These last two days were partly planned because we had to buy tickets in advance.
Day Six we retraced our steps to Camden Town, this time to buy souvenirs.
Banksy featured heavily in the gift choices.
We went to Euston Station where I used to catch my train to school at the end of every holiday.
We arrived at Watford Junction and caught a double decker bus to the Warner Brother’s Studios.
We ate our packed lunch in the cafe there.
We saw The Harry Potter Exhibit, for which the advertisements did absolutely no justice at all. We were told it would take at least 3 hours to surf the sets and hubs and I looked at each other and went,
“Right!”
We’d done the vatican on our honeymoon in a couple of hours, not ones to loiter!
Starting with the Great Hall we were shown details that weren’t even caught on camera and we took photos of the teachers at the top table.
Then we were let into the exhibit to browse, watch videos of what went on behind the scenes, listen to interviews with the actors and directors and much, much more.
The sets we saw included, Dumbledore’s office, the common room, staircases, Harry’s bedroom under the stairs at the Dursleys’, the potions lab, the Weasley’s magical kitchen, Dobby,
the flying car,
the triple decker bus, Hagrid’s hut, the house at 4, Privet Drive, the house where Harry Potter’s parents were killed and he gets his distinctive mark on his forehead,
and Diagon-Alley, my favourite set.
At the end…well I won’t tell you just in case you are fortunate enough to come to England and visit the studios in person!
We were absolutely bowled over by the attention to detail in every aspect, for example, the massive telescope that was in Dumbledore’s study window but only ever seen from a distance, the filming of the underwater scenes and the mechanics of flying on broomsticks for the Quidditch match.
We especially appreciated how, despite whether there was a close up or not, the artist was able to exact his craft to the highest quality. The animals were painstakingly trained, several white owls played Hedwig, one was taught to only sit in a cage…apparently it takes a day to teach a Raven what it takes an owl 3 months to learn!
Seeing J.K. Rawlings’ thoughts and ideas gathered under one roof, deep in the heart of the English countryside, having been brought to life by hundreds of people, who had made a living from her ideas and vivid imagination for ten years, was astounding!
We went home thoroughly satisfied. There we were treated to another quick visit from my brother with both his boys this time.
On the final day, Day Seven, we went to Kelsey park to catch a glimpse of some goslings,
and a heron,
He took a panoramic of St. George’s interior and a snapshot of an individual Victorian stained glass window of the saint.
We caught the train to London and ate lunch at a Pret a Manger, commonly known as The Pret, on Oxford Street and captured some of the work going on in preparation for the 2012 Olympics,
We then went to see, The Sunshine Boys, by Paul Simon, with Danny DeVito and Richard Griffiths at The Savoy Theatre.
After the excellent play we waited outside the stage door but no luck! More bah humbug celebrities.
Then it was time to get stuck into the packing, with lots of fresh coffee to keep himself going.
We returned to The Jolly Woodman for a fond farewell and brought fish and chips home.
Not once did he have a bad dream in what the other children have referred to as The Vivid Dream Bed!
On the day of his departure we got to the airport via train and tube, to find his plane was cancelled!
After a lot of phone calls, paperwork, exchanging of money and a taxi ride between terminals, we bid a hasty farewell to our oldest son and he to us, his older parentals, and he caught a British Airways flight that had him home one hour earlier than expected!
What a trip to look back on and enjoy!
Well hello there! My name is Vivienne McNeny.
I am an empty nester exploring life as a Boomer…you could say I'm happily Boomering along!
As a homeschooling Mum I have finally quit the job of role model and mentor to my four children. I do what I want to do, eat when I feel like it, enjoy life with my blue eyed cowboy and clean my house once a month or so whether it needs it or not!
In true English form I write about the emergence of my true identity now that I can no longer hide behind my children as their Mum.
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