Welcome to a new blog with yours truly! This series will introduce some of the filming locations used to create the Harry Potter films, exploring how the team behind the films made these locations into something truly magical! The next stop on our wizarding tour is Gloucester Cathedral!
Gloucester Cathedral was consecrated in 1100 and was originally an abbey dedicated to St Peter. After the dissolution of the monastries under King Henry VIII in 1536, it was reformed as a cathedral, and in 2015 it became the dioscese of the first female bishop in the Church of England, with Bishop Rachel Treweek. If you visit, you can go up the tower (all 269 steps!) or visit the crypts!
The cathedral was used as a backdrop for a number of spots in the films, like the corridor that leads to the Gryffindor Common Room, as well as a few key spots in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, like the north walk wall where 'The Chamber of Secrets has been opened' was painted, and where Moaning Myrtle flooded the bathrooms.
- During Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, you can see Gloucester Cathedral's cloisters when the troll trapped Hermione in the bathroom!
- The spot where Harry overheard Snape making the Unbreakable Vow to Narcissa Malfoy in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was also part of the cathedral!
- The cathedral offers 4 different guided tours, and if you go on their 'Highlights' tour, they'll show you all of the Harry Potter filming locations - and much more!
That's all for this week - stay tuned for the next edition to explore more filming locations and learn more about how the Harry Potter films were created! Have you ever visited Gloucester Cathedral? Can you spot the places filming took place? Let us know in the comments!
