Sure, there might not be a magic spell to make the boredom of quarantine go away, but who needs that when you can listen to the first “Harry Potter” book being read by none other than Harry Potter himself?
Daniel Radcliffe, who famously portrayed the bespectacled wizard in all eight movies, is one of several celebrities who are reading “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” to keep us entertained while staying at home due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Radcliffe, 30, kicked off “The Sorcerer’s Stone,” also known as “The Philosopher’s Stone” outside the US, by reading the first chapter titled “The Boy Who Lived.”
“Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much,” Radcliffe read from his couch in a video released Tuesday.
The remaining 16 chapters will be read by other stars from the Wizarding World, including Claudia Kim and Eddie Redmayne from “Fantastic Beasts” and Noma Dumezweni, who played Hermione Granger in the Broadway show “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.”
Stars outside the Harry Potter universe, including David Beckham and Dakota Fanning will also lend their voices. The chapters will be released weekly on the Wizarding World website and also on Spotify.
The readings are part of author J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter at Home,” a free online hub launched last month that also provides articles, puzzles and more.
“Parents, teachers and carers working to keep children amused and interested while we’re on lockdown might need a bit of magic,” Rowling said at the time of the launch.
