Magical Facts About Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone

March 17, 2017 | Jeff Myers

Magical Facts About Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone


Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was the first novel in the beloved series that eventually made J.K. Rowling into the first author ever to become a billionaire. Naturally, they made a movie out of it and, in 2001, it was released, making instant stars out of Daniel Radcliffe, who still has a strong career both on screen and stage, Emma Watson, who became a powerful voice in feminist activism, and Rupert Grint, who once owned an ice cream truck.

Here are a few facts you may not have known about your favorite boy who lived.


Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Facts

 52. Serendipity

Chris Columbus wanted Daniel Radcliffe to play Harry Potter early on in the process , but Radcliffe had already quit acting and his overprotective parents didn’t want him to deal with the problems that come with overwhelming fame. However, one night, producer David Heyman randomly ran into Radcliffe and his father at the theatre, and he asked Radcliffe to think about auditioning, and the rest is history.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone FactsGetty Images

51. Not the Best Criterion

Casting director Janet Hirshenson said that a few other child actors were considered for the role of Harry Potter, but ultimately, they went with Radcliffe because they knew that eventually Potter would grow up and have complex adult scenes and the other kid was “not going to have the balls that Daniel has.” That’s right, they picked a child based on his balls.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone FactsGetty Images

50. Like a Horse

To be fair, Radcliffe has never been shy about showing the world his balls as he went full frontal nude for the stage play “Equus” and let his Golden Snitch hang out.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

49. Motherly Love

When J.K. Rowling saw Radcliffe’s audition tape, she said it was like “watching a son.” She made no mention of his balls.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

Advertisement

48. The Next Shia Laboeuf

Rupert Grint got the part of Ron Weasley by sending in an audition tape of himself dressed as a female drama teacher performing a short rap about how much he wanted to be in the film. Cool.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

47. Just When She Thought She Was Out…

In their search for the perfect Hermione, the casting team traveled to local British primary schools. Unlike every other girl in her school, Emma Watson had no desire to try out. She was convinced to do so by her teacher and was actually the last girl in her school to audition.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

46. She Liked Her for Her Personality

Rowling spoke to Watson on the phone and fell in love. So when she finally met Watson in person and realized that she was far more beautiful than the Hermione Granger she had imagined, she was okay with it.

“It was really lucky I spoke to Emma first on the phone before I met her. Because I fell absolutely in love with her. She said to me, ‘I've only ever acted in school drama plays and oh my God I'm so nervous I can't believe I got the part,’ and then she spoke for, like, 60 seconds at least without drawing breath and I just said, ‘Emma, you're perfect.’ And then when I met her and she was this very beautiful - which she still is, of course - beautiful girl, I just kind of had to go, ‘Oh, okay. It's film, you know, deal with it.’ I'm going to still see my gawky, geeky, ugly duckling Hermione in my mind.”

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

45. So Close, Yet So Far

Hatty Jones was the last girl cut before Watson was finally cast. Hatty Jones’ first ever film was Madeline. It was also her last ever film. On the other hand, Emma Watson is rich, famous, and has a long acting career ahead of her, which hopefully are all facts that Hatty Jones never thinks about.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsTriStar Pictures

44. He’s Got the Look

Rowling has since said that Radcliffe, Watson, and Grint were all too attractive for their parts, but that Devon Murray was just right for Seamus Finnigan.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

Factinate

Sign up to our newsletter.

History’s most fascinating stories and darkest secrets, delivered to your inbox daily. Making distraction rewarding since 2017.

Thank you!
Error, please try again.

43. Toon’d Up

At one point, there was discussion of making Harry Potter as an animated film.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsPixabay

Advertisement

42. C-C-C-Combo Breaker

At first, producers wanted to combine the first two or three books into one film, but then they realized that they could make so much more money by doing each book individually.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsFlickr Kathryn Greenhill

41. Eternal Youth

The reason the producers wanted to animate or combine films was that they were concerned that any delays in filming would result in the child actors aging too much to continue their roles and require recasting. But because Rowling nixed the idea of doing either, the producers decided to film the entire series back-to-back so that the same actors could play the roles throughout.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

40. Made in the UK

Rowling made a specific request that everyone cast in the film be British.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsPxHere

39. The Plot Thickens

Rowling cut out a line from “The Philosopher’s Stone” script because it conflicted with a plot point that hadn’t yet happened in “Order of the Phoenix.” It was never revealed what line was actually cut.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsThe Blue Diamond Gallery

38. And on the Seventh Day, She Rested…

When production designer Stuart Craig asked Rowling about the geography of Hogwarts, she drew a detailed map on a piece of A4 paper, which still remained useful eight films later. It’s like Rowling created the whole world or something.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGoodFreePhotos

37. She Knows What She Wants

Rowling insisted that Robbie Coltrane play Hagrid and said that if he hadn’t signed on it would have been a deal breaker.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

Advertisement

36. Keeper of Secrets

Alan Rickman was also handpicked by Rowling to play Snape. In fact, Rowling gave Rickman secret details about Snape’s backstory (prior to its publication) so he could play the role properly.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

