Latest news with #dragon
Times
19-05-2025
- Climate
- Times
Morris dancers bring St George's Day revelry to City of London
It took two minutes to fell the dragon on St George's Day. At 10.44am, the bagman of the Ewell St Mary's Morris Men planted a flag showing a white dragon on a red field outside the Lamb Tavern to advertise their annual dance. At 10.46 a gust shot up the wind tunnel of Leadenhall Market and toppled it. 'Too early for a pint?' one of the dancers asked. It is never too early for a morris man to start drinking, especially when it is raining even inside a covered market — the chilly April showers came in horizontally — but these were hardy souls and a crowd had started to form so they began to jump and skip, as much to get the blood flowing
The Independent
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Giant Hungarian Horntail dragon stuns onlookers at it roars through London
A giant roaring dragon, which features in one of the Harry Potter films, surprised Londoners on Monday morning as it roared its way through the capital's streets. The 25-foot animatronic dragon, which weighs 1.3 tonnes, appeared captured as it made its way past Westminster Bridge, the Houses of Parliament and King's Cross Station. The theatrical stunt was staged to mark the launch of Triwizard Tournament – Making of Champions, a new feature at Warner Bros Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter, which celebrates the 20th anniversary of the cinematic release of Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire. The Hungarian Horntail featured in the fourth Harry Potter novel and film, where Harry battles the beast in the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. The fictional dragon roared and bared its teeth past London landmarks before making its way to the tourist attraction in Leavesden, Hertfordshire. Harry Potter filmmaker and animatronic designer, Joe Scott, designed the dragon, replicating the creature in the film, complete with moving head, mouth and eyes, and sound effects. The recreation of the famous dragon was carefully crafted over 750 hours, using materials that included 25kg of fibreglass. The team first created a series of detailed sketches and CGI mock-ups, before sculptors, carpenters and scenic artists built the dragon's head, which was 3D printed using a scan of the original Hungarian Horntail from the film. A total of 119 spikes were individually applied to decorate the dragon's head and tail, which took 265 hours, whilst 38 razor-sharp teeth were 3D printed in resin to create bite in the creature's animatronic mouth. 'Revisiting the creation of the Hungarian Horntail 20 years on from Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire has been magical,' said Mr Scott. 'Creating the dragons for the Triwizard Tournament was no mean feat, with engineers, animatronics, designers and the special effects teams all working together to bring them to life. 'It's fantastic to see the craftsmanship that went into this on display at the new feature – inspiring visitors with the magic of our filmmaking secrets.' The Triwizard Tournament – Making of Champions, which will run from May 15 to September 8, at Warner Bros Studio Tour London features behind-the-scenes secrets and digital recreations from the fourth film. Further additions include Mad Eye Moody's arrival in the Great Hall and wizarding journalist Rita Skeeter, best known for her poison pen articles, will be welcomed to the Studio Tour along with her self-writing quill. Laura Sinclair-Lazell, head of show experience at Warner Bros Studio Tour London says: 'We're excited to launch our brand-new summer feature, Triwizard Tournament – Making of Champions, where visitors can learn behind-the-scenes secrets of the fourth Harry Potter film. 'To celebrate and bring the magic of Warner Bros Studio Tour London to the streets of the capital, we recreated the iconic moment of the escaped Hungarian Horntail dragon 20 years on from Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire.'
The Sun
08-05-2025
- General
- The Sun
Mystery of 1,000-year-old ‘mummified dragon' that was discovered by samurai warrior is finally solved
THE mystery of a 1,000-year-old mummified "dragon" stashed among the treasures of the Japanese royal family has finally been solved. The remains of the 'rainbow dragon' are said to have been discovered by a legendary samurai warrior in 1429. 7 7 Yoshinori Ashikaga uncovered the mystical beast during a visit to Nara's Todaiji temple. The samurai is said to have cut a piece from the Ranjatai – a rare and treasured piece of agarwood. Then he 'saw something in the shape of a small dragon' dried by the sun, a monk recalled. The dragon's remains have been stashed among the Japanese Royal family 's treasures at the Shosoin Treasure House in Nara, Japan ever since. Now, a new study has solved the mystery of the creature's true nature - using X-ray technology and radiocarbon dating. Close comparison with known species found that the 'dragon' was in fact a Japanese marten - a weasel-like mammal. The authors wrote: 'The two premolars are clearly visible, and this characteristic indicates that it is a species of the Martes genus.' The creature was likely a full-grown female marten, measuring 40cm in length. Radiocarbon testing suggests that the remains date back to the mid-11th to the mid-12th century – a time when the treasure house faced multiple repairs. It is thought that the animal may have entered the building during repairs, got trapped, and died - becoming mummified. I own an antique weapon that's been in my family for years - Pawn Stars said a secret pocket makes it worth $8k Or it may have been brought in deliberately – since the specimen is missing its forelegs and they have never been located. The "dragon" remains have been shrouded in mystery for almost 600 years. Legend has it that after the mystical creature was added to the treasure house it would rain every time it was opened. And it seems this is still the case with researchers from Tokyo having to reschedule one of their visits due to heavy rains. 7 Conservationist Mami Tsuru of the Shosoin Treasure House confirmed she believed the 'dragon' to be the same one found by Yoshinori Ashikaga. She said: 'The age determination has significantly increased the possibility that the mummy is the sun-dried dragon-looking object recorded in the document from the Muromachi Period'. She added: 'We believe this is a good example of how Shosoin has protected not only beautiful items, but also all the items inside the repository.' Other 'dragons' in the collection were also analysed and were found to be parts of a Kobe mole, crow, and pigeon. 7 7
