What is the name of the London street where J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter characters enter Diagon Alley?

Harry Potter characters enter Diagon Alley through the Leaky Cauldron on Charing Cross Road.

In Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Hagrid takes Harry to the Leaky Cauldron, a wizarding pub hidden among ordinary buildings in London. The pub provides access to a concealed brick wall leading into Diagon Alley, the shopping district for Britain’s magical community.

Charing Cross Road is a real London street famous for booksellers and its location near Charing Cross station. Rowling used the real setting as a boundary between the ordinary Muggle world and the hidden wizarding world.

The name is sometimes confused with Diagon Alley itself, but the two locations are different. Diagon Alley is the magical street beyond the entrance; Charing Cross Road is the Muggle-world street where the Leaky Cauldron is found. Knockturn Alley is another nearby magical district, associated with dark magic.