Beyond the Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard

by Tom Felton

them close to me in their different ways. I’m acutely aware that my involvement with Potter has affected their lives irreversibly: they’ll forever, at some level, be known as Draco Malfoy’s brothers. But I’m equally aware that each of them exerted a distinct influence over the young Tom. Jink: the creativity and love of performance. Chris: a passion for the outdoors and a down-to-earth nature. Ash: a sense of humour and an early inkling that there is no light without shade. All important life lessons. And while I might well be the maggot—the runt of the pack—I wouldn’t be the person I am today without them.

Bottom line: my mum is a huge reason I am where I am, even though she never pushed me in the direction of being an actor. I could have set my eyes on being a professional violinist, or ice hockey goalkeeper, or an extreme yoyoist. It wouldn’t have mattered to her which activity I ended up pursuing, but one thing’s for certain: whatever it was, Mum would have helped me achieve it.

Rather than see therapy as the emergency consequence of excess or illness, we should start to see it for what it can be: an essential opportunity to take time out from the voices in your head, the pressures of the world and the expectations we place on ourselves.

If I’m true and if I’m honest, If I speak my heart complete, I see hope and I see promise, A new world that’s there for me. —“Loster” by Tom Felton