The Studio Tour’s “Goblet of Fire” Bathroom Taps Will Work!
Starting March 30, Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter will feature behind-the-scenes exhibits from the Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire movie, including the Goblet itself and the prefects’ magical bathroom taps, which will have 53 spouts of magic multi-colored water. Now you can get a glimpse of what the running taps will look like, which were designed by Oscar and BAFTA Award-winning special effects supervisor John Richardson.
Richardson explained his original design and the lengths the team had to go to in order to get the look the director and his team wanted.
They wanted three rows of taps in three different colours, and they all had to appear to be flowing into the bath – which obviously had to have normal, clear water in it.
We had to devise a three-tank system that we could keep completely separate from the water that Daniel Radcliffe was in – because we didn’t want to dye him red, blue or green!
At the back of that set there were more pumps and hoses than you can possibly imagine. Which is pretty much what we’ve had to do here too.
In the exhibition, each tap is connected to a small, delicate tube. The taps are hooked up to a 1,000-liter tank of water that is filtered by an ultraviolet light purification system. These taps are only a millimeter thick, and Richardson said, “If someone lent over and touched it, it could be goodnight Vienna…”
Richardson’s design and its construction did have to be adapted to fit its new home in the Studio Tour.
It’s always fairly intense on a movie set, but it’s actually a lot easier than designing something for an exhibition like this. We only had to run the taps on set for about 10 minutes, but this one is going to run 24/7 for however many years. It didn’t matter on the movie if there was a leak or two either!
Richardson described the work done by all the designers of the Potter movies as “just… magic,” explaining how well constructed everything has been, which adds real authenticity to the Studio Tour experience. He sometimes pretends to be a caretaker in the Great Hall so he can see the expressions of those entering the room. The Warner Bros. Studio Tour is an incredible way to experience the world of Harry Potter and its movies, and the addition of Richardson’s working bathroom taps shows that this experience is just as magical as it should be.
The magical prefects’ taps open March 30. Will you be visiting them at the Studio Tour?