Alnwick Castle is 'invaded' by hordes of Harry Potter and Downton Abbey fans

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Ralph Percy says he cannot leave Alnwick Castle without meeting crowds
Complained that wife and four children had to stay inside 150-room pile
Property starred in two Harry Potter films and Downton Christmas specials
Now the 12th Duke has moved family to the Scottish borders for summer

Published: 07:11 EST, 3 August 2016 | Updated: 16:28 EST, 3 August 2016

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It all started with residents of the 'unremarkable' village of Kidlington in Oxfordshire wondering why coachloads of Chinese tourists were poking around their gardens.

But now the blue-blooded Duke of Northumberland is getting in on the act too, and moaning that his family have been imprisoned inside their 11th-century castle by nosy Harry Potter and Downton Abbey fans.

Ralph Percy said his wife and four children are unable to enter or leave 150-room Alnwick Castle without meeting crowds of tourists, forcing them to stay inside.

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The Duke of Northumberland (pictured here with the Duchess, Jane Percy) has complained that he cannot enter or leave Alnwick Castle without going through crowds

Alnwick Castle (pictured) has 150 rooms but the Duke's family live in the keep. They have moved to another residence in the Scottish borders for the summer

Tired of being confined to the castle keep, the family have chosen another home in the Scottish borders as their summer residence.

Alnwick Castle featured as Hogwarts in the first two Harry Potter films and as Brancaster Castle in Downton Abbey's 2014 and 2015 Christmas specials.

It now attracts upwards of 250,000 visitors per year, something that it posing problems for the Eton and Oxford-educated 12th Duke.

He told the September issue of Tatler: 'It didn’t really work because we couldn’t get in or out without going through crowds.

'And because we lived in the keep, there were no private gardens, so the children just ended up staying inside the whole time.'

But the Duke, who is thought to be worth £350 million and inherited his title in 1995, can be reassured that Alnwick Castle's fame is reeling in plenty of cash.

In 2014, day-visit spends from tourists interested in its film and television history was estimated to be worth £4.3m.

Alnwick Castle featured as Hogwarts in the first two Harry Potter films, including the Philosopher's Stone (pictured)

The castle served as an impressive backdrop in Downton Abbey's 2014 and 2015 Christmas specials

And the exposure has had a dramatic effect on visitor numbers, which soared by 230 per cent from 2011 to 2013.

Visitors to the Norman pile can stand next to cardboard cut-outs of Harry Potter characters and even take part in 'broomstick training'.

Scenes the were filmed at Alnwick include the crash-landing of the flying Ford Anglia and Harry's first Quidditch lesson.

And for Downton Abbey fans looking to imagine themselves as Lord Sinderby prowling the corridors of Brancaster Castle, there is a dedicated exhibition.

The castle's first major television appearance was in Becket, screened in 1964 and starring Peter O'Toole.

It was also used in the Kevin Costner movie Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves and the first Blackadder TV series.