​James HowardPhoto Credit: Manuel Harlan It's just the most magical story to tell on stage.

 ​James HowardPhoto Credit: Manuel Harlan It's just the most magical story to tell on stage. 

And of course, here in London, we tell the story over two parts, so it's a full day of theatre. As an actor, there aren't many shows that give you that opportunity, to do a whole story over the course of two shows, over the course of a day. And there's just something so exciting about that. Most actors, if you do eight shows a week, you do matinees and the evening shows and you're repeating that same story twice a day. Whereas we tell the whole story over those two days, and that doesn't get old. There's something brilliant about taking an

 audience on that journey from two o'clock in the afternoon through ‘till the end of the evening. And knowing that they've got a dinner break in between where they can go away and talk about what they've just seen and think about what's coming next. The reactions from the audience have never changed. There's always been shock, joy, awe, disbelief, and generally huge acclaim; those reactions are quite rare to get as an actor. So it's an adrenaline rush every single night. What was it like learning the magic for the show? It was a lot of fun! I've never done magic before, and it is obviously a real skill. The top magicians in the world are highly, highly skilled. And I remember, in the very first day of rehearsals back in 2016, the head of the illusions taught us this simple trick, making a coin disappear and reappear. Really simple stuff. I just couldn't get it right! I kept on

 mucking it up, and I thought, “I hope this isn't a final audition,” because I failed! But actually, it was a really lovely introduction to it. It's a very technical show, but a lot of it is also about confidence and deep breaths - Going with whatever the magic is and allowing it to happen. Because if it's well supported, then the simple things are actually the most effective. And the reactions that we get from the audience to the really simple bits of magic are the most satisfying. I still get people asking me about a certain bit of magic. It's quite satisfying knowing that people are still trying to guess how these things are done. What’s it like interacting with fans at stage door? The Harry Potter universe is full of the most amazing people, and they love the stories, they love the characters, and they have a huge love for everything that's been created in this world,