35. Castle Schooled

Every child working on the film still continued with their education, receiving three to five hours of schooling every day. They didn’t receive any homework though.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsPxHere

34. Smoke If You Got ‘Em

Because of their young age and those pesky child labor laws, Radcliffe, Watson, and Grint were only allowed to work for nine hours a day. Of those nine hours, one was lunch, and they got a fifteen minute break for every hour, so they only actually filmed for four and a half hours a day.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

33. Because It’s Cold

The three main actors were forbidden from skiing for the duration of the films.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsPixabay

32. Gets Rid of Unsightly Scale

The film reveals that the twelfth use of dragon’s blood is as an oven cleaner.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsPublic Domain Pictures

31. Final Destination

The part of Dumbledore was initially offered to Patrick McGoohan, but he turned it down citing health issues.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

Advertisement

30. Mirror, Mirror

Rowling was offered the part of Lily Potter, to be seen in the Mirror of Erised, but she turned it down because she really didn’t see herself playing Lily in the mirror.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

29. I See Dead Wizards

M. Night Shyamalan was one of the directors considered for taking the helm of the movie. Luckily, the job went to Chris Columbus and the world was spared a version of the movie where Harry Potter was an invincible mermaid who was actually dead all along.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

28. He Must Have Been Peeved

Scenes with Peeves the Poltergeist were filmed with Rik Mayall playing the pesky ghost. Unfortunately, none of the scenes were used, even as deleted scenes on the DVD releases. Mayall didn’t find out that he had been cut from the film until he saw it in theaters. Ultimately, Peeves did not appear in any of the films.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts

27. Slytherin Away

When she was twelve, Emma had a crush on Tom Felton.

Tom FeltonGetty Images

26. And the cat came back…

The tabby cat used in the movie ran away during filming but came back two days later. It refused to tell anyone where it had been, but it didn’t stop smiling for days.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

25. A-Door-Able

The doors to Gringott’s are actual functioning doors.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

24. Stairway to Nowhere

Only one of the moving staircases at Hogwarts was functional. The rest of them were digitally created.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts

23. Hoot Suite

Most of the owls were also digital creations.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsMax Pixel

22. Theory of Relativity

Two versions of Hagrid’s hut were built. One was built very large with big props so that the other actors would look diminutive inside it. The other was built normal-sized to make Hagrid look massive.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsFlickr HarshLight

21. Flame On!

The Restricted Section scene was filmed in Duke Humfrey’s building at the Bodleian Library in Oxford. They have strict rules on bringing flame into the library. The makers of Harry Potter were the first to be allowed to break that rule in centuries.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

20. Crossed Up

Platform 9 ¾, the entrance to the part of King’s Cross Station where students could catch the Hogwart’s Express, was filmed on Platforms 4 and 5. Rowling admitted that she accidentally mixed up the layout of King’s Cross. She had meant for Platform 9 ¾ to be in the inter-city part of the station, but Platforms 9 and 10 are actually on the less grand suburban platforms.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

19. Tough Pillar to Swallow

King’s Cross actually installed a Platform 9 ¾ for fans of the film and for parents to convince their children to run into at full speed to teach their children that magic isn’t real.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts

18. Tough Crowd

The filmmakers originally wanted to use Canterbury Cathedral as a filming location, but the Dean refused, saying it was unfitting for a Christian church to be used to promote pagan imagery. Gloucester Cathedral agreed to take its place as their Dean was a fan of the books. Nonetheless, there was a huge media outcry and protesters wrote hundreds of angry letters to the local newspapers, complaining that it was blasphemy and threatening to block the film-crew’s access. In the end, only one protester turned up.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsFlickr Les Haines

17. Greased Lightning

In the film, the scar on Radcliffe’s forehead was slightly off center. This was done at Rowling’s request because that’s where she wanted it to be despite the artwork for the books depicting the scar in the center.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

16. High Times

The word “muggle” actually existed in the early to mid-1900s as a “jazz-word” that was used for pot smokers.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

15. Start at the End

They shot the final scene of the film on the very first day.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

14. The Eyes Have It

Radcliffe was supposed to wear green contact lenses so that his eye color would match that of the character in the book. However, he was severely allergic, so he didn’t have to wear them because producers decided Radcliffe should be allowed to keep his eyes.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts

13. The Boy Who Lived… Sorta

Radcliffe was also allergic to his glasses, which gave him whiteheads all around his eyes. Given all his allergies, if Voldemort wanted to take down Potter, he should have tried chunky peanut butter.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

12. The Buck Shtops Here

Watson was supposed to wear buck teeth to match her character, but producers decided against it because she couldn’t talk properly while wearing them.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

11. How Delightful

As a prank, Radclife and Grint stole Robbie Coltrane’s cellular phone and changed the language to Turkish. Coltrane had to call the hair designer’s Turkish father to find out how to say “change language” in Turkish.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts

10. Candid Camera

The trio was caught on camera accidentally breaking a book prop and then pretending like it didn’t happen.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

9. Maybe She’s Just a Bad Ventriloquist

True to her character, Watson over-prepared for her role memorizing not only her own lines but also everyone else’s. If one watches carefully, they can see her mouthing Grint and Radcliffe’s lines.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

8. Phoning It In

Most of the books inside Dumbledore’s office were phone books that were rebound and then covered in a layer of dust, which begs the question: Where did they find so many phone books in 2001?

