'Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home', they say.
However, most fans of the series have also made sure to bring something of Harry Potter’s magical wizarding universe into their muggle homes.
Special editions of the books and their various spin-offs, soft toys, keychains, illustrations, faithful reproductions of props from the movies: the choice when it comes to Harry Potter (and Wizarding World) merch is endless.
No one, however, has a collection quite like the one that belongs to Tracey Nicol-Lewis (UK).
With a whopping number of 5,284 items, in April 2021, the Potterhead from Mid Glamorgan, Wales broke the record for the largest collection of Harry Potter memorabilia.
The superfan started buying Harry Potter items in 2002, just after the birth of her son, and never stopped since!
Her favourite items are her bags.
“My collection helped me through a lot.” – Tracey Nicol-Lewis
From LEGO™ reproductions of the wizarding universe to dreamy objects like limited edition Firebolt sneakers, as well as a head-turning assembly of action figures, Tracey broke the previous record by 2,187 items.
But Tracey is not only a fan of the Harry Potter saga, and her collection doesn’t limit itself to the secrets of Hogwarts.
The Welsh collector also holds the record for largest collection of Wizarding World memorabilia, expanding the Harry Potter universe into Warner Bros' Fantastic Beasts franchise.
Her collection spans from Hogwarts to Ilvermorny, from Harry Potter to the adventures of Newt Scamander, in a magical world that kept growing with the years.
She even had a Harry Potter themed wedding!
Tracey keeps her gargantuan collection in her house, divided into three separate rooms.
After years of gathering new merch and books, according to the website Mugglenet, Tracey also had to buy a larger house to accommodate her ever-growing treasure of Hogwarts-inspired items.
The previous record title for largest collection of Wizarding World memorabilia belonged to Victoria Maclean.
The superfan, who is also from Wales like Tracey Nicol-Lewis, tucked away the staggering number of 3,686 items in 18 years.
Some pieces in Victoria's collection are particularly dear to her and truly outstanding — like a stunning, extremely rare 24-carat gold plated golden snitch puzzle from Japan.
Victoria began her collection in 2001 and it has taken her 18 years, since she was the age of 21, to build a remarkable assembly of magical items.
The franchise in itself holds a number of enchanted records, other than being one of the most defining literary and cinematic series of the century.
For example, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005, UK) is the fastest selling DVD ever, having sold more than six copies a second on the day of its release in 2006.
Among the many, many records broken by the franchise we can count:
- Highest-grossing worldwide opening for a movie, broken by another chapter of the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009, UK). It ranked in $394 million (£241 million) up to the end of its first domestic weekend in July 2009.
- Most advance orders for a work of fiction. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire received advanced orders for the staggering number of 5.3 million copies.
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011, UK), the last Harry Potter movie to date, holds the record for highest grossing literary adaptation ever.
- Highest-grossing Broadway play. The record was broken by Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, written by Jack Thorne from a story conceived by Thorne, J.K. Rowling and John Tiffany (all UK). The two-part play has sold 1,324,815 tickets across 783 performances (and 34 previews).
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