The phrase “RIP James and Lily Potter” has been trending on Twitter over Monday and Tuesday as Harry Potter geeks realised that in JK Rowling’s series of novels, the pair are mentioned as having died on 31 October 1981. (In case you inexplicably require this information: Harry Potter’s parents were also wizards, who went into exile during Voldemort’s reign and then gave their lives while fighting him. Yes, there are obvious Struggle parallels). Tweets devoted to mourning the pair – who do not actually feature in the books, which are set well after their death – seemed a curious mixture of sincere and ironic. “In a way I’m glad you died, how boring would the books be if you hadn’t?”, @ImaPotterNerd tweeted – addressing the dead, fictional couple, if that wasn’t clear. “Thirty years ago Lily and James Potter gave their lives so their son could live on,” another tweeted. “They were true Gryffindors!” (Gryffindor is the school house in which – oh, never mind.)

Harry Potter has been in the news for another reason this week. It has been reported that author JK Rowling seriously considered killing off popular character Ron Weasley (the ginger one) “out of spite” halfway through the series, because she was sick of it all and not in “a very happy place”. Rowling made this groundbreaking confession during the taping of a special feature for the DVD of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, which is to be released later this year. Weasley made it, even though Harry’s parents didn’t. DM

Read more:

• JK Rowling reveals she nearly killed off Ron Weasley, in the Guardian

Photo: Reuters.