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Station made famous by Harry Potter gets makeover

Published: March 19, 2012 Comment on this article

LONDON (AP) — Harry Potter fans should now find it a bit easier to find platform 9 3/4.

King's Cross Station, the London train terminal made famous by J.K. Rowling's series on the boy wizard, has undergone a 550 million pound ($875 million) makeover.

photo - The new concourse is unveiled at King's Cross train station in London, Wednesday, March 14, 2012. The new King's Cross station concourse, will be a new major London landmark which is expected to serve some 45 million passengers a year, it will open for public public Monday, March 19. (AP Photo/Brynjar Gauti)

The new concourse is unveiled at King's Cross train station in London, Wednesday, March 14, 2012. The new King's Cross station concourse, will be a new major London landmark which is expected to serve some 45 million passengers a year, it will open for public public Monday, March 19. (AP Photo/Brynjar Gauti)

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The station is the setting of the fictional platform 9 3/4, where Potter and his friends went through a wall to find the train to Hogwarts, their school.

But the 45 million real-life commuters who struggle through the cluttered station every year often found the experience something short of magical.

On Monday a spectacular new glass-and-steel entrance opened to the public in a bid to cut the crowding.

As part of the station's renovation, there is now a photo-op version of platform 9 3/4 — right next to platform 9.

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Online:

King's Cross: http://www.networkrail.co.uk/aspx/867.aspx