Aunt Marge looms large over London for new Warner Bros. Studio Tour Return to Azkaban feature

Recreating the famous scene from “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” when the young wizard magically inflates his irritating aunt, the 20+-foot-high Aunt Marge balloon floated past the iconic Tower Bridge in honor of the new feature which celebrates the film’s 20th anniversary.

Bringing Aunt Marge to Life Off-Screen

According to Warner Bros. Studio Tour – The Making of Harry Potter, creating the “magic” of Aunt Marge floating away from Privet Drive required two bodysuits pumped by air tubes (each weighing 50 pounds) and inflatable gloves and legs. To create the floating effect, Ferris and her body double were fitted with a flying harness suspended on two wire rigs that could lift, flip, and raise her, with a separate rig to spin her around.

In addition, the costume department created 38 different tweed suits of varying sizes and shapes, and as Aunt Marge got bigger, there were four make-up stages. Ferris spent over five hours in the make-up chair to prepare for that one scene.

“We’re so excited to be recreating the moment of inflating Aunt Marge from ‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,’to celebrate the launch of our brand-new feature, Return to Azkaban,” said Laura Sinclair-Lazell, Head of Show Experience at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London. “Many fans are surprised to learn this popular scene wasn’t created using CGI in the films but in fact was created by our incredibly skilled filmmakers. We’re thrilled that visitors can now come to the Studio Tour and learn more of the behind-the-scenes magic from the third film in the Harry Potter series.”

Similarly, the recreation of the famous scene in London took a team of 16 people over 264 hours to create, including creating detailed sketches and CGI mock-ups (using film stills as inspiration), molding and painting her head and hair, and creating bespoke fabric patterns and materials to match her onscreen outfit.

Return to Azkaban

The Return to Azkaban feature includes a brand new Divination classroom set, a new section of the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, and more. All new additions are included in the ticket price.

A new section of the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom set (which changed with each teacher who occupied it) can now be seen as it appeared in “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” when Professor Lupin (David Thewlis) was the instructor. This includes the handcrafted, Art-Nouveau-inspired Boggart wardrobe centerpiece students used to learn the Riddikulus spell.

For the first time ever, the Divination classroom set draped in red fabric and decorated with jewel-toned velvet poufs, patterned rugs, and Arabian-style lanterns – as seen when Harry, Ron, and Hermione attend their first lesson with Professor Trelawney – is now on display at the Studio Tour.

Guests can also see The Monster Book of Monsters rampage in Harry’s bedroom at the Leaky Cauldron (including the original Tudor bed seen onscreen). Brand new for the Return to Azkaban feature is a full cross-section of the Knight Bus transport for stranded witches and wizards—complete with sliding beds and a swinging chandelier.

Warner Bros. Studio Tour London—The Making of Harry Potter celebrated its 12th anniversary this year, allowing visitors to learn about the movie magic behind the Harry Potter film series. During their visit, Harry Potter fans can explore the original Great Hall, step into the Forbidden Forest, and discover Gringotts Wizarding Bank. The limited-time Return to Azkaban feature runs May 1 through Sept. 4, 2024.

Click here for more information and to purchase tickets.

More Harry Potter Magic

Can’t make the trip to London this summer? You can also experience wizarding world magic at Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood and the flagship Harry Potter New York store.