Harry Potter book with Daniel Radcliffe’s FIRST autograph sold
We'd all have absolutely lost the run of ourselves if Daniel Radcliffe had signed our Harry Potter books when we were kids (we'd still die if it happened today, to be honest).
A book believed to contain the actor's first ever autograph on a Harry Potter book has just been sold for €2,900, and one lucky person now has a slice of cultural history.
Radcliffe was just 11-years-old when he allegedly signed the hardback during filming of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in North Yorkshire in 2000.
The book's owner was an extra in the film, and was the first person to request his signature. Emma Watson and Rupert Grint also signed the book, which was auctioned by Teesside-based Vectis.
Vectis claim the book's owner asked the actor to sign the now-iconic novel as he sat in a marquee on set at Goathland on the first day of filming. The North Yorkshire village appears in the film as Hogsmeade.
He wrote on Verity Collins' novel: "To Verity, best wishes Daniel Radcliffe."
The actor who portrayed Hagrid in the franchise, Robbie Coltrane, also wrote his autograph on the novel while the film's director, Chris Columbus, wrote "Believe in magic".
The novel's owner, Verity Collins, was having chemotherapy to treat leukaemia. Collins' mother, Valerie Rudd, is selling the book on her behalf.
Rudd, who is selling the book on Verity's behalf, said: "She loved her time there. We would have even paid for her to be an extra. She was a big fan of the books.
“When Verity was 13 she was spending lots of time in the hospital and she’d read the books while she was there. I started reading the first one in the hospital with her."
Her mother continued explaining the story of Verity's part in the movie;
"So when we found out they were advertising for extras for the film we applied straight away, and even though she was having her treatment she was allowed to do it.
“She was about 15 at the time and he would have been about 11. She was with a group of extras, saw Daniel Radcliffe sitting by himself and felt sorry for him so she went and talked to him," Rudd continued.
The book, which has 13 signatures, was the first item Radcliffe had ever been asked to sign; "He said it was the first time anyone had asked him for an autograph."
Verity also received a special invitation from director Chris Columbus to visit the Warner Bros Studio, before it was open to public.
Her mum said: “She had the most marvellous time.
“Although she was going through her treatment, it was just such a wonderful time for her to be an extra in her favourite book and then to be invited down to see the studio."
33-year-old Verity now lives in Somerset, and was given the all-clear from the illness. She opened her own homemade jewellery business and is hoping the book's sale will allow her to move South.
Kathy Taylor, a representative from Vectis, said the book had smashed its "conservative" €500 estimate; "It's such a lovely story. It's always difficult to gauge the price when something is unique."
"The seller, who now lives in the south, has great memories of her time on the film and the way the cast treated her during a difficult time while she was ill but her mum said recently it had been sitting in a drawer," she added.
"It became apparent when we promoted the sale on social media it was likely to have been signed on the first day of filming on what was the first Harry Potter film, with actor Chris Rankin, who played Percy Weasley, confirming he had signed the book as well."
Photos of Verity wearing a Hogwarts uniform, cast documents and her invitation to Warner Bros Studios to tour the sets from the film were also sold.
The buyer will also pay a 25 percent commission on the €2,900, meaning the total earned from the sale is €3,628. Not bad, not bad at all.
We probably would have kept all of these incredible memorabilia, but each to their own.
Feature image: usanetwork.com
