Hermione, eat your heart out! Kate, Wills and Harry grab their wands for a wizard day out at Harry Potter film studios experience
- Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry attended inauguration of Warner Bros Studios in Hertfordshire
- Children and adults from the charities they support joined them on tour of film sets
- Duchess wore £38 spotty Topshop dress
- Trio were presented with their own Harry Potter wands and pretended to cast spells
- Prince William and Harry enjoyed sitting in the Batmobile as Duke joked 'does it come with a baby seat?'
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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry are attending the inauguration of the Warner Bros. Studios in Leavesden, Hertfordshire, where the highlights of their visit include a trip to the Great Hall, a special effects demonstration on Diagon Alley and even a wand lesson in The Gryffindor Common Room.
Kate, who is due to give birth in July, wore a short £38 spotted dress by Topshop and black suede heels with a black Ralph Lauren jacket pushed up at the sleeves.
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Wizard duel: The Duke and Duchess pretend to battle during their tour of the Harry Potter sets in Hertfordshire
Casting a spell: The trio mimic characters Harry Potter, Hermione and Ron as they lark around on the set with wands
Expelliarmus! The trio look like true students of Hogwarts as they point their wands
What every wizard needs: The royals couldn't contain their glee when they were presented with their wands
Don't turn me into a frog! The princes joke about with their wands on Diagon Alley
The Duchess and the giant: Kate views the costume for the Harry Potter character Hagrid
Ron's big brother? Prince Harry visits the set of the Weasley family home - who he would fit right in with thanks to his red hair
Muggles allowed: William, Kate and Harry enter the Harry Potter set
Inside Hogwarts: The royals explore the Great Hall where numerous dramatic scenes from Harry Potter were filmed
The trio have brought with them to the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter, 500 guests, both children and adults, associated with some of the charities they support.
The royal party were first shown props and costumes from the Batman film The Dark Knight Rises. William and Harry were clearly taken with a camouflaged Batmobile known as the Tumbler.
William turned to his brother and whispered: 'We should borrow that for the weekend.' He then climbed inside and turned on the engine, revving it to within an inch of its life.
Where's the start button? Prince William asked as he was delighted to sit on the 'Bat Bike' from the film The Dark Knight Rises
Blue steel: William looks as if he could be contemplating life as the caped crusader
Film fans: The princes marveled at Christan Bale's Bat suit from the Batman films
Can we have one? The Princes admire the 'Tumbler', a vehicle used in the Batman films
Under Batman's bonnet: The brothers are excited to see what drives the powerful Batmobile
Gotham's finest: The royal couple see the uniforms of the fictional city's police force up close
Step aside Christian Bale: Prince William joked he could take on the role if the actor, right, wants to retire as he got on board the Bat Bike
Wizard day out: The pregnant Duchess of Cambridge arrived at the Harry Potter film studios in a dress from Topshop
Optical illusion: The royal bump wasn't as evident today as it was earlier this week when the Duchess arrived in the spotty dress with her bag across her stomach...
...until she turned to the side when her six-month bump became more obvious
Peekaboo: Kate's bump is more pronounced in this front on shot as she arrives at the studios with her husband Prince William and brother-in-law Prince Harry
Keep it secret! Prince William joked that his brother Harry doesn't realise Harry Potter isn't real
Greetings: Prince William puts a protective arm on his wife's back as they meet people at the Hertfordshire studios
Summery choice: Kate teamed her High Street dress with a jacket by designer Ralph Lauren but had to hold the floaty fabric down, right, when the wind blew
Windswept: The breeze also played havoc with the Duchess' hair as she frequently had to put her locks back into place
The Duke joked, 'where's the start button?', adding 'it's awesome, absolutely incredible' while his younger brother put his fingers beside his head for Batman's ears and said 'you need the ears'.
When William finally emerged from the Batmobile after a long while he said, 'I'm a very happy man' but when he spotted his wife the royal apologised saying, 'sorry, sorry'.
Clearly a fan, the future king then couldn't resist climbing on board the Bat Bike and posing for the cameras as Harry looked on enviously. Both brothers own their own superbikes - but clearly nothing on this level.
