the new space – and some mandrakes! Professor Sprout’s greenhouse, the courtyard fountain and the exterior of the Weasleys’ Burrow will be permanent additions to Warner Bros. Studio Tour London. The Mandrakes and Magical Creatures feature will run from 1st July 2022 through 12th September 2022.

Today Tom Felton, who played Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter film series, came face-to-face with a shrieking mandrake plant as he revealed Professor Sprout’s Greenhouse for the very first time. The new expansion opens at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter on July 1st, and is part of a brand new feature titled ‘Mandrakes and Magical Creatures’.

Brand-new for 2022, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London is opening the glass doors of Professor Sprout’s greenhouse – a fan-favourite set from the Harry Potter film series, where students were taught their Herbology lessons with Professor Pomona Sprout. Built by the original Harry Potter filmmakers, the greenhouse is home to many exotic and magical plants. Just like a Hogwarts student, visitors to the Studio Tour will be able to step into the greenhouse and stop to pull out a potted Mandrake as part of an interactive display.

Just like his on-screen character, Draco Malfoy, Tom Felton held up a mandrake plant and heard its famous shrieking. He was able to experience the iconic greenhouse setting from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets for the first time since filming over 20 years ago. Felton looked up at the Venomous Tentacula hanging from the ceiling inside the greenhouse, as well as the dragon sculptures decorating the outside.

During filming, various techniques were used to achieve the movement of the magical plants. The sinuous grasping movement of the Tentacula’s tendrils was computer-generated, however, the movement of the Mandrakes was achieved using animatronic controllers hidden beneath the table.

The humanoid-looking mandrake plants may look scary, but they had a very important purpose in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. When the Chamber of Secrets was opened for a second time, many students ended up petrified by the Basilisk, a legendary giant reptile. Professor Sprout was given the task of growing her Mandrakes to full-size, so that they could be cut up and stewed for a Mandrake Restorative Draught.

The greenhouse is a permanent addition to the Studio Tour and will open as part of a brand-new feature, Mandrakes and Magical Creatures, which will open on 1st July and run until 12th September 2022. As part of the feature, visitors will be welcomed into the Great Hall to the Frog Choir scene as seen in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, featuring the costume of conductor of the choir, Professor Flitwick, as worn by Warwick Davis.

In addition to the exciting addition of Professor Sprout’s greenhouse, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London will be expanding the exterior sets in their backlot with new additions including the fountain from the Hogwarts courtyard and a 1:3 scale-version of the Weasleys’ Burrow.

Credit: Tom Felton unveils Professor Sprout’s greenhouse, part of the new Mandrakes and Magical Creatures feature opening at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London 1st July

You can also watch Tom give a tour of the new space on the WB Studio Tour Instagram!

Filed Under: Tom Felton, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter
Harry Potter Studio Tour Announces ‘Mandrakes and Magical Creatures’ Feature
Posted by Megs

Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter has announced a brand new feature coming to the experience this Summer – Mandrakes and Magical Creatures. The herbology greenhouse is making it’s studio tour debut for fans to learn all about the magical creatures from Hogwarts Herbology classes. It will a permanent fixture for the tour beginning on July 1st.

Various magical creatures will be sprinkled throughout the tour and fans will learn how Thestrals and Mandrakes were brought to life. This Mandrakes and Magical Creatures feature will run from 1st July – 12th September 2022.

In addition to the Herbology greenhouse, the model of The Burrow will also be on display to show fans how the filmmakers did external shots of the Weasley home. Fans will also be able to enjoy the Frog Choir in the Great Hall.

The full press release with more details may be read below.

Brand-new for 2022, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London is opening the glass doors of Professor Sprout’s greenhouse for the very first time. The greenhouse is a fan-favourite set from the Harry Potter film series, where students were taught their Herbology lessons with Professor Pomona Sprout. Built by the original Harry Potter filmmakers, the greenhouse is home to many exotic and magical plants. Just like a Hogwarts student, visitors to the Studio Tour will be able to step into the greenhouse and stop to pull out a potted Mandrake as part of an interactive display.

Based on the scene in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, visitors will recognise the Venomous Tentacula hanging from the ceiling as they walk through the greenhouse. During filming, various techniques were used to achieve the movement of the magical plants. The sinuous grasping movement of the Tentacula’s tendrils was computer-generated however, the movement of the Mandrakes was achieved using animatronic controllers hidden beneath the table.

The greenhouse is a permanent addition to the Studio Tour and will open as part of a brand-new feature, Mandrakes and Magical Creatures, which will open on 1st July 2022. As part of the feature, visitors will be welcomed into the Great Hall to the Frog Choir scene as seen in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, featuring the costume of conductor of the choir, Professor Flitwick, as worn by Warwick Davis.

Keen-eyed fans should be on the lookout for their favourite magical creatures as they explore the Studio Tour, as Cornish Pixies, Dumbledore’s beloved Fawkes and the animatronic Monster Book of Monsters can be spotted during their visit. In addition, fans of filmmaking will learn how Thestrals and Mandrakes were brought to life using a mixture of scale models and CGI in the Creatures Workshop.

In addition to the exciting addition of Professor Sprout’s greenhouse, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London will be expanding the exterior sets in their backlot with new additions including the fountain from the Hogwarts courtyard and a 1:3 scale-version of the Weasleys’ Burrow.

The scale-model of The Burrow is an exciting addition to the Studio Tour’s backlot area as film-making fans will learn the camera trickery behind the external scenes of the family home, seen in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. During production, The Burrow took filmmakers 14 weeks to build but only six minutes to burn down in the iconic scene where the Death Eaters set the home ablaze.

Professor Sprout’s greenhouse, the courtyard fountain and the exterior of the Weasleys’ Burrow will be permanent additions to Warner Bros. Studio Tour London. The Mandrakes and Magical Creatures feature will run from 1st July – 12th September 2022.

Filed Under: Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter
Celebrate Valentine’s Day in the Great Hall next February
Posted by Megs

Warner Bros. Studio Tour London is bringing back their special Valentine’s Day dinner for 2022. Whisk your loved one away for a magical night to celebrate Valentine’s Day in the Hogwarts’ Great Hall set. Valentine’s Dinner in the Great Hall returns on 11th, 12th and 13th February 2022 for £495 per table of two.

Full details below:

After dinner, guests will be given exclusive after-hours access to the Studio Tour with the chance to see sets such as Dumbledore’s office, the Forbidden Forest and Platform 9 ¾ which features the original Hogwarts Express locomotive, before enjoying a Butterbeer in the backlot café.

Couples will discover the grandeur of Gringotts Wizarding Bank and wander up the wizarding shopping street of Diagon Alley before arriving at the majestic Hogwarts castle model. Guests will finish the evening by taking home a wand of their choice

Tickets go on general sale at 10am on Thursday 16th December or at 10am on Tuesday 14th December for Harry Potter Fan Club Gold subscribers here – www.wbstudiotour.co.uk/valentines. Carer tickets will be available by calling 0800 640 4550 once tickets go on sale.

The Studio Tour’s Valentine’s Dinner in the Great Hall events will take place on Friday 11th February, Saturday 12th February and Sunday 13th February from 6:45pm until 11.30pm and are open to over 18s only. Guests will be seated at individual tables of two keeping a safe social distance and tickets are priced at £495 per table for two including VAT**. 

*Vegetarian and vegan options will be available and other dietary requirements can also be catered for (guests will be asked to provide this information during the booking process).

**Tickets are only available in pairs and couples will be seated at individual tables of two.

Filed Under: Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter
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