Victoria Street

Look at the shape of the street: it traces a gentle double curve, designed so that carts could climb it without tumbling down. Before it was built, this was the West Bow, a narrow zigzag slope linking the Grassmarket with the castle and the main way into town from the west.

1An engineer's street

In 1827 an Improvement Act made it possible to reorganise the Old Town. The architect Thomas Hamilton laid out this street between 1829 and 1834 to link the Grassmarket with the new George IV Bridge. It was originally to be called Bow Street; in the end it took the name of the young Victoria, who came to the throne in 1837. Hamilton designed it on two levels: shops below and, above them, the pedestrian walkway of Victoria Terrace.

2Diagon Alley?

Today it's one of the most photographed streets in Scotland, and not just for its colours. Many visitors call it 'the real Diagon Alley' from Harry Potter, and several themed shops have moved in.

J. K. Rowling lived and wrote in Edinburgh, but she has never confirmed that Victoria Street inspired Diagon Alley. The link is one made by readers.

3What to look out for

• The coloured shopfronts on the south side, with their timber windows.
• Victoria Terrace, the raised walkway above the shops.
• The spire of The Hub, the former Tolbooth Kirk, one of the tallest spires in the city at around 72 metres.