UK
Oxford tourism hopes for a boost from Alice in Wonderland
Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland film could boost Oxford tourism. Oxford's tourism authorities think that the film will encourage tourists to visit the city's locations that inspired Lewis Caroll.
The cast of the new Alice in Wonderland film includes Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter. Due for release on 5 March, Oxford is expecting that the film, directed by Tim Burton, will boost visitor numbers.
"Alice and Lewis Carroll are an absolute asset to Oxford and a key part of the Oxford brand," Colin Cook, executive member for the city centre, told The Oxford Mail. "The Alice story is intimately associated with the city and many of the things that inspired him are still around."
The city council is confident that bookings for the Alice Trail will rise. The trail guides tourists around different locations within the city connected to the stories.
"You can still see the treacle well in Binsey and the fireguards in the hall at Christ Church," Cook explained. "The Jabbewocky tree is also still in Christ Church....visiting these different locations on a themed tour are a very good way of getting closer to the story and understanding the context in which it was first told, in a punt on the River Thames."
Oxford is also home to Alice's Shop. The shop's assistant manager Maureen Lee told the paper: "There are still some people who do not realise that Alice comes from Oxford and I hope the film will address that. Customers are already very excited about the film."
Alice in Wonderland is not the only film with Oxford connections. Scenes from some of the Harry Potter films were also shot at Christ Church college. As Cook says: "Tourists will be getting off the coach and instead of asking for Harry Potter's college they will now be asking for Alice's college."
Lewis Caroll was actually Christ Church maths don Charles Dodgson. He based Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Alice through the Looking Glass on Alice Liddell, the daughter of a college dean.
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