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ON THIS DAY
Harry Potter Goes To Hollywood

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, the first big-screen adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s best-selling book series, had its premiere in London’s Leicester Square on November 4th, 2001.

Among the glittering guest list were Sting, Cliff Richard, and the Duchess of York, but Baby Spice spoke for all of us when she told reporters “I don’t know what to expect, but I’m really excited!”

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explore why Warner Bros was so nervous about bringing Harry Potter to the big screen; look into how Steven Spielberg imagined the film when he was briefly attached to the project; and discuss how Daniel Radcliffe was given the title role ahead of 60,000 other boys who had auditioned for it…  

Further Reading:

• ‘Charmed ‘Harry Potter’ Is Poised to Set New Records’ (The New York Times, 2001): https://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/23/movies/charmed-harry-potter-is-poised-to-set-new-records.html?searchResultPosition=164 

• ‘Chris Columbus Interview: Harry Potter 20th Anniversary’ (Screen Rant, 2021): https://screenrant.com/harry-potter-20th-anniversary-chris-columbus-interview/ 

• ‘From the archives: The Chatterley trial’ (Spectator, 2010): https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/from-the-archives-the-chatterley-trial 

• ‘The Original Harry Potter ScreenTests that Started it all – Daniel Radcliffe’ (No1 Potterhead, 2000): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WqhS5o52T4 

ON THIS DAY
Harry Potter Goes To Hollywood

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, the first big-screen adaptation of J.K. Rowling’s best-selling book series, had its premiere in London’s Leicester Square on November 4th, 2001.

Among the glittering guest list were Sting, Cliff Richard, and the Duchess of York, but Baby Spice spoke for all of us when she told reporters “I don’t know what to expect, but I’m really excited!”

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explore why Warner Bros was so nervous about bringing Harry Potter to the big screen; look into how Steven Spielberg imagined the film when he was briefly attached to the project; and discuss how Daniel Radcliffe was given the title role ahead of 60,000 other boys who had auditioned for it…  

Further Reading:

• ‘Charmed ‘Harry Potter’ Is Poised to Set New Records’ (The New York Times, 2001): https://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/23/movies/charmed-harry-potter-is-poised-to-set-new-records.html?searchResultPosition=164 

• ‘Chris Columbus Interview: Harry Potter 20th Anniversary’ (Screen Rant, 2021): https://screenrant.com/harry-potter-20th-anniversary-chris-columbus-interview/ 

• ‘From the archives: The Chatterley trial’ (Spectator, 2010): https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/from-the-archives-the-chatterley-trial 

• ‘The Original Harry Potter ScreenTests that Started it all – Daniel Radcliffe’ (No1 Potterhead, 2000): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WqhS5o52T4 

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OLLY MANN

Olly Mann made his name with another trivia-wielding podcast, Answer Me This! with Helen Zaltzman – and now presents The Modern Mann, The Week Unwrapped, and Four Thought for BBC Radio Four. He also has an A-Level in History, so Dan Snow beware.

REBECCA MESSINA

Rebecca got a passion for podcasting  working at The Week magazine and a passion for trivia appearing on University Challenge in 2011, making The Retrospectors her natural home.

ARION MCNICOLL

Arion started out in satirical news in Australia, then moved to the UK to work for ostensibly serious publications including The Times, CNN, and The Week… before realising that since around 2016 the news has all been satire really.

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