Christ Church, Oxford

Summary

An Oxford University college and cathedral, used extensively in the Harry Potter film series — the Great Dining Hall inspired Hogwarts’ Great Hall — and in The Golden Compass (2007).

About this location

Christ Church is a college of the University of Oxford and simultaneously the cathedral of the Diocese of Oxford, a unique dual status. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII on the site of Cardinal Wolsey’s Cardinal College, it occupies a substantial set of buildings on St Aldate’s. Key spaces include Tom Quad, the largest quadrangle in Oxford; Tom Tower, the gate-tower designed by Christopher Wren; the Great Dining Hall, a 16th-century hammer-beam hall where Charles I held his Parliament during the Civil War; and Christ Church Cathedral, which serves as both the college chapel and a working cathedral. The Picture Gallery holds some 300 paintings and 2,000 drawings including works by Leonardo, Raphael, and Michelangelo.

The college attracts nearly half a million tourists annually, largely on the strength of its association with the Harry Potter films. The Great Dining Hall’s design inspired the Hogwarts Great Hall in all eight films; filming was not carried out in the actual hall but the staircase leading up to it featured in the early films. The Bodleian Library’s Divinity School and Duke Humfrey’s Library handled more of the interior shoots, though the college’s exterior and quad have appeared in promotional material and establishing shots. The college also appeared in The Golden Compass (2007), the film adaptation of Philip Pullman’s Northern Lights, and in Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited in literary if not screen form. The college manages filming permissions through the Dean’s office; requests are handled on a case-by-case basis given the active academic and religious function of the buildings.