Three Rivers

The boys have been involved with the planning of this trip. It's encouraged them to research our destinations and help come up with plans and itineraries. One activity that we wanted to keep a secret however, was the Warner Bros. Harry Potter Studio Tour in London. It was Gabba's contribution to our trip, and the boys had no idea....

The tour wasn't until the afternoon, so we spent the morning strolling around town. We walked up to Hyde Park. Tom found some more squirrels, but was less impressed with the grey variety. We made our way to Marble Arch and then up towards Baker St. A cursory walk by 221B had us deducing that it was Sherlock Holmes' residence. Elementary.

After a quick bite it was on the train to Watford Junction. As we stepped out of the station and waited for the shuttle bus emblazoned with Harry Potter signage, the penny finally dropped for the boys about where we were heading.

The tour is pretty impressive. The majority of the films were produced in these studios and the sets have all been recreated using the original set pieces. We made our way into the Grand Dining Hall and watched the lights and smoke show, similar to the pizazz that would have been used when filming the scene when the Weasley's flew their brooms through the Hall. The next room showcased a number of sets, as well as hundreds of genuine props and costumes. The detail in set design was amazing. In the halls of Hogwarts, the oil paintings that adorned the walls were all hand painted and were generally paintings of film crew and their families. Some of the moving pictures on the walls were film crew as well, but to think they had dozens and dozens of these pictures, all requiring their own set, and they may end up on camera for a second. It's pretty impressive.

The boys enjoyed finding the snitches that were hidden throughout the tour, Sarah found the elusive snitch in the Gringott's Bank. We stopped halfway for a Butter Beer and then continued through the Dursley's house, into the forest, on the Hogwarts Express, up Diagon Alley and finally to the 1:20 scale model of Hogwarts Castle. This model is uber-impressive, the detail is unbelievable. It was used for fly-by scenes and you can almost see miniature Harry, Hermione and Ron walking through the corridors.

We tiredly got back on the bus and train, back into Euston Station. We were tired but hungry, and it was decided that a good curry would hit the spot. It was too much for poor Fred, who fell asleep at the curry house, however the rest of us managed to eat his share. A tired journey across town eventually had us back in our beds dreaming of witchcraft and wizardry.Read more