Harry Potter 6 Filming

I see that filming for the 6th Harry Potter film has started in Laycock. I was close by in 2006 and went to have a look. The village in Wiltshire is wonderful. Although there were a few cars parked when I went, there are no yellow lines, street lamp posts, television aerials so it has the look and feel of an olde English village - which of course it is.

At Laycock Abbey, Fox Talbot was one of the pioneers inventing photographic processes - anyone who takes photos today does it because of the work of men like him. The National Trust own the place now.

There's plenty of action in the 6th book, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, so much information came out in that book that we wonder whether the film will be about 5 hours long if it's going to have a chance of being understandable to people who haven't read the book.

But then again I thought that was one of the faults with the 5th film, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. There was so much information to get across it ended up being full of dialogue and not enough action.

A Wizard Encounter

There's a story behind this one.

This is my daughter, Gill, with actor Chris Rankin who plays Percy Weasley in the Harry Potter films. We were at a Memorabilia show at the NEC and it was 24 July 2003.

Too shy to ask him for an autograph she got me to do it. However Chris's manager phoned her up and said she had to come herself and they were holding her dad hostage until she came!

She turned up with a very red face and then, when he realised it wasn't a child they were teasing, Chris too went very red!

However the photograph made up for Gill's embarrassment!

Winchester (not the rifle)

Remember the old song "Winchester Cathedral" by the New Vaudeville Band? How could you forget?

Well here I am in Winchester - or just outside it actually as I'm staying at a Premiere Travel Inn on the M3 motorway - silly place to put it, cars have to treat it as a roundabout...

I've been in and out of London today. Caught the train from Hatfield. A very busy station with trains passing through every couple of minutes, but only stopping there every now and then! Took me through a few places I've often heard of but never actually seen. "Potters Bar" always sounds a strange place name but from the train it looked quite a nice place...

Met up with some colleagues from the JISC Regional Support Centre for the South East region. We borrowed an office from the RSC for London on Guilford Street and I met a new member of the team, Harold. Good to meet up again with Ann and Adam who I've known for a few years.

We concluded our business and had lunch together then I headed back to Kings Cross where I was amused to see half a baggage trolley sticking out from a wall labeled "Platform 9¾"! I had my camera with me but I don't have the cable to transfer photos so you'll have to wait until Friday to see the photo! Anyway, good for Kings Cross - far too many companies feel humour is somehow unprofessional or demeaning. We all spend a lot of time at work - it should be fun as much as possible!

Got back to Hatfield to pick the car up and then drove down here - unremarkable journey. An early night is called for - I'm knackered!

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