Harry Potter studio to build real school for cast

The studio where the new Harry Potter television reboot is being filmed has been granted permission to build a temporary school for the child actors to study in for real.

On Friday, Warner Bros Studios Leavesden, near Watford, was told by Three Rivers District Council it could use a series of portacabin structures as a school facility for the next decade.

The classrooms were designed to be used by up to 600 pupils during peak periods, when large crowd scenes are shot, but will typically serve about 150 students.

It will operate on weekdays between 05:30 and 20:30 so young actors can fit in their actual studies between night shoots, reshoots and location filming at the fictional Hogwarts School.

The application is partly retrospective, suggesting some aspects of the plans had already begun.

The school planning documents do not specifically mention Harry Potter but instead a "significant new TV series which will base itself at the studio for the next 8–10 years."

In the proposals, it was specified that the school infrastructure will be in place for a maximum period of 10 years.

It was announced on Monday that filming on the new series had begun in Leavesden.

According to HBO, 32,000 children auditioned for the lead roles following an open casting call in September.

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