Harry Potter Filming Location In London

It is no surprise that there is an abundant number of filming locations in London. While some of the sites you may not immediately recognize, others are fairly obvious to any Potter fan.

I do recommend having an Oyster Card or London Pass while as some locations are quite far apart. Below is the list of several sites in London you can visit. I did not get to visit them all, but there is always next time!

Westminster Tube Station – Heading to the Ministry

Tube Stop: Westminster Tube

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry has to report to the Ministry of Magic for using magic outside of school. Mr. Weasley thinks it is best to get to the ministry without magic, so he decides to use the underground. Unfortunately, he has a bit of difficulty operating the barriers and it was at this tube stop. While I did go in and out of this tube station several times, I did not stop for a picture inside as it was rather busy most of the time! I did take a photo of the outside which you can see below.

Scotland Place (Old Scotland Yard) – Ministry of Magic Visitor Entrance

Tube Stop: Charing Cross or Westminster

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Mr. Weasley takes Harry through the visitor entrance of the Ministry of Magic. In the book, they enter through a red telephone booth by dialing “62442”. While the red telephone booth was added only for the movie, you can still recognize the exterior of the building. There was a truck blocking part of the building while I was there, so my photo only shows part of the building. I also suggest walking around this area as there are some quite impressive buildings nearby!

Cecil Court – Inspiration

Tube Stop: Leicester Square

Not a filming Location – believed to be part of the inspiration for Diagon Alley

Cecil Court is an alleyway off of Charing Cross Road. Many suspect this was used as inspiration for Diagon Alley. Regardless of if this is true or not, it is still a magical place to visit! The street is filled with various Victorian-style storefronts and could easily make someone think this was inspiration. I looked into several stores and I could feel the allure and draw. I went early Sunday so most of the shops were not open yet. There were ancient maps, magic shops, multiple bookstores where some were even selling signed Harry Potter books. Either way, it is worth a stop just to window shop, especially if you are a book lover like myself!

Piccadilly Circus – Leaving the Wedding

Tube Stop: Piccadilly Circus

In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, this is where Harry, Ron, and Hermione apparate when they “escape” from Bill and Fleur wedding. In the book, they apparate onto Tottenham Court Road where they go into a nearby coffee shop, only to have the death eaters find them because of the taboo name. In the movie, they apparate into the road where they are almost run over by a bus. If you head up Shaftesbury Avenue, you may be able to recognize the tops of the buildings that are shown in the background.

Millennium Bridge – Death Eater Battle

Tube Stop: Blackfriars – River Thames  

In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, this bridge was attacked by Death Eaters. The bridge was destroyed and collapsed in the river, taking the lives of muggles. In reality, the suspension bridge still stands and is the perfect spot to walk across the River Thames. It is also just a few minutes walk to or from St. Paul’s Cathedral. While I was there, the bridge was under construction and I am not sure for how long it will be.

Lambeth Bridge – Knight Bus Ride

Tube Stop: Lambeth Bridge

In Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry takes the Knight Bus to the Leaky Cauldron. Part of the scene you see the knight bus coming up to two double deckers, where it then compresses itself to squeeze between them. This all occurs on the Lambeth Bridge.

Borough Market  – Leaky Cauldron Entrance

Tube Stop: London Bridge

In Harry Potter and the Prisoner and Azkaban, Harry takes the knight bus to the Leaky Cauldron to escape his Aunts and Uncles place after he blows up his aunt. The bus slams to a stop and drops him off to the entrance of Diagon Alley. Only the exterior of this was used for filming in this scene. It is also a different entrance than what was used originally in the first movie for the Leaky Cauldron (mentioned below). This is one of the harder locations to recognize but it worth a visit for the shops alone.

Leadenhall Market/ 42 Bull’s Head Passage – Leaky Cauldron Entrance

Tube Stop: Bank

This is one of the more iconic sets that most people will recognize! In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Hagrid takes Harry to Diagon Alley for the first. As Harry is reading his list, he asked, “Can you find all this London” in which Hagrid replies, “If you know where to go.” During this, they are actually walking through Leadenhall Market (see photo below). The market has been around since the 14th Century, however, part of it was burned down during the Great Fire so now you see what has been built since.

