Mystery Poop Chaos at Iconic Harry Potter Site Leaves Locals Furious—What’s Behind It?

Ever wondered what happens when half a million Harry Potter fans decide your tiny Scottish village is the next best thing since butterbeer? Well, the locals near Glenfinnan Viaduct—a charming spot made famous by the Hogwarts Express itself—are about ready to toss their wands in frustration. Fourteen years after the final Harry Potter movie graced the big screen, the magic of over-tourism is very much real, and it’s turning this picturesque Highland village into a buzzing hotspot. But does endless pilgrim traffic really spell enchanting times for residents? Spoiler alert: not quite, especially when visitors start leaving more than just footprints behind. Curious how this beloved filming location turned into a nightmare for locals? LEARN MORE.

Residents of a small Scottish village have had enough of Harry Potter fans.

It’s been 14 years since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 hit cinemas but fans of the wizarding world don’t appear to be letting go of Hogwarts any time soon.

However, not everybody is happy about this.

Popular TV shows and films have long had a reputation of bringing an influx of people to picturesque filming spots, think Dubrovnik after Game of Thrones or Skellig Michael and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, often to the detriment of the local environment and people who live there.

This is also true for residents who live near Glenfinnan Viaduct in Scotland, one of the many recognisable places now internationally famous after Harry Potter.

The picturesque location draws in hundreds of thousands of tourists (Getty Stock Images)

Built between 1897 and 1901 in the Scottish Highlands, the viaduct connects the town of Fort William to the port of Mallaig. It’s also part of the picturesque route which the Jacobite steam train travels along during the summer.

However, in more recent years, the bridge has been unofficially renamed the ‘Harry Potter bridge’ due to the fact that its often used in scenes showing students travelling to Hogwarts.

Thanks to the film series, it’s now estimated at around 500,000 tourists visit the landmark each year, vastly outnumbering the local population of nearby Glenfinnan, which is home to 139 people.

Its also the focal point of over-tourism issues facing Scotland, as large influxes of people wanting to watch the steam train pass is causing tension with locals.

According to a recent report from STV, cars frequently illegally park on grass verges due to overflowing carparks.

The busy carparks aren’t the only issue either, as one resident revealed that visitors have even left behind their literal sh*t after visiting the viaduct.

The location served as a setting for students travelling to Hogwarts (Warner Bros)

“I’ve had vehicles emptying their chemical toilets in our drains there in front of the houses,” fed-up resident Robin Pettigrew, who lives in nearby village Lochcarron said. “This is human faeces being dumped in a freshwater drain.”

He continued: “There is no relation to the vehicle camping, so there needs to be a fully nuanced discussion on bringing that up to the way that tourism is developing now.”

The rising number of tourists is also having an impact on the local housing market, as more and more rentals spring up in order to deal with rising demand.

This isn’t the first time in which visitors to the viaduct has caused issues either, with visitors warned against attempting to walk along the track or trespass on the railway line, following several incidents where visitors were nearly hit by oncoming trains (via BBC).