BBC article about Harry Potter fans

[Hedgehogsaremything]

Harry Potter: Is Miriam Margolyes right that adult fans should 'grow up'? www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-68552815

A series of books that apparently wrote itself. #WhereIsJo

I personally find MM tiresome beyond belief .She is always out to "shock" with silly comments about her youth /boyfriends .Its not up to her whether people want to "grow up" or not! Stressful lives make it hard to relax for most of us .I still like the famous five!

Also, the genre is called "fantasy" for a reason... Fantasy creates worlds you can immerse yourself into fully and imagine yourself in that world. For those who enjoy fantasy, it's amazing escapism.

If you're sneering at people enjoying escapism, you better not enjoy holidays, baking, reading, music, going for a walk.....

Don’t have a particularly strong opinion on Margolyes (she’s a comedian, most say things to shock) and when I see HP super fans I always think it’s fun.

But this is a really horrible comment, on the Feminism board FFS.

And this is from someone who's spent their whole life dressing up and playing pretend, yes?

I don't think it's a difficult position at all. If you want to take people's money, sometimes you have to put up with some annoying people.
There are security at comic cons. And especially the bigger name actors will have their own security within arms reach. So they are not in any danger.
Having to speak to an obsessive (often neurodiverse) fan for 3 minutes (you rarely get longer at these events with the big names) for £100 is not a hardship.
There are plenty of actors who refuse to attend comic cons as they hate doing them. No problem.
But if you want to attend the "good little earner" then unfortunately that does mean you need to smile and at least pretend you want to be there while you take their money.

I suppose at least she gets paid for it!

@Esgaroth

I stand corrected if it's comment completely divorced from the books i.e. completely different stories. I agree some of the fandom is a little extreme.

I think though there is a bit of a backlash from the literary world about JKRs success and how that should relate in terms of her stature in the literary world. I loved HP but like you but I do take points in terms of pure literary profundity she may not be up there. A good comparison would be Lord of the Rings, a massive bestseller but it won't be in school curricula any time soon.

I think it will be interesting to see how long lasting HP will be as the generation that first encountered H P ages and a new generation has to take their place.

Oh Christ Lord of the Rings! That is a book that could do with a lot of ruthless editing and a whole lot less fucking elves.

I remember reading JK saying how she doesn't like reading the books as she just sees all the edits she wishes she could make. It's more that she has created a world that a lot of us just love immersing ourselves in.

The fandom used to be more fun, I remember discussing all sorts of theories. I think 20 or so years ago people were better at having differing views. The shipping wars did get a bit silly to be fair.

@Flocke I agree to an extent. However I think some fans underestimate how little the actors know or care about their beloved series. For some.they may have gone to a Comic Con seeing it as part of wider publicity duties - similar to a book signing or press junket and are not really prepared for how obsessive fans can be. Galaxy Quest is a really interesting satire on that.

I do ageee though there are some less successful actors for whom Comic Cons are a major source of income and it would seem a bit churlish of them to complain.

I would compare also to Enid Blyton (leaving aside the non-pc elements of Blyton) - books still well-loved more than 50 years after her death, but never regarded as credible in a literary sense.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_fiction_authors

JKR is massive in terms of sales and there is a good argument she is the best selling chikdens author ever as well as allowing a hugely successful film franchise.

She has a little way to go to beat Shakepeare but her has had a 400 year head start. I think the point going is that even if JKR could match Shakepeare in sales it doesn't make her Shakepeare. (She is a hel l of lot more successful tha many classic authors e.g. Austen from a commercial perspective).

I think therefore that will be some that wish to have a bit of a dig at HP and his followers as they feel there is a danger of JKR being artificially inflated in terms of literary gravitas.

JKR is also very much a femonist and took risks in advocating GC views (quite courageously). I think this makes here a mandate character in society as a whole and I think there will always be those that take a pop.

I can't stand her. If she's on a talk show, I just have to turn it off.
I don't know how someone who's whole thing is just attention seeking by swearing and telling shocking stories has the nerve to tell other people to grow up.

And she's taking money from people to do personal videos for their weddings and birthdays while looking down her nose at them.

Some actors may have gone to one comic con being a bit naive yes. But they are normally the ones that decide its not for them after the first one. Which has happened with quite a few actors. And I fully respect that. It's damn hard work (albeit well paid).
Other than San Diego comic con which I believe is in some contracts that they must attend for publicity etc no actors think they need to attend a (relatively small) UK comic con. All actors have agents who will explain to them exactly what happens at these events. Plus actors talk to each other. They can compare experiences.
I agree some fans don't understand how little the actors care about the show. But again, the majority of these fans are not neurotypical. They often wouldn't understand even if you told them. I have met and spoken to a lot of these fans in queues. They genuinely don't have the ability to understand some things.

I posted this on the Feminism board not to argue the toss about MM or HP fans... but to note the BBC's erasure of JKR when talking about her work.

A lot of the current fandom act like she's separate from her work in my experience. I don't like it but I can see why it might make sense for a news outlet to talk about the fandom as a separate entity when they conduct themselves that way.

I'm reminded of the Jonathan Creek episode where he goes to a crime convention as a speaker and is freaked out to find himself surrounded by blokes with long curly hair wearing duffle coats and living in windmills.

The discussion that's evolved is interesting, though.

I’m sure it’s been said already, but MM telling other people to grow up is a bit rich.

Absolutely. I know someone who actually describes their own character as a "Hufflepuff" eg. "I'm a Hufflepuff, so I love xxxx". Ridiculous.

For many millennials, Harry Potter is part of their identity. The books, written by JK Rowling,....

The point of the article is MM criticising or, depending on your point of view, sneering at HP fans. It mentions JKR and even if it didn't , there isn't a single person reading that who wouldn't know the books were written by JKR. JKR isn't the point here.

It currently says:

"The books, written by JK Rowling, were released between 1997 and 2007, and the eight films between 2001 and 2011."

Has it been edited then?

But she is mentioned in the article?

For many millennials, Harry Potter is part of their identity. The books, written by JK Rowling, were released between 1997 and 2007, and the eight films between 2001 and 2011.

My peak Harry Potter fandom moment was reading about a person to asking about how they were conflicted because they were a Ravenclaw but preferred to wear red.

A. you're not a Ravenclaw, you've never attended Hogwarts. You have simply done a personality quiz at best.

B. even the actual characters in the books didn't worry about what colours they wore in relation to what house they were in!

Exactly. This is about fandom - not JKR.

If the article were about LOTR fandom or Star Wars or Star Trek fandom the creators of those would only need or get a passing mention, if at all.