Alan Rickman was a beloved actor known for many films such as Die Hard, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and Galaxy Quest. Of course, Rickman was ultimately known best for playing Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films. Sadly, Rickman passed away in 2016 at the age of 69. Earlier this week, it was revealed that the actor’s personal journals are being turned into a book called Madly, Deeply: The Diaries of Alan Rickman. Excerpts from the book have already revealed how Rickman felt about the Harry Potter films, but the journal’s connection to the beloved franchise won’t stop there. It was also revealed this week by Rolling Stone that some Harry Potter alums will help narrate the audiobook of Rickman’s diaries.
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Alfred Enoch (Dean Thomas) and Bonnie Wright (Ginny Weasley) will be working on the audiobook alongside Rickman’s wife, Rima Horton, as well as his close friend, Steven Crossley. It was also announced that the foreword will be read by Emma Thompson, who played Sybill Trelawney in the Harry Potter films as well as Elinor Dashwood alongside Rickman’s Colonel Brandon in Sense and Sensibility and Rickman’s scorned wife in Love, Actually. The book is expected to include writings about Rickman’s life and career between 1993 and 2016. You can read a description of the book below:
“From inside his home to the sets of films and plays including Sense and Sensibility, Die Hard, the Harry Potter franchise to Noël Coward’s Private Lives and the final film he directed, A Little Chaos, Rickman’s diaries offer insight into both his private and public life.” The description adds that the book is “like listening to Rickman chatting to a close companion.” Henry Holt and Co. writes, “Meet Rickman the consummate professional actor, but also the friend, the traveler, the fan, the director, the enthusiast; in short, the man beyond the icon.”
One already-released entry from 2007 explained how Rickman knew before the book reveal that Snape was in love with Harry Potter’s mother, Lily.
“Finally, yes to HP 5,” Rickman wrote before production began on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. “The sensation is neither up nor down. The argument that wins is the one that says: ‘See it through. It’s your story.’”
“I have finished reading the last ‘Harry Potter’ book,” Rickman wrote in that same year. “Snape dies heroically, Potter describes him to his children as one of the bravest men he ever knew and calls his son Albus Severus. This was a genuine rite of passage. One small piece of information from Jo Rowling seven years ago – Snape loved Lily – gave me a cliff edge to hang on to.”
Madly, Deeply: The Diaries of Alan Rickman is set to be released on October 8th.
