Residents living on a street which was transformed into a set for the upcoming Harry Potter series say they fear being ‘bombarded with wizards’.
Springfield Gardens in the suburb of Upminster underwent a magical makeover in recent months to become young Harry’s childhood home of Privet Drive.
The street, which plays a pivotal role in the wizarding plot as the location where Albus Dumbledore leaves Harry with his cruel aunt and uncle, was originally filmed in Martins Heron, Bracknell, for the movie franchise starring Daniel Radcliffe.
But HBO bosses picked out this typically quiet road in east London for their revamped TV show, which is due to air in 2027, as the ideal new location for the young wizard’s formative years.
However, not all locals are pleased about it – with some even claiming that they were not properly consulted before filming commenced in June.
Katie Perry, 42, said although letters were posted to say filming would be taking place, she was ‘shocked that nobody told us’ that it was for such a ‘massive franchise’.
‘We found out on Friday [Aug 22]. My kids were jumping around going crazy. It is exciting. I just hope that it will make our house price go up. We didn’t get any compensation for it,’ Ms Perry continued.
‘We are going to get bombarded with wizards. The kids are saying that we should sell Harry Potter merchandise outside the house.’
Springfield Gardens (above) in the suburb of Upminster has undergone a magical makeover in recent months to become young Harry’s childhood home of Privet Drive
Katie Perry (pictured) said she was ‘shocked that nobody told us’ that the filming would be for such a ‘massive franchise’
The new series will feature Arabella Stanton (left) as Hermione Granger, Dominic McLaughlin (centre) as Harry, and Alastair Stout (right) as Ron Weasley
Such is the frenzy around the new show that superfans, who sniffed out the location, have been taking pictures on the street to share in social media group chats around the world.
But Ms Perry, who has lived on the street for 15 years, is concerned that her personal information such as vehicle registration plate have potentially now been seen by thousands of people.
Her husband Wayne, who works as a banker, said he only discovered that his street was being used when a colleague showed him a picture of where HBO had picked for the new-look Privet Drive.
Mr Perry said: ‘Some guys from my work were like, “Look, they’ve picked the new Harry Potter house”, and it was my home!
‘To be fair I don’t think it’s bad for the area. I think it’s nice that they chose our road but at no point did they say it was Harry Potter so it was a bit of a shock. It is quite a big thing.’
The father-of-two said people lingering on his street late at night to snap photos of his house was admittedly a cause for concern.
He added: ‘I think there is a mixed bag of opinions on the street. Some people are excited and some are concerned.
‘Since the news broke, we have already had a lot of people standing outside the house taking photos.
Privet Drive was originally filmed on a street (above) in Martins Heron, Bracknell, for the movie franchise starring Daniel Radcliffe
HBO bosses picked out this typically quiet street (above) in east London for their revamped TV show, which is due to air in 2027
‘We don’t know what it means for us in the future. The fact that we have already had people outside after dark when we have two young kids is very strange.
‘I just think that given what it is we should have been told. There was not enough information. I don’t know if we would have said yes if we knew what the project was.’
The new series will feature Arabella Stanton as the intelligent and quick-witted Hermione Granger, Dominic McLaughlin as brave protagonist Harry, and Alastair Stout as the loyal Ron Weasley.
It also features big names such as Nick Frost, who has been snapped during filming in recent months transformed into half-giant Hagrid, on Borough High Street, near London Bridge.
Sue Baldwin, 63, who has lived on Springfield Gardens for 20 years, says she is a huge fan of Harry Potter and was thrilled to find out that her street would play a part in the future series.
The superfan said: ‘They put letters through our door saying that something was being filmed here, and if we didn’t want our house in it we should let them know.
Daniel Radcliffe (left), Emma Watson (centre) and Rupert Grant (right) starred in the movie franchise based on JK Rowling’s books
‘It said they would be filming for five or six hours on Sunday. It was a very small crew with only seven or eight people there. But they had lots of cameras.
‘We were very excited because we didn’t know what they were filming for. It was only when it was in the paper that I found out what it was.
‘I am Harry Potter mad. We love to go to Disneyland to see all the Harry Potter stuff. My grandkids love the films so when I called my daughter to tell her she thought it was amazing.’
The residents’ comments come just hours after Harry Potter film director Christopher Columbus ended any hopes of a reunion with the cast – branding it ‘impossible’.
The 66-year-old, who directed the first two films in the series, admitted he could never see the cast reunite in the future due to the controversy surrounding the book’s author JK Rowling.
Asked about his plans for a film adaption of the stage show Harry Potter and The Cursed Child, he said: ‘It’s never going to happen with all that political stuff.’
Since December 2019, Scotland-based Rowling has hit the headlines for her outspoken views on transgender issues.
It comes just hours after Harry Potter film director Christopher Columbus (above, top left) ended any hopes of a reunion with the movie cast – branding it ‘impossible’ due to controversy surrounding JK Rowling
Since December 2019, Ms Rowling (above) has hit the headlines for her outspoken views on transgender issues
Speaking about Rowling, Christopher said: ‘Everyone in the cast has their own opinion, which is different from her opinion, which makes it impossible.
‘I haven’t spoken to Miss Rowling in a decade or so, so I have no idea what’s going on with her, but I keep very close contact with Daniel Radcliffe and I just spoke to him a few days ago,’ he told The Times.
‘I still have a great relationship with all the kids in the cast.’
The Daily Mail has approached HBO for comment.
