Props and Costumes from A Celebration of Harry Potter 2018

A Celebration of Harry Potter is packed with all walks of life from the Potterverse. Panels and exhibitions give fans a behind-the-scenes look at the movies and celebrate the future of what's to come for the series.  From The Making of Harry Potter: Warner Bros Studios Tour to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, here are some props and costumes that were on display.

The Making of Harry Potter in London is the home of the film franchise, where costumes, props, and sets from all eight movies were preserved and fans can tour multiple sets such as The Great Hall, Privet Number Drive, and the Forbidden Forest.

Every year Warner Bros Studios Tour London brings a different theme to give fans a taste of what they can expect in London. This year, tour guides brought the magic of the practical effects that were utilized in the movies. Below is a first look at the practical candles used in the Great Hall, candles that ultimately burned the wires they hung on and were eventually replaced with CGI.

From Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, we saw a mold cast of the goblet where Hogwarts students put their names to compete in the Triwizard Tournament. The lights above the goblet changed from blue (when the students names were being shuffled) and red (to when they were called and exploded out of the goblet).

From Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, a lot of the stunt scenes that you would expect to be special effects are in fact practical. Dolores's proclamations that hang on the Hogwarts walls were rigged to fall a certain height from a rig. Her outfit too actually smoked when Fred and George Weasley attack her in The Great Hall with fireworks.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is known for one of the most popular scenes in all of film and wizarding history: the Hogwarts letters cascading into the Dursleys house from the fireplace and doors. We were shown that a special rig where the letters shoot from the mail slot all at once. After every take the letters would have to be gathered up and reset for another shot. 

The last room of the Warner Bros Studios Tour London let us walk into a recreation of the Dursley's parlor room. (The rug we walked on was actually from the original set!) On one side of the wall, fans could take their picture underneath Petuna's pudding floating in the air. And on the other side, Aunt Marge's body growing and floating up to the ceiling. 

One of the practical effects that were also on display, but unfortunately was not in use when I was there, is the couch Professor Slughorn hides in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Actor James Broadbent actually sat in the chair, which contains a secret contraption that allows the couch to come apart when he stands up.

These are some props that were on display from the films around the two different expo buildings. On the left is Sirius Black's boot and his sign from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. On the right, of course, the Golden Snitch.

A look at "baby Harry" with the letter to the Dursleys; this display included a playpen with owls dangling overhead as scene in some of the films' flashbacks.

A few props on display from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: Rita Skeeter's Journal, the 422nd Quidditch World Cup pamphlet, and Ominoculars that Ron and Harry use to watch the game.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child's exhibition included costumes from the golden trio: Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger.

Another amazing exhibit at A Celebration of Harry Potter is the artists alley, an area where characters from the movies come to life on huge platforms. Most of them are made with chalk. They're absolutely gorgeous!