It may have escaped your notice that Andrew Lincoln is one of only a few British actors not to have had a role in Harry Potter, but it hasn’t escaped his.
“Frankly I was beginning to take it personally,” the Walking Dead star told Entertainment Weekly yesterday (March 19). “So when this invitation came along, I jumped at the chance.”
The invitation he’s talking about is Quidditch Through the Ages, a new audiobook from the busy pen of J.K. Rowling that charts the game’s history, from its early medieval origins on Queerditch Marsh to the modern-day sport loved by wizards and Muggles alike around the world.
Sort of.
Billed as a classic in the Hogwarts library, the book was supposedly originally written by historian and Wigtown Wanderers fan Kennilworthy Whisp. Andrew has leant his voice to the audiobook, though he’s keen to point out he’s in no way trying to replace Stephen Fry, who narrated the seven original books that launched the now sprawling Potter-verse:
“I wouldn’t dare to compare myself to the great Mr. Fry — he’s a national treasure and, in my opinion, is the voice of Harry Potter. I prefer to think of this book as it was intended, to augment the story that he so brilliantly realised.”
Andrew also sees a strong similarity between The Walking Dead and Harry Potter fans, despite the two franchises being vastly different:
“There seems to be a similar loyalty between [them], so it felt good to dip my toe into the wizarding world for a bit. Any story that is able to achieve such passion is down to a huge feat of imagination on the part of the writer and of course, in this case, the brilliant J.K. Rowling.”
Andrew certainly knows his Potter stuff, saying the books were an “essential part” of his children’s bedtime routine. In fact, in a video posted by Pottermore, Andrew admits reading the Harry Potter books to his kids involved some of his “finest work” as an actor:
Andrew certainly seems devoted to the Potter-verse, telling EW how he’s got big ideas for his favorite character Professor Albus Dumbledore.
“In between recording sessions, I was pitching in my head an origin series for Albus’s early years… from his late-30s to mid-90s. Think Indiana Jones with spells set in Dickens’ time… You know it makes sense.”
Hmm. Who’s going to break it to him that Jude Law kind of has that covered in Fantastic Beasts? Never mind. Welcome onboard, Andrew!
Do you think a wand would work on Negan?