This Harry Potter pop-up store is Hong Kong’s own Diagon Alley

Hidden away in plain view, Museum Context is Causeway Bay’s very own Diagon Alley, a place where “Potterheads” – as Harry Potter fans are known – enter J.K. Rowling’s magical universe.

Set on the first floor of a walk-up in Yun Ping Road, one of the area’s main retail thoroughfares, the pop-up “museum” is designed to look like an old curio shop.

Inside, ornate wands lie in velvet-lined boxes and old trunks burst with potion bottles, Hogwarts house scarves and badges, puzzles, chess sets and birthday candles. Customers can browse a treasure trove of magnifying glasses, wooden canes, umbrellas and artwork inspired by the books, and sit at an old writing desk that wouldn’t look out of place in Professor Flitwick’s classroom as stuffed owls and three-headed dogs look on.

The shop is the brainchild of Andrew McRae, owner of two Harry Potter-themed emporiums in Edinburgh – the Scottish city that provided inspiration for Rowling’s wizarding world. He says the old building is a perfect fit: “There’s a sense of mystery and adventure – you go up a rubbishy, old staircase, and suddenly you walk into an environment where you can immerse yourself in the houses, items and characters from the books and films.”