A self-confessed Harry Potter ‘addict’ has converted her loft into an impressive Hogwarts-themed common room.
53-year-old Janice Burnett became obsessed with JK Rowling’s wizarding world 11 years ago when she watched one of the Blockbuster films with a friend.
Since then, the gran has amassed a huge collection of 4,000 items devoted to Gryffindor – the Hogwarts house that Harry, Ron and Hermione belong to – which Janice believes most closely fits her character.
The mum-of-two has now converted the entire attic of her bungalow into a shrine for her beloved items, which mirrors the Gryffindor common room.
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Janice, who helps run Harry Potter fan pages online, said she became addicted to buying Harry Potter memorabilia.
“When you’re a collector, you do get addicted to things. At the start, as soon as I saw something with Harry Potter on it, I had to buy it,” she said.
“But you have to be careful in the end because you’re overcome with a kind of rubbish collection.
“So I’ve had to cut down on all the stuff I don’t need, but I do want to collect the expensive things.”
(Image: Lee McLean/SWNS)
The gran from Warrington said she was originally drawn to Harry Potter after binge-watching the films with a friend.
“My interest started when I visited a friend. She had Harry Potter on the TV, and I thought: ‘I quite like this film,” she said.
“I then went back round and for eight weeks, each Saturday, we used to get some popcorn and we used to watch Harry Potter.
“I was just enthralled with this film, and then I just started collecting from there.”
(Image: Lee McLean/SWNS)
Janice, who is a full-time carer, began collecting her first Harry Potter-themed items back in 2011.
She said: “In the beginning when I first got into it, in 2011, you couldn’t really buy things in shops.
“Now, it’s kind of everywhere. The franchise has really expanded. It doesn’t matter which shop you go into now, you’ll find Harry Potter stuff.
“I always felt that I was Gryffindor, and then I got sorted into it on Pottermore – the Harry Potter fan club.
“I don’t have anything else to do with Slytherin, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw. It’s just Red and Gold – that’s it!”
(Image: Lee McLean/SWNS)
Janice is most proud of her miniature displays, which depict scenes from the films in detail.
She said: I’ve got the Great Hall and The Gryffindor Common Room, which has been made by a company called Valentines Miniatures.
“They are going up in value at the moment, so I’m very proud of them.”
In her attic, Janice also has a purpose-built fireplace, similar to the one found in the Gryffindor common room.
She said: “We built a fireplace in the attic. It lights, and it does actually look very cosy when you’re sat up there – it looks like a proper room.
“The little bedroom is kind of a replica of the Gryffindor boys’ dormitories.
“The furniture that I have got in there, I’m lead to believe, is a one-off piece, which was all on display in Harrods. “