Family day out: The parents-to-be brought children and adults associated with their charities along for the tour
Royal welcome: Lady Verulam greets the Duchess with a curtsey
Due in July: Kate holds her clutch bag below her bump as she chats to people at the studios ahead of their tour
High Street bargain: Kate's dress is £38 from Topshop and sold out later in the day
The three royals also spent time examining Batman's heavy rubber armour.
'Is this really what the actor wore, how heavy is it?' William asked. He was astonished to discover it took 25 minutes for actor Christian Bale to put on.
The royals headed over to a 'green screen' where draftsman Ed Symon was seated on another model of the Batpod motorbike sited on top of a 'six axis motion base.' It was originally built for the broomstick flying in the Potter movies.
John Richardson special effects supervisor on the movies, said: 'We've had everyone on it from Harry Potter to Voldemort'.
There, William took to the controls of the simulator making the Batpod move up and around as if it was flying. William said 'I won't throw him off.' Turning to Mr Symon he said 'how much so you trust me?'
Take one: Prince William gave a short speech to formally open the studios
On trend: Kate rests a hand on her bump during the tour, left, while JK Rowling was also sporting spots at the event
MEANWHILE... Kate's sister Pippa goes for designer style
Pippa Middleton wore a dress from Matthew Williamson's pre-fall 13 collection last night
Symon replied: 'Completely -- go for it.'
Kate looked on anxiously and said: 'You're trying to throw him off!'
Afterwards Mr Symon said: 'That was amazing -- it was great fun.'
As it moved this way and that, Kate asked one of the technicians: 'Would they be acting whilst on that?'
Across the hall the trio met Harry Potter author JK Rowling and producer of all eight movies David Heyman. He said of meeting the royals: 'They all asked about the films -- they really like the films.'
He said that Kate was enthusiastic about how the movies attract continue to attract all ages. 'She was saying how the films were very much loved by the younger generations as well.'
Kate looked on anxiously and said: 'You're trying to throw him off!'
Afterwards Mr Symon said: 'That was amazing -- it was great fun.'
As it moved this way and that, Kate asked one of the technicians: 'Would they be acting whilst on that?'
Across the hall the trio met Harry Potter author JK Rowling and producer of all eight movies David Heyman. He said of meeting the royals: 'They all asked about the films -- they really like the films.'
He said that Kate was enthusiastic about how the movies attract continue to attract all ages. 'She was saying how the films were very much loved by the younger generations as well.'
In a speech to formally open the studios William couldn't resist making a joke at his brother's expense saying: 'To be honest, I’m over the moon just to have seen the real Batmobile and Batpod – you don’t do baby seats for those cars, do you, by any chance?
'On the other hand Harry’s just excited to see a real life talking owl in the Harry Potter studios. I haven’t told him yet that Harry Potter is fictional, so please keep the secret for a little longer.'
He then held up a lifesize clapperboard and said: 'Warner Bros studios Leavesden. Act 1. Take 1.'
The visit will culminate with them hosting a most unusual meeting for their Charities Forum in the Great Hall, one of the original sets from the Harry Potter film series.
The Charities Forum is a collection of charities, of which The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry are Patrons.
Started in 2006, it provides a platform for collaborative activity between the 35 participating charities and organisations who meet twice a year to discuss ideas and ways to support each other.
During the first part of today's Studio tour, the Duke and Duchess and Prince Harry will also meet some of the creative teams from recent Warner Bros. Productions and be given an insight into the film making process as well as being shown some of the props and costumes from those films.
Warner Bros.’ £100 million facility, the first of its kind to be built in the UK in 70 years, accounts for a third of the dedicated major feature film production stage space in the UK.
It is the only film studio in the country to be owned and operated by a major Hollywood studio.
Formerly the production home of all eight Harry Potter films, Goldeneye, Star Wars Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace and Tim Burton’s Sleepy Hollow, the state-of-the-art studios now encompass nine sound stages, a 100 acre back-lot and one of the largest underwater filming tanks in Europe. It is available to all kinds of productions, not just Warner Bros., from commercials to music videos, TV shows to feature films.
The first production to shoot there since the redevelopment was All You Need Is Kill, directed by Doug Liman and starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt.
Woman behind the magic: Kate meets Harry Potter author JK Rowling
Too much time filming indoors? The royals didn't meet Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe as he was at BBC Radio Two today looking paler than usual
Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter takes guests behind the scenes of the Harry Potter films and showcases the incredible British talent, creativity and artistry that went into bringing the series to life.
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