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I love watching television (or Netflix more often than not!) and getting really into the fictional characters lives and what they are about. Whether that is a film or a popular soap, we often become really familiar with the streets that these characters live or grew up on – but which ones are the most famous of them all in the UK?
Privet Drive first became known from J.K. Rowling’s very first Harry Potter book; Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, which was first published in 1997. This street in Surrey was home to the Dursley family, which included Vernon, Petunia, and their son Dudley, who all lived at number four.
In 1981, this perfectly normal street became much more interesting as Vernon and Petunia’s nephew, Harry James Potter, was left on their doorstep by one of the greatest wizards of all time, Albus Dumbledore, after his parents were tragically murdered by the Dark Lord himself, Lord Voldemort.
The suburban street consists of ‘boxy’ houses with gardens at the front and back – each almost identical in design. The name of the street apparently came from a privet bush, which is a hedge that isolates houses as Rowling herself thought this linked quite well as the Dursley’s had a desire to segregate themselves from the Wizarding World, despite their own strong family ties.
Today, you can visit the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London to see the film set in real life. Sometimes it is possible to see the interior of the house too, so it’s worth checking before you go, although you’ll probably be just as happy to pose next to the vintage street sign. The actual home that was used in the first film recently made headlines after being put on the market for almost £500,000!
Coronation Street made its way into the hearts of British viewers after it appeared on screens in 1960 on ITV. The street was created by Tony Warren, and is based in the fictional town of Weatherfield in Salford. The street is thought to have been built in 1902 and comprised of a row of seven terraced houses with the iconic Rovers Return Inn at one end and the corner shop at the other.
The show itself has been home to many dramas and is the longest-running soap opera in the world. Because of its popularity, writers had to introduce new characters and locations over the years to create a more representative environment for viewers at home to relate with. Today, you’ll still find the iconic Rovers Return Inn and D&S Alahan’s corner shop, but also be introduced to The Kabin newsagents, Roy’s Rolls café, and lingerie-making business Underworld as well as other communal areas.
There are quite a few storylines you’ll remember from this show, from the ‘Free the Weatherfield One’ campaign where Deirdre Rachid was given an 18-month sentence for a crime she didn’t commit to Hayley Cropper née Harold Patterson becoming the first transgender character on the show. There’re a lot of storylines that made a significant impact on the British public that still live on almost 60 years later.
You can walk down the famous cobbles yourself with an outdoor street tour, that take place on the weekends. Located at MediaCityUK in Manchester, the 80-minute tour also includes the set of Rosamund Street and the never-before-seen Victoria Street.
Cherry Tree Lane will most likely be familiar to you, especially if you have recently visited the cinema to see Disney’s Mary Poppins Returns. We were first introduced to the fiction street in 1934 when author P.L. Travers released the first book of her Mary Poppins series. The street is most notably home to the Banks family, who lived at number 17 and has been passed down to each generation.
There have been a number of remarkable and magical events that have occurred on this street, and of course Mary Poppins first landing is one of them. What else makes this location supercalifragilisticexpialidocious is that it’s also home to Admiral Boom and Mr Binnacle, who were once members of England’s navy and keep their house in ‘shipshape’ – with an actual ship on the roof which fires a cannon twice a day! As well as this, there are countless chimney sweepers and path illustrators too.
Although there isn’t a specific location for where Cherry Tree Lane could be based, it is thought that Travers based her vision off townhouses in Kensington or her own home on Smith Street in Chelsea – which now has an English Heritage plaque outside.
Home to everyone’s favourite detective, 221b Baker Street is where Sherlock Holmes both lived and worked. Although you may need to wear your deerstalker cap to find it, as the building is strangely located between 237 and 241. Written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock has become one of the most influential literary characters associated with British culture.
Today, the address functions as a museum, which is open every day from 9:30 am to 18:00 pm and costs £15 for adults, and £10 for children under 16. You can explore the home Sherlock shared with his main companion, Dr Watson – including the sitting room, laboratory, the iconic study and more.
You may be surprised to read that when the stories were first published – though the street itself wasn’t fictional – the address ‘221b Baker Street’ certainly was as the addresses in Baker Street did not go as high as 221 – but this was soon extended. The Abbey National Building Society occupied the addresses 219-229 from 1931 and had to employ a full-time secretary to answer mail addressed to Sherlock Holmes! There was a 15-year dispute on who should receive the letters though, the building society or the museum.
There are so many popular fictional streets here in the UK. Which one is your favourite?
This is a collaborative post.
Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
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