Summer Holiday in England

We just finished the first week of our summer holiday here in England and, boy, did we have fun!  Come along and see what we did...

1) Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio Tour

It was absolutely fantastic to see the place where all 8 HP movies (that's the official lingo) were made.  It's about 45 mins from our house in the outskirts of London.  You drive up to basically a huge warehouse that's been converted into Harry Potterville ~ sets, costumes, props, cinematography, audio production, architecture/engineering offices, and more.  As they said in the tour, it became the home away from home for all of the cast members for 10 years.  They celebrated birthdays together, bonded with the cast and crew members, and even attended school there.  

We all know Harry Potter is huge.  But it really becomes evident when you go on the tour and see how it all came together.  It's a combination of an incredibly talented author (who was very much involved in the selection of the cast - English actors only), and the vision and know-how (not to mention money) of Warner Brothers, and hundreds of really talented people to pull it all together.  Plus, technology and the internet ~ because you know the magic didn't happen on its own!

Check out the pictures ~ you'll be sure to spot many famous things!

Inside the studio

The Great Hall 

Luna Lovegood's and Professor Lockheart's costumes

Mirror of Erised

Hogwarts Clock Tower

Gryffindor Common Room

Dumbledore's Office

Can you guess who's sword this is?
 

Staircase (perfectly suspended)

The Weasley Home

London underground

Makeup, camera, action!

Diagon Alley

Architects office (one of many)!

Model of Hogwarts (used to film the overhead shots)

A named wand for every cast member (in all 8 HP movies)

Sorting Hat (in the gift shop)

2) The smashing new musical hit on the West End, Matilda

Wow, what a fabulous musical!  I can honestly say it is perhaps one of the best shows I have ever seen.  It's Roald Dahl's interpretation of his book and it is taking London by storm.  Its dark and delightful, and tells the story of a smart young girl who uses books and her imagination to escape her horrid life ~ scandalous parents, an evil school, and the fate of her existence.  She wins over the hearts of the town librarian and her school teacher; the only do-gooders in the whole play.  The dialogue is fantastic, the children (who comprise over half the cast) are phenomenal and the choreography is over the top, not to mention the special effects.  Mac says its the new Annie (but much better) and the London Times is comparing it to Billy Elliot which continues to dominate the West End.  It won a record breaking seven Olivers (equivalent to our Tonys) and it's still going strong.  The lead character, Matilda, is shared between four girls. We saw Eleanor Worthington-Cox who was the original Matilda.  She was amazing, and did I tell you she is 11 years old?  Unbelievable.  It's a wonderful play, and it's coming to New York in 2013.  Go see it!