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 

#2000s #Film #Arts #UK

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The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.

Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. 

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