The Trout Inn, Wolvercote: this real pub is where Malcolm lives with his parents, the landlords, in La Belle Sauvage.It is also where the main character lives in La Belle Sauvage and where some of the action takes place. Jericho: where Gyptians board boats in Northern Lights.

Godstow Abbey: an abbey where the nuns look after the baby Lyra in La Belle Sauvage (You can read an extract from La Belle Sauvage on the Guardian website here).Botanic Gardens: In The Amber Spyglass, Lyra and Will promise to sit on the bench at the back of the Botanic Gardens for an hour at noon on Midsummer’s Day every year so that they may feel each other’s presence next to one another in their own worlds.If you’d like to extend the experience, other places which can be visited after your tour could include: Lyra’s stomping ground, and that of new character Malcolm, reaches beyond central Oxford. She climbs out of an attic window there in Northern Lights. An Oxford College similar to Jordan College: where Lyra grows up.The Covered Market: the market is a favourite haunt for Lyra and friends in Northern Lights.Bodley’s Library: Bodley’s Library features prominently in His Dark Materials and also features in the new book La Belle Sauvage.

It will provide a fascinating insight into the stories and places that inspired the world-renowned book.įurther details on the key locations visited on Philip Pullman’s Oxford Tour: This tour visits key locations from Lyra’s Oxford and La Belle Sauvage, including the Bodley’s Library, The Covered Market, Jordan College and the Pitt Rivers Museum. Travelling to Oxford and around Oxfordshire.

I visited two years ago and combined it with Alice’s Day which was pretty much the best day ever for a children’s literature fan. Here’s a video tour of the gardens as well which is useful to watch if you’re tight for time and want to go straight to the bench. If you’re concerned, make sure that you have a word with the guides who will happily point you in the right direction. The bench features in the final moments of The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman and the instructions there are so precise that you can find the right bench. “On Midsummer’s Day,” she said, “At midday. And on Midsummer’s Day, my heart is always with Lyra’s Bench at the Oxford Botanic Gardens. It blew my mind to discover that there were points in my town where I could have one foot in the real world, and another in a saga about vampires. She’s not wrong the connection between space and place and literature has fascinated me ever since I discovered a book called Room 13 by Robert Swindells which was set where I grew up. As this Rioter reflects there’s something about existing in a space and then reading it through the eyes of another.

Lyra's oxford