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

7. Air Mail

The letters that were delivered to Potter at the beginning of the film had to be redesigned because the first batch were too heavy for the owls.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts

6. Merlin > Socrates

The name of the book was changed to “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” for American audiences because the marketing people in the US assumed that American children would find sorcerers more exciting than philosophers. Please. What nine-year old wouldn’t be enthralled by Aristotles’ “Nicomachean Ethics”?

Socrates statuePixabay

5. Double Take

As a result, they had to film every scene mentioning the Stone twice to ensure that the American version of the movie has the actors saying “Sorcerer”.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

4. Oh How Times Have Changed

Rowling regretted giving Scholastic permission to change the title of her book, but at the time, she felt she didn’t have the clout to stand up to the publishers.  Of course, now that she’s the most powerful author in the world, she could probably get away with calling the next book “Harry Potter and the Endless Diarrhea”.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone FactsGetty Images

3. Can You Smell What the Rock is Cooking?

The Philosopher’s Stone was actually the name of a real-life legend. As in the book, it was an alchemical substance that could extend one’s life and useful for achieving immortality. On top of that, it was capable of turning base metals such as mercury into gold or silver and, word has it, made a mean brunch.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

2. Jolly Old Nick

Nicholas Flamel, mentioned in both the book and the film as the creator of the Philosopher’s Stone, was a real person (maybe). He was (possibly) a real alchemist from the 14th century and has served as a plot device in novels featuring characters from Batman to Indiana Jones.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

Nearly Headless Nick isn’t the same guy, but he’s pretty cool... so we included a pic of him anyway.

1. This is Why You Don’t Negotiate with Terrorists

Richard Harris had no desire to play the role of Dumbledore, and he only agreed to take the part when his eleven-year-old granddaughter threatened to never to speak to him again.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Facts ‎Warner Bros. Pictures

For factaholics who want more Harry Potter facts, check out Harry Potter in Numbers:

Sources: 1 2


More from Factinate

Featured Article

My mom never told me how her best friend died. Years later, I was using her phone when I made an utterly chilling discovery.

Dark Family Secrets

Dark Family Secrets Exposed

Nothing stays hidden forever—and these dark family secrets are proof that when the truth comes out, it can range from devastating to utterly chilling.
April 8, 2020 Samantha Henman

Featured Article

Madame de Pompadour was the alluring chief mistress of King Louis XV, but few people know her dark history—or the chilling secret shared by her and Louis.

Madame de Pompadour Facts

Entrancing Facts About Madame de Pompadour, France's Most Powerful Mistress

Madame de Pompadour was the alluring chief mistress of King Louis XV, but few people know her dark history—or the chilling secret shared by her and Louis.
December 7, 2018 Kyle Climans

More from Factinate

Featured Article

I tried to get my ex-wife served with divorce papers. I knew that she was going to take it badly, but I had no idea about the insane lengths she would go to just to get revenge and mess with my life.

These People Got Genius Revenges

When someone really pushes our buttons, we'd like to think that we'd hold our head high and turn the other cheek, but revenge is so, so sweet.
April 22, 2020 Scott Mazza

Featured Article

Catherine of Aragon is now infamous as King Henry VIII’s rejected queen—but few people know her even darker history.

Catherine of Aragon Facts

Tragic Facts About Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII’s First Wife

Catherine of Aragon is now infamous as King Henry VIII’s rejected queen—but very few people know her even darker history.
June 7, 2018 Christine Tran



Dear reader,


Want to tell us to write facts on a topic? We’re always looking for your input! Please reach out to us to let us know what you’re interested in reading. Your suggestions can be as general or specific as you like, from “Life” to “Compact Cars and Trucks” to “A Subspecies of Capybara Called Hydrochoerus Isthmius.” We’ll get our writers on it because we want to create articles on the topics you’re interested in. Please submit feedback to contribute@factinate.com. Thanks for your time!


Do you question the accuracy of a fact you just read? At Factinate, we’re dedicated to getting things right. Our credibility is the turbo-charged engine of our success. We want our readers to trust us. Our editors are instructed to fact check thoroughly, including finding at least three references for each fact. However, despite our best efforts, we sometimes miss the mark. When we do, we depend on our loyal, helpful readers to point out how we can do better. Please let us know if a fact we’ve published is inaccurate (or even if you just suspect it’s inaccurate) by reaching out to us at contribute@factinate.com. Thanks for your help!


Warmest regards,



The Factinate team




Want to learn something new every day?

Join thousands of others and start your morning with our Fact Of The Day newsletter.

Thank you!

Error, please try again.