STUDIO TOUR
Tom Felton, who played Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter film franchise, faced a shrieking Mandrake plant as he unveiled Professor Sprout’s Greenhouse, a fan-favorite set from the films, where students were taught their Herbology lessons with Professor Pomona Sprout. Built by the original Harry Potter filmmakers, the greenhouse is home to many exotic and magical plants. The new expansion opens at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter on July 1, and is part of a new feature titled “Mandrakes and Magical Creatures,” which will run through Sept. 12. Visitors to the Studio Tour will be able to step into the greenhouse and stop to pull out a potted Mandrake as part of an interactive display.
The greenhouse is a permanent addition to the Studio Tour. In addition, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London will be expanding the exterior sets in their backlot with the fountain from the Hogwarts courtyard and a 1:3 scale-version of the Weasleys’ Burrow.
FESTIVAL
The world premiere of “The Other Fellow,” a British documentary by Australian director Matthew Bauer, which explores the challenge of living with the name James Bond, will open the 17th annual Doc Edge Festival – Life Unscripted on June 22. In 1952, when author Ian Fleming needed a name for his suave, sophisticated secret agent, he borrowed one from an ornithologist and created a pop-culture phenomenon. In 2022, the year of 007’s 60th anniversary onscreen, Bauer uncovers the tales of a diverse band of men from around the world who happen to be called James Bond, chronicling their shared experience of life in the shadow of the 007 phenomenon. They include a Swedish 007 super-fan with a WWII past, a gay New York theater director, an African American Bond accused of murder, and two resilient women caught up in it all. “The Other Fellow” is co-written by Bauer and Rene van Pannevis (“Jacked”). The producer is Michelle Brøndum (“Requiem”) for The Other Fellow Ltd.