Jack in the office...

[DaveC]

Harris/O'Toole whatever.

[poohcarrot]

It's a height thing. Gambon is too short.

[deldaisy]

What Jan said in her first post. I grew up out west without TV so I read my first novel by age five. My Dad was a book nut so we had books everywhere. Look: It takes me about a year to learn my own babies names and though I love books I can never remember most of the authors; I just wish I could remember who JK Rowling reminds me of. I read the Harry Potter books because the then teen who put me onto Terry Pratchett was a HUGE Harry fan so I thought I should look. I feel like I have read stories VERY familiar to Harry Potter before as a kid (magic, child wizards, dragons, etc). Jan, the Harry Potter kids ARE self obsessed (they are pubescent adolescents: its all me me me me me in real life too). What really annoyed me about JK Rowling is the woman. That and the fact that the stories are fairly simple and she made a HUGE thing about taking years to develop the story lines, and even then she had to fix them and fix them. Now, if TP can do 27 books a year (ok an exageration) with tales that are better written, characters who are more developed and blah blah blah (you know what I am saying)... why was she sainted for pushing out a few books with years and years in between. Okay I'm biased. Most authors are good for ONE book if that, and if she put one kid on the road to reading then great. But I don't think SHE deserves the praise for that accomplishment; her publicists do. (though I have found myself using her "exelliatus" spells whilst spraying Preen on a stained shirt once)

[Sjoerd3000]

O'Toole's too gaunt - although Dumbles was supposed to be very tall.

Michael Gambon was better and more avuncular as Harry got closer to him. Richard Harris certainly looked the part. but sadly I think he was far too vague and slooooooow or too mawkish like his Caesar in Gladiator

Harris was playing Marcus Aurelius in Gladiator

[deldaisy]

Which is odd, since you were studying mathematics at the time!

Did mine on trains . Really makes me sound like a proper nerd.

Got a first though

Nothing wrong with trains Pip I grew up out west as a "Railway Kid" Dad was a fettler then he became a ganger you know what that means huh? YEP! HE was in charge of the trikes!!!!!! I had five older brothers so Dad would let us take out the old push/pull trike (it was the spare as they had electric trikes) and we would hook up the cart behind it. As the trains only ran twice a week, and it was near the end of the line it was pretty safe. Word would spread that Mr. R had let his sons take the trike out and kids from ALL over town would turn up begging to come for a ride He He He When we were a few miles out of town, the boys would suddenly GASP! "Oh God! I forgot! There is a special due through today! An express!" Would scare the crap outta the town kids! Then they would pull the trike up and put their ears to the lines (ala the Lone Ranger and Tonto) ... "I think I can hear the train!!!!" Some kids would be crying .. HA HA HA Never seen town kids push and pull so damn fast in your life Pip! We would come screaming into the Rail Station with sparkes flying from the wheels. Dad and the Stationmaster would blast the boys for going to fast and endangering lives, til one of the town kids would tell them about the express coming and Dad would say "Yes, well it got cancelled!", ground my brothers from the trike for a month and they would walk off shaking trying not to laugh.

[pip]

Which is odd, since you were studying mathematics at the time!

Did mine on trains . Really makes me sound like a proper nerd.

Got a first though

Nothing wrong with trains Pip I grew up out west as a "Railway Kid" Dad was a fettler then he became a ganger you know what that means huh? YEP! HE was in charge of the trikes!!!!!! I had five older brothers so Dad would let us take out the old push/pull trike (it was the spare as they had electric trikes) and we would hook up the cart behind it. As the trains only ran twice a week, and it was near the end of the line it was pretty safe. Word would spread that Mr. R had let his sons take the trike out and kids from ALL over town would turn up begging to come for a ride He He He When we were a few miles out of town, the boys would suddenly GASP! "Oh God! I forgot! There is a special due through today! An express!" Would scare the crap outta the town kids! Then they would pull the trike up and put their ears to the lines (ala the Lone Ranger and Tonto) ... "I think I can hear the train!!!!" Some kids would be crying .. HA HA HA Never seen town kids push and pull so damn fast in your life Pip! We would come screaming into the Rail Station with sparkes flying from the wheels. Dad and the Stationmaster would blast the boys for going to fast and endangering lives, til one of the town kids would tell them about the express coming and Dad would say "Yes, well it got cancelled!", ground my brothers from the trike for a month and they would walk off shaking trying not to laugh.

Ah the fun. Nothing quite so much fun for me. I recreated routes which had been ripped up in ireland to sell scrap to Nazi germany to see how useful they would be in terms of rural transport in the west of ireland now. Boring.

[pip]

Nerd outs are good for the soul Did you know I'm a bit of a fan of J.R.R. Tolkien?

Really
I never knew

[deldaisy]

Oh dear Pip... that IS boring huh?
I can see it now.....
*phone rings*
"Ya?"
"Ummmmm Herr Vonzing? Zere izt a group of zer Irish peoples riiiiipping up ze railvay tracken on zer Berliner line Sir. Vot is ve should be doing about zis?......... Nein! Zay are lookingk like friendly Irish peoples and are zinging Ist a Longen Vay Zu Tipperarien.... Ya Herr Vonzing... I did azk zem... Vy you are doingk zist und taking der railvay tracken? UND zay are tellingk me... Buggeren ze off zu German Vanker... deizen tracken ist urz und ve vant dem back!"

[pip]

Oh dear Pip... that IS boring huh?
I can see it now.....
*phone rings*
"Ya?"
"Ummmmm Herr Vonzing? Zere izt a group of zer Irish peoples riiiiipping up ze railvay tracken on zer Berliner line Sir. Vot is ve should be doing about zis?......... Nein! Zay are lookingk like friendly Irish peoples and are zinging Ist a Longen Vay Zu Tipperarien.... Ya Herr Vonzing... I did azk zem... Vy you are doingk zist und taking der railvay tracken? UND zay are tellingk me... Buggeren ze off zu German Vanker... deizen tracken ist urz und ve vant dem back!"

Wow that matches word for word one of my paragraphs . crazy

[deldaisy]

[Dotsie]

I just wish I could remember who JK Rowling reminds me of. I read the Harry Potter books because the then teen who put me onto Terry Pratchett was a HUGE Harry fan so I thought I should look. I feel like I have read stories VERY familiar to Harry Potter before as a kid (magic, child wizards, dragons, etc).

Have a look at Eva Ibbotson's The Secret of Platform 11 (it was published first). You'll have deja vu all over again

But I do like the Harry Potter books, in general. I thought they started off good, got really good, then trailed off to slightly obscure over-long tomes, that would have benefited from better editing (and JKR not being so strange about the plotlines). As for the timelines, well, it's fantasy isn't it? It could be set anywhere and anywhen. I have to say the PM didn't remind me of anyone at all.

[pip]

I just wish I could remember who JK Rowling reminds me of. I read the Harry Potter books because the then teen who put me onto Terry Pratchett was a HUGE Harry fan so I thought I should look. I feel like I have read stories VERY familiar to Harry Potter before as a kid (magic, child wizards, dragons, etc).

Have a look at Eva Ibbotson's The Secret of Platform 11 (it was published first). You'll have deja vu all over again

But I do like the Harry Potter books, in general. I thought they started off good, got really good, then trailed off to slightly obscure over-long tomes, that would have benefited from better editing (and JKR not being so strange about the plotlines). As for the timelines, well, it's fantasy isn't it? It could be set anywhere and anywhen. I have to say the PM didn't remind me of anyone at all.

The plot is formulaic and is similar in style to a few books i'm sure.
agree with the editing shortfalls and timelines are secondary in this sort of book.

Even pterrys timeline becomes a little muddled.

[deldaisy]

Muddled? Didn't you mean MUGGLED pip? Oops sorry wrong book

[pip]

Muddled? Didn't you mean MUGGLED pip? Oops sorry wrong book

oooooooh painful

[Dotsie]

Have a look at Eva Ibbotson's The Secret of Platform 11 (it was published first). You'll have deja vu all over again

The plot is formulaic and is similar in style to a few books i'm sure.

A boy is kidnapped as a baby and grows up in a regular family, who have one other son, and the whole family bullies him & makes him sleep in the basement. He has no idea that he's actually the heir to the throne of a magical kingdom, which can only be accessed though a secret entrance on platform 11 of King's Cross. He is eventually rescued by a witch and a giant (and a third one, I forget who), who have been sent by the King to fetch him.

It's a bit more than similar, but I read an interview with Eva Ibbotson where she said she didn't mind & was quite flattered. So that's alright then.