EDINBURGH.- Sam Thorne, circuit trouble The way of Harry Potterdeals with around twenty followers of the famous little wizard, on an alternative visit to Edinburgh, along the routes of the fictional character in the Scottish city.
Fans of the saga come from all corners of the planet to Scotland y al United Kingdomgenerating billions of pounds in revenue, a profit that continues to grow almost 30 years after the publication of the writer’s first volumes J.K. Rowling.
Here you will find the tomb of Voldemort”, the ‘bad guy’ of the series, continues the guide, in front of his group of tourists of all ages.
The group crosses Greyfriars Cemetery, where the graves bear names similar to those of several characters created by JK Rowling, although the author never confirmed that she was inspired by them.
Kate Merson, 43, is part of the visit, with her husband and two children. She came to Edinburgh for professional reasons, but, like many Americans, she takes the opportunity to explore her Scottish roots and satisfy the Pottermania of her nine-year-old daughter.
With a fee of 20 pounds ($25.5) per person, and several dozen participants each time, these hour-and-a-half guided tours through the Gothic streets of the Scottish capital are worth a lot of money.
“Increasingly popular”
The Potter Trail, guided by Sam Thorne, ends on the multicolored and much-photographed Victoria Street, in front of two souvenir shops.
Briya Maru, a 27-year-old Indian who lives in the Canadian city of Toronto, is queuing in the rain in front of one of them, along with fifteen other fans, willing to spend whatever it takes.
Although she admits that in Toronto she can find all kinds of derivative products, she points out that for her: “it was symbolic to buy them here, in the city of Harry Potter,” where JK Rowling wrote the saga that made her a billionaire.
In one of the shops, called Enchanted Galaxy, it costs 40 pounds (51 dollars) for a plastic magic wand and 650 pounds (831 dollars) for a limited edition sculpture of a character from the films.
“The trade is going well, Harry Potter is increasingly popular,” says the head of the trade, Mónica Alsina, who refuses to reveal the business’s turnover.
Although there have been no new Harry Potter films or books, in recent years the validity of the fictional series has been maintained with a video game, which has been a success, a play in London, and the film Fantastic animals and where to find thema story related to the saga, while waiting for a television series, which is in preparation.
“Scotland tourism engine”
“Harry Potter is a fantastic driver for tourism in Scotland,” explains Jenni Steele, from the Visit Scotland promotion agency, to AFP.
Tourism contributes £4 billion ($5.113 billion) to the Scottish economy annually.
But fans of the little wizard also flock to England, to places like York, the Cotswolds region, Oxford or London, to discover filming locations.
A Warner Studios attraction, in relation to filming, has been visited by 19 million people since its inauguration twelve years ago, which has allowed it to exceed one billion dollars in revenue.
The controversies over comments considered transphobic by JK Rowling have not influenced sales for the moment.
Sam Thorne speaks of “betrayal”, because the Harry Potter universe was seen as “welcoming to those who feel different.”
We do not agree with her but we do not see any impact on sales, says Mónica Alsina.
FUENTE: AFP