An even better spot in Leadenhall Market is the entrance to Bulls Head Passage. One of the storefronts here served as the original Entrance to the Leaky Cauldron. It is actually an Optician and the door is painted blue, while it was black in the movie.

Australia House – Gringotts Wizard Bank

Tube Stop: Temple or Holborn

This is actually one of the few places that were shot using the interior of a building., which served as Gringotts. In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry first enters Gringotts where he gets a glimpse of Goblins and the fortune his parents left him. You can not actually enter the part of the building it was filmed in, so it is up to you if you want to visit.

Claremont Square – No. 12 Grimmauld Place

Tube Stop: Angel

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry first encounters No.12 Grimmauld Place after Tonks, Mad Eye Moody, and several others (the advanced guard) comes to escort him from Privet Drive. This house is under a Fidelius Charm, along with other enchantments, so no one but those told by the secret keeper can enter the house. Muggles who lived often laughed at the house numbers as it goes from 11 to 13. I did not have time to go to this location, but I did post a google image of the location!

Kings Cross and St. Pancras – Platform 9 ¾

Tube Stop: Kings Cross

This could be argued as one of the most iconic sites, well for me at least! I always dreamed about walking through Platform 9 ¾  and getting onto the Hogwarts Express. Since the movie, this has become one of the most famous train stations in the world. While there is not actually a platform 9 or 10, most believe that the filming was done on platform 4 and 5. You can see they they made the barrier thicker as well!

The train station has even added its own Platform 9 ¾ photo op spot. Be aware the lines are long but it is completely worth it to take a photo with the trolley and your house scarf! There is also a gift shop where you can buy things such as tickets for the Hogwarts Express (my favourite), scarves, hats, chocolate frogs, notebooks, pens, anything the heart desires. I did not visit here this time but as you see below, I have been twice before.

I am Slytherin even through I took my first photo with a Gryffindor scarf. I was young and I lied to myself even through I knew I was truly a Slytherin! Funny how Ive always worn a different house color

St. Pancras

In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secret, Harry and Rob can’t get through the barriers at platform 9 ¾. They decide to first wait by Rons dad car and then they decide to take the flying Ford Anglia to Hogwarts instead. You can see them take off in front of St. Pancras Station before they hit the invisibility switch!

London Zoo

Tube Stop: Camden Town

In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry is lucky for once and is able to join his cousin Dudley at the zoo. Dudley pushes Harry out to the way to look at the snake and Harry gets angry and makes the enclosure glass disappear. He sets the python loose and traps Dudley in the enclosure, which sounds harsher than it was! This is our first glimpse that Harry speaks parseltongue and also that he is a wizard.

While this isn’t the zoo they go to in the books, they did film the scene in the London Zoo Reptile House. This zoo is quite a ways away and does charge an entrance fee (I believe it is free for those who have the London pass), so it is up to you if you want to make the journey. For those who want the experience, there is a small plaque that shows marks the spot it was filmed at in the reptile house.

Harry Potter Studio Tour London

While this is not technically in London, this is a MUST SEE attraction for any Harry Potter fan or really any person. I have gone twice and would certainly go again! Be warned that tickets sell out months in advance so you want to make sure you book early. There is an option to book with a tour company if it is sold out, but it will cost more. You can also book a bus that will pick you up and drop you off in London. It is with golden tours and it even plays the Sorcerer’s Stone while you are on it! I choose that option both time but you can get there by train as well but it is a bit more of a hassle in my opinion. 

The studio tour has the original sets, props, costumes, and so much more. There is a replica of Hogwarts and that alone is worth going. You can see Privet Drive, the Knight Bus, part of a carriage from the Hogwarts Express, and again so much more. I will have another post on this because there is just so much to see. They also have an incredible shop where you can buy any magical product you could think of! Just note that most tickets last for about three hours, plus travel time to and from so make sure you have at least half day dedicated to this. If you could only do one thing in London, do this!

These are some of the major filming locations around London you can visit and see where the magic happened! While you can book an official HP sightseeing tour which may have some more in-depth information, it is also completely possible to do yourself! Hopefully you liked this post and are inspired to see some of these sites!

Please note that some images were taken from google!