Harry Potter and the Ongoing Spat

[JsmeLegie]

I see she is now claiming that she was never actually friends with Fry.

Link here: https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/jk-rowling-stephen-fry-friends-b1234360.html

In support of Fry, barrister Jo Maugham stated “Really creditable this, from Stephen Fry. I've spoken to so many of JKR's once friends who now despair at her privately but won't do so publicly, which is very much the British way and why nothing ever changes for the better. So well done Stephen.”

Now Casey Bloys, CEO of the network working on a new HP series, has felt the need to clarify on a podcast that the forthcoming series won't be infused with her controversial views, insisting that her views are entirely separate to the show they're making.

And, as one of the latest celebrities to decide to speak out, Boy George weighed in at the beginning of the month with a few observations of his own (see attached image).

So the question here, really, is just how long are certain people going to blindly insist that JKR is an infallible saint when the (increasing) evidence from multiple sources is to the contrary?

Yes, she has funded a lot of good and charitable works for women, that is not in question, but at what point do we as a society finally agree that a human being is not absolved of horrendous behaviour in one part of their life simply because they compensate for it by doing a few good works in another?

Or perhaps you disagree entirely with all her detractors and feel she is unfairly treated / misunderstood / misquoted?
I'd like to hear your views. They are guaranteed to create an interesting dialogue.

Do you reckon Mr Fry wanted to be Dumbledore in the new series and is miffed it's gone to someone else. Rather than being quietly racked with misery until he could stand it no longer and had to speak up.

We REALLY need the crying with laughter emoji back.

Waiting with bated breath for Harvey Weinstein, Gary Glitter and Prince Andrew to slag JKR off.

🤣🤣🤣

Could be, I'm sure he'd think he would be perfect for the role. But obviously no-one sensible involved in HP would want to direct young fans towards Fry's smutty novels.

As far as I can work out, JK Rowling must be held to a higher standard than the huge majority of people. From previous threads she has to just absorb abuse because any even mildly negative comment is to be perceived as an attack. And any attention to abusive male people is simply not acceptable.

It is remarkable when you read enough to understand where it is coming from.

I'm guessing there were a lot of pompous luvvies desperately disappointed not to get this lucrative gig.

Fry would have made an atrocious Dumbledore.

Viviennemary · Yesterday 23:16
I know nearly everyone on MN thinks JK Rowling is wonderful but I don't like her much. Nobody who has worked with her seems to like her either. . Stars of the Harry Potter films, She is always mouthing off her opinions as if hers matter more because she is rich. I disapprove of that attitude.

Where do you get that from? All the child HP stars waxed lyrical about how wonderful she is, until they feared getting cancelled if they didn't agree with the trans lobby. Most of the adults who have worked with her/met her, continue to say what a wonderful human she is.

You're saying you don't like her much, and that she's always mouthing off her opinions - do you know her, or are you just taking the word of the trans activists who lie and abuse and threaten JKR?

When you say 'mouthing off' do you actually mean 'stating'? Is anyone allowed to express their views in public or is it just JKR you have an issue with? What is your opinion of all the vile abuse that TRAs have directed at JKR over social media - death and rapes threats etc - does any of that meet with your disapproval?

This.

She is famous for not shutting up about her political opinions even when she knows before she nails her colours to the mast that she'll piss a lot of people off.

She publicly opposed Scottish independence knowing that she would incur the wrath of Scottish nationalists.

She publicly opposed Brexit knowing that she would incur the wrath of leave voters.

And now she publicly opposes gender extremism knowing that she will incur the wrath of trans activists.

She's no stranger to controversy.

But I get the impression that when she first dipped her toe into the mucky waters of trans issues and got a much more violent backlash than she had ever had from Scottish nationalists and Brexiters, instead of being intimidated, she thought, "Oh, now that is interesting. It seems nothing gets an angrier reaction than saying no to men. I guess that means I should say it more loudly."

Because you can put the reactions from Scottish nationalists and Brexiters down to heated political disagreement. People have the right to feel passionately about their political causes, even if we disagree with them. But the vitriol from trans activists was something else entirely, which was probably a big red flag to her that the whole movement is grounded in misogyny.

Spot on!👏

Another OP still hiding behind the sofa at all the embarrassing facts his ill judged post has generated? 😂😂

So, let me get this right: a man who handcuffed a male escort to a radiator, beat him with a chain and got 15 months for it; a convicted fraudster with a penchant for patronising condescension; and a grifter who was once under investigation by the RSPCA for beating a fox to death with a baseball bat have expressed an opinion on JKR, and she's the bad one?

Gosh I bet she's weeping into her hands this afternoon and wondering where she went wrong with her life

The sad thing is, I suspect SF is actually terribly insecure. He is clever but he doesn't wear it lightly, gets very snobby (I was really annoyed to listen to his Fry's English Delight R4 program where he sneered at those who are discerningpedantic about language, when it's HIM that's so often sneering at other's 'incorrect' language usage) and generally just comes across as wanting to be adored. Hence the pandering to the TRA mob - if they turned on him I imagine he'd absolutely disintegrate.

No answering of questions put to @JsmeLegie , no engagement on the thread they started for 'dicussion' I note.

Tedious, pathetic but entirely unsurprising.

I suspect OP is fishing for quotes for some article or another.

Agreed! As I've said on this or another thread about Fry, can't keep up with them all, he was by far the weakest actor in Gosford Park - badly miscast. I thought both Richard Harris and Michael Gambon did a good job in the HP films of getting across the warmth, strength, humour and occasional flaws of Albus Dumbledore. I really don't think Fry's acting skills are up to that.

Not at all. He's got decent comic timing and might perhaps be fine in one of the myriad of smaller roles if for whatever reason they wanted his name attached, but not Dumbledore. Very serious acting chops needed for that one.

With the child actors inevitably being a risk, they really can't take any chances with the main adult leads.

See, Gosford Park is my favourite film and I actually think Fry was good as the Inspector. He (the character) was so desperate to toady to the "Upstairs" (who thought he was quite beyond the pale, being middle class) and completely dismissive of the "Downstairs" who were the ones who saw and knew everything.

He was also dismissive of his underling who was lower-middle to his upper-middle and far more switched on than he was (e.g. not moving evidence). The Inspector thought he could waft in, solve the murder (because he was convinced by his own brilliance) and rub shoulders with the nobility, not to mention using it as a way to "prove" that he was actually practically one of them anyway, with all that wiffling on about how his wife put her milk in the teacup first but of course he would never commit such a social faux pas... All to the backdrop of Lady Sylvia's expression showing how terribly vulgar she thinks he is

Gosford Park is such a brilliant depiction of the inter-war class structure, how they fitted together, the tensions between them and how it eventually collapsed. Love it!

💯 and had it gone the way the OP was hoping for expecting then you can see the headline writing itself, "angry MNs revolt on JKR" type thing.

😂😂😂😂

Where is the laugh emoji when you need it?

I just find him so unsubtle. It's a performance ramped up to 11 and it spoils it for me.
"Difficult colour, green" is one of the best put downs ever.

Ah, but I think the character was ramping the "suck up to the aristocrats" up to 11. This was his big chance to get in with them. That's how I see it, anyway :)

I've always thought he was one of those actors who's good in certain roles, who can do what he does. But you need more than that for Dumbledore.

I don't think Fry is clever. I think he has a retentive memory, takes direction, and within a quite narrow type-range can deliver what is wanted on stage or screen. The public persona is as much an act as what we see in roles.

If he was clever he'd be keeping his head down, not sticking his neck out.

Personally i think posters who do this should be shown the door…fucking goady bollocks

Oh well on the bright side we got to shine the light on Steven Fry

I really liked him as Jeeves, but I'd say viewed in isolation he wasn't quite right for the part. Jeeves is supposed to be older than Bertie, more mature, he's a WWI veteran who's been around the block a bit. You get some of this in the old radio dramas with Michael Hordern as Jeeves and Richard Briers as Bertie.

What makes it work is his amazing chemistry with Hugh Laurie, who really was the perfect Bertie.

He's good at what he does, but I think he developed his shtick quite young and he's never expanded his range very much.