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

by Tom Felton

You know that person in your life who makes you feel seen? That person who is somehow a witness to all that unfolds? That person who knows—really knows—what is happening to you and what you’re going through, without anything having to be said? For me, that person is Tom Felton.

It’s one of the purest loves I can think of. We’re soulmates, and we’ve always had each other’s backs. I know we always will.

like that is one of the great gifts of my life.

I’m Robbie and I’m playing Hermione Granger. I’m Emma and I’m playing Rubeus Hagrid. I found it hilarious at the time—huge Robbie and tiny Emma swapping parts—and it was typical of Robbie Coltrane to ease any tension in the room with his brilliant sense of humour. He understood that you couldn’t have a room full of kids and try to take everything too seriously, and he had a knack of lightening the atmosphere.

An actor brings something of themselves to a part, working with elements of his or her own life and fashioning them into something different. I’m not Draco. Draco’s not me. But the dividing line is not black and white. It’s painted in shades of grey.

“I’ve always known I was a duck,” she said, “but I’ve spent my whole life being told I was a chicken. Every time I try to say ‘quack’ the world tells me that I have to say ‘cluck.’ I even started believing that I was a chicken and not a duck. Then we started hanging out and I found somebody else who quacked. And that’s when I thought: To hell with them, I really am a duck!”

Emma has taught me so many valuable lessons over the years, most importantly: don’t always follow the herd, never underestimate the power of a woman and, whatever you do, keep quacking.

Draco Malfoy was the boy who had no choice. Dominated by his overbearing father, coerced by the Death Eaters, cowed into fear of his life by Voldemort, his actions were not his own. They were the actions of a boy whose agency has been ripped from him. He could not make his own decisions, and the turn his life had taken terrified him.

that it’s our choices, not our abilities, that show us what we truly are.

That’s why I see Harry and Draco as two sides of the same coin. Harry is the product of a family who love him so much, they are prepared to die for him. Draco is the product of a family who bully and abuse him. But when they have the freedom to make their own choices, they reach a similar destination.

It was a small thing, but I’ll never forget that moment of kindness. Alan wanted a younger cast member to be treated like an equal to these leading lights. He didn’t have to do it, but the fact that he did spoke volumes about the man he was.

We grew up watching them treat everybody on set with kindness, patience and respect. Alan would routinely offer to make cups of tea for people. He would talk to us children—and more importantly to every single member of the crew, from the camera team to the catering department—no differently to how he’d talk to his contemporaries. When he did make his presence felt—like when we trod on his fucking cloak—it was always with a subtle twinkle in his eye. Sometimes it could be hard to discern, but it was always there. I wish, now that I’m older, that I could thank those actors who have passed away for everything they did for us. By their example, they kept us humble and good humoured, and I’ll always be grateful for that.

When she slipped into character there was no sudden flick of the switch as there was with Jason, and no long, dramatic silences as there was with Ralph. Her transition was barely perceptible, but when she became Narcissa there was something in the eyes that told you everything you needed to know about her character: you could see the Malfoy coldness, but you could also see a softer side to her nature. I barely had to look at her and I found myself understanding something deeper about Draco.

In the Voldemort-cuddle scene, when Draco is unsure whether to leave the Hogwarts students and join the Death Eaters, it’s the urgency of his father’s call that gets his attention. It’s the softness of his mother that makes his decision. It was Helen’s ability to render the softer side of Narcissa’s personality that gave Draco the reason to walk. In art, as in life, I found it hard to say no to my mum.

“I’m not a wealthy man,” he said quietly. “I don’t have much money. I don’t have a big house. I don’t have a fancy car. But I have my wife, and I have my children, and I have my grandchildren, and that means I am a rich man. A very rich man.”

It’s easy to bask in the sun, not so easy to enjoy the rain. But one can’t exist without the other. The weather always changes. Feelings of sadness and happiness deserve equal mental screen time.

The only true currency we have in life is the effect we have on those around us.