Hogwarts Express Transports Muggles

The Hogwarts Express steam engine was called into service for Muggle transportation yesterday in Scotland. The train took over the summer steam service between Fort William and Mallaig because the regular engine for that route had broken down. The locomotive will also be used today as part of a nine-day “Pottermania” tour, chartered by an American tour company. The tour group, which consists of 190 fans from the U.S., Canada, Brazil and Chile, has already toured Glencoe, the setting for many of the scenes from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. After today’s ride on the Hogwarts Express, the group is set to visit Alnwick Castle (Hogwarts) in Northumberland tomorrow, where they will play Quidditch — without brooms.