The blue door at 280 Westbourne Park Road is not the original, but nobody who photographs it cares. The original door from the film Notting Hill was sold at auction for nearly six thousand pounds in 1999, and the current door is a replacement painted the exact same shade of blue. The tourists queue to stand in front of it, grinning for photographs, recreating a moment from a film that came out over two decades ago. London has been a film set for more than a century, and these five locations are worth the pilgrimage.
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Leadenhall Market: The Entrance to the Leaky Cauldron
The covered Victorian market in the City of London was used as the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. The optician’s shop at 42 Bull’s Head Passage, with its blue door, was the specific entrance used in the film. The market was built in 1881, the wrought iron and glass roof a masterpiece of Victorian engineering that creates a cathedral like atmosphere. The Lamb Tavern in the market serves a proper Sunday roast. The market is open to the public and free to enter. Go early in the morning to avoid the crowds of Harry Potter fans who pile in from midday onward. The surrounding streets of the City of London are quiet on weekends and offer a glimpse of London’s financial district at rest.
The Bench in St James’s Park: Bond Meets M
The bench where James Bond meets M in Skyfall is at the northeast corner of St James’s Park, looking toward Horse Guards Parade. The bench is unmarked, which only adds to the pleasure of finding it. The view from the bench takes in St James’s Park Lake, the pelicans that have lived there since the seventeenth century, and Buckingham Palace in the distance. The park is free and open from five in the morning until midnight. The best time to visit is at sunset, when the light turns the lake gold and the city beyond softens into silhouette. The walk from the bench to Buckingham Palace takes about ten minutes and passes through some of the most beautiful parkland in London.
The British Museum Great Court: Black Panther’s Heist
The Great Court of the British Museum, the largest covered public square in Europe with its stunning glass roof designed by Norman Foster, was the setting for the museum heist in Black Panther. The film crew shot for three nights in the museum, using the dramatic architecture as a backdrop for one of the film’s most memorable sequences. The museum is free. The Great Court cafe serves coffee and cake under the glass roof. The court itself is worth visiting even if you do not have time for the museum’s permanent collection. The light that filters through the glass roof changes throughout the day, creating different atmospheres in the morning, afternoon, and evening.
Greenwich Naval College: The Sistine Chapel of the UK
The Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich has been called the Sistine Chapel of the United Kingdom. The baroque ceiling by James Thornhill is a masterpiece of illusionistic painting, and it has appeared in films including Les Miserables, where it served as the setting for Marius’s wedding, and Thor: The Dark World, where it stood in for Asgard. The college is a UNESCO World heritage site. The Painted Hall costs thirteen pounds fifty to enter. The grounds are free and offer stunning views across the Thames to Canary Wharf. Combine your visit with a walk through Greenwich Park and a stop at the Royal Observatory.
The Notting Hill Blue Door
The blue door from the film Notting Hill at 280 Westbourne Park Road has become one of the most photographed doors in the world. The original door was sold at auction. The current door is a replacement, but the blue is the same. The travel bookshop that Hugh Grant’s character owned was a real shop at 142 Portobello Road. It is now a gift shop, but the facade remains recognisable. The street has changed since the film was made. Property prices have soared and the bohemian character that the film captured has been commercialised. But the film itself has not changed, and standing in front of that blue door still feels like stepping into a piece of cinema history.
What is your favourite film location in London. The one where you stood on the spot and felt the movie come alive around you?
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