ALL ABOARD THE KNIGHT BUS TO THE LEAKY CAULDRON.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
On arrival at Temple Underground Station, go right cross over Victoria Embankment (the main road) via the crossing.
Veer left on its other side. As you do so look to your right and you will see a wonderful vista that includes The London Eye and Big Ben.
Keep ahead along Victoria Embankment.
LONDON TREASURE HUNT CLUE THIRTEEN.
What word is underneath this?
Fortitude
It is located on the memorial to W. T. Stead that you will pass on the wall on the right hand side.
Stead, incidentally, was an investigative journalist who went down with the Titanic.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
Continue along Victoria Embankment and pause alongside the silver dragon that you encounter by the side of the road. He marks the:-
BOUNDARY OF THE CITY OF LONDON - HERE BE DRAGONS
As you pass the silver Dragons here on Victoria Embankment you leave the City of Westminster and enter the City of London.
Greater London, under which most of London comes, covers an area of 1579 KM sq (609 square miles). It is made up of 31 boroughs plus the Cities of London and Westminster. The City of London itself is a geographically small area consisting of one square mile (2.90KM sq).
The boundaries of the City of London have remained more or less constant since the Middle Ages and those boundaries are, quite literally, guarded by dragons. Indeed dragons are to be found encircling the entire City of London.
Of course, to the Muggle mind these amazingly magical fire-breathing lizards are nothing more than creatures of mythology that don't actually exist.
This widely held Muggle belief is a testimony to the efforts of the Ministry of Magic which has worked tirelessly to foster this belief amongst Muggles the world over and to keep these huge creatures hidden from the prying Muggle eyes.
In the world of Wizards however, dragons are considered to be the most amazing magical creatures in the world and Gringotts Bank, of course, uses them to guard its high security vaults.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
Continue along Victoria Embankment, noting the arm rests of the benches as you go which are shaped as camels and other animals.
Keep walking until you arrive at an incline to the left of a ramp. Go up that incline and on arrival at Blackfriars Bridge go right and cross over the river via Blackfriars Bridge.
BLACKFRIARS BRIDGE - THE FLIGHT OF THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
Blackfriars is also one of the bridges under which Harry Potter and the members of The Order of the Phoenix fly en route to 12 Grimauld Place. In the film they are shown with the bridge behind them as they head upriver to Westminster.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
Once on the other side, pass Doggett's Coat and Badge on the right, then go left over the crossing to cross the main road towards the grey building with the trees outside it. Go right on the other side and keep ahead to the main traffic lights at which go left along Southwark Street.
Keep ahead under the blue railway bridge. Go first left along Hopton Street and cross cautiously to its right side.
When the road bears right cross over and keep ahead to pass the Falcon Piazza sign. Beyond this go through the covered passage that passes under the light brown brick building. Turn right on its other side, keep ahead, passing Starbucks on your right, then go left up the steps towards the Founders Arms Pub.
Once past it veer left and walk to the riverside rail, turning right in front of it. Follow it and when it bears left pause and look across the Thames at a magnificent view of the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral.
THE FLIGHT OF THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX.
To your left is Blackfriars Railway Bridge, under which Harry and the members of The Order of the Phoenix fly in the film of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
Keep ahead. On arrival at the Millennium Bridge veer right up the grey paved ramp and turn right to ascend the ramps onto the Millennium Bridge. Once on the bridge keep ahead and pause about half way across. Stand in the middle of the bridge and look ahead at the dome of St Paul’s Cathedral.
HOLD ON TIGHT HERE COME THE DEATH EATERS.
In the opening sequence of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince the Death Eaters continue their attack on London by coming up from behind and then round each side of the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral ahead.
They then swoop down onto the bridge causing the silver supports on either side to buckle and then snap.
Those unfortunate Muggles who are unlucky enough to be crossing the bridge at that moment are helpless as the bridge sways, lurches and then falls into the river as a twisted heap of scrap metal.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
Picture for a moment the dark shadows of the Death Eaters coming up from behind St. Paul's ahead. Imagine that they are swooping down towards the bridge. Now turn and run back the way you came as quickly as you can to see if you
On arrival on the other side of Blackfriars Bridge passing Doggett's on the right. Veer left and cross the main road via the pedestrian crossing heading towards the large grey building with the trees outside it on the opposite side.
Turn right on the other side and, when you reach the cross road by the traffic lights turn left alon would stand any chance of getting off the bridge before the Death Eaters destroyed it!
Ahead of you as you backtrack off the Bridge is Tate Modern. Having destroyed the Millennium Bridge the Death Eaters swoop up and over this structure.
Turn right off the Millennium Bridge to descend the grey stone ramp and keep ahead along the asphalt path.
When you arrive at a rail to your right keep ahead, go down the ramp and bear sharp right to pass through the barrier and pause on the left outside:-
CARDINAL CAP HOUSE - A SLICE OF HISTORY
The present building, which probably dates from the 1700's, is the sole survivor of a line of houses that once stood here. There is a plaque on the front of the house which commemorates this as the house in which Sir Christopher Wren lived during the rebuilding of St. Paul's Cathedral on the opposite bank of the river. It makes for a delightful flight of fancy to picture Wren gazing from these time-worn windows watching his masterpiece take shape across the river. But it must remain just a flight of fancy since St. Paul's was almost complete when this house was built around 1710 and anyway Wren's addresses are well known and this most certainly wasn't amongst them!
The plaque also makes the even more implausible claim that Catherine of Aragon spent a night here in 1502 on her first arrival in England.
LONDON TREASURE HUNT CLUE FOURTEEN
Who lodges beneath this?
ANSWER
The provost of Southwark Cathedral.
You will find this butterfly on the upper section, just below the roof of The Provosts Lodgings to the right of Cardinal Cap House.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
Retrace your footsteps past the barrier and keep ahead, passing on the right the entrance to Shakespeare's Globe, which if time permits is well worth a visit.
Continue ahead along Bankside and, immediately after Pizza Express, go right into Bear Gardens. Pause immediately on the left where, beneath the "Real Greek" sign is:-
THE OLD FERRYMAN'S STOOL - A RELIC OF BYGONE LONDON.
As it says on the plaque, this stool (or to be more precise granite seat built into the wall) is of uncertain age but is generally thought to be of 'ancient origin'.
In the days when just one bridge, London Bridge, spanned the River Thames, a ferryman used to sit here and wait to ferry people back over the River Thames to the City of London.
Keep ahead along Bear Gardens and go left at the top on to Park Street. Pass under the bridge and pause on the right by the plaque that marks the site of the Original Globe Theatre.
THE SITE OF SHAKESPEARE'S ORIGINAL GLOBE PLAYHOUSE
There is an interesting exhibition behind the plaque that gives a full history of Shakespeare's time in London and of the Globe Playhouse itself.
LONDON TREASURE HUNT CLUE FIFTEEN
Who is she hailing?
ANSWER
Macbeth
You'll find her on the information board behind the Globe plaque.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
Continue along Park Street, crossing over Porter Street.
LONDON TREASURE HUNT CLUE SIXTEEN.
Who is this?
ANSWER
Dr Johnson.
You'll find him on the wall to your right when you reach the other side of Porter Street.
HARRY POTTER LOCATIONS DIRECTIONS
Once over Porter Street cross to the left side of Park Street and turn left at the end to keep ahead past the Anchor Tavern on to Bankend. Go left then turn right up the red brick steps to the riverside and pause by the rail. To your left is:-
SOUTHWARK BRIDGE ANOTHER HARRY POTTER FILM ,LOCATION.
In the broomstick flight scene in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Harry and the members of the order are shown flying towards Southwark Bridge albeit the bridge is out of sequence for the direction they are flying from.
Having flown through docklands, they are shown flying towards Southwark Bridge to your left. But the next scene shows them heading away from Tower Bridge and passing HMS Belfast which are in fact located beyond London Bridge to your right. Perhaps a magic spell caused the bridge to move?
