The Boy Who Lived

The inspiring and extraordinary true story of Daniel Radcliffe's stunt double David Holmes, the real-life 'boy who lived' - with plenty of behind-the-scenes Potter anecdotes along the way. 'An extraordinary story from an extraordinary young man. Brutally honest, utterly engaging, deeply sad yet incredibly uplifting. A must read.' - READER REVIEW ----- 'A million stars for this incredible book.' - READER REVIEW ----- 'A beautifully authentic story and I'm a better person for having read it.' - READER REVIEW ----- As stunt double to Daniel Radcliffe in the Harry Potter film franchise, stuntman David Holmes helped to move J.K. Rowling's era-defining story from the page to the big screen. His work as a real-life Fall Guy enabled him to create some of the most memorable action sequences in the Wizarding World, as he became the first person ever to play Quidditch. In living his own hero's journey, David was also one of only a handful of people to have worn the iconic wizard's cape, glasses and scar in front of the cameras. That is, until an accident changed his life forever. During the making of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, David broke his neck in a stunt rehearsal and was instantly paralysed. From talented junior gymnast and stunt prodigy to fully qualified Hollywood stuntman, his story is a brutally honest portrait of a man who lost everything but found different ways to reimagine new possibilities with love, friendship and optimism - and he later co-created a BAFTA-nominated documentary about his life. David's behind-the-scenes look at one of the biggest film series of all time is both jaw-dropping and hilarious. Powerful and emotional, his is a story of hope and vulnerability and paints a picture of what it truly takes to rebuild a life and become The Boy Who Lived.

DAVID HOLMES lived a young boy's dream. A competitive gymnast, he was thrust into the Hollywood spotlight having been cast as a junior stuntman on the 1998 sci-fi movie, Lost in Space. Two years later he landed the role as stunt double to Daniel Radcliffe in the Harry Potter films where he battled dragons, explored underwater worlds and racked up more broomstick miles than anyone else in the Wizarding World. Then in 2009, David's world changed when a horrific accident fractured his C6 and C7 vertebrae, leaving him paralysed from the chest down. In a period of emotional soul-searching, he came to an important realisation: he was a survivor, not a victim. Since then, he has raised hundreds of thousands of pounds through the David Holmes Harry Potter Cricket Cup and is an ambassador for the Wings for Life Foundation and the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore. Elsewhere, David has been a published essay writer in the New York Times, and has given speeches in front of members of the royal family at both Buckingham Palace and Saint James's palace. He produced a BAFTA-nominated documentary about his life entitled The Boy Who Lived