Harry Potter village is as busy with tourists as it is in summertime despite Covid lockdown, angry locals say
- Locals were furious as visitors flocked to village of Lacock in Wiltshire on Sunday
- Lacock Abbey was used as a set for Hogwarts scenes in two Harry Potter films
- Villagers say they saw one group who ‘openly admitted they’d come from Wales’
A village famed for its ties to Harry Potter saw a similar amount of tourists as it would on a normal summer’s day at the weekend despite lockdown rules, angry locals say.
Visitors are said to have travelled from as far as Wales to see Lacock, Wiltshire, last week.
Police were sent out to patrol the historic village, which boasts a 13th century abbey among its attractions, and said most people were following the rules.
The force warned it had seen some ‘terrible examples’ of rule-breaking.
Tourists flocked from as far as Wales to the Wiltshire village of Lacock over the weekend to see some of the sites where Harry Potter was filmed
Villager Mark Johns told the BBC last weekend was ‘as busy as a normal summer’s day’.
He added: ‘t’s been a real concern primarily because people are not from the local area and it’s quite clear that they’ve come out to the village to have a walk around.’
Wiltshire Police said it had received 357 reports of social distancing breaches in the last seven days, which helped decide where officers patrolled.
Lacock Abbey was used to film scenes at Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films. Houses in the village have also appeared in the adaptations from JK Rowling’s books
Kelly Orner said patrols helped ‘ease the mindsets of residents and tenants,’ but more tourists quickly arrived once police left the village.
Lacock Abbey was used to film scenes at Hogwarts in the Harry Potter films.
Houses in the village have also appeared in the wizarding series, including as the home of Potter’s parents in The Philosopher’s Stone and as the hideout of teacher Horace Slughorn in The Half Blood Prince.
Police set up a ‘lockdown checkpoint,’ at Lacock Abbey on Monday following complaints from locals.
Whilst the abbey grounds remain open to the public, the government says people are prohibited from travelling outside the village, town or part of the city in which they live.
Lacock maintains many of its medieval buildings, making it a prime location for the likes of Pride and Prejudice and Downton Abbey
One local resident, who didn’t wish to be named, said ‘The number of people visiting Lacock doesn’t appear to have changed. Slightly less maybe, but still lots of tourists.
‘I’m glad to see the police are getting involved and dealing with people who are coming to the village from outside it.
Period dramas such as Downton Abbey, Pride and Prejudice and Cranford have all used the village as a filming location because it maintains many of its medieval features from centuries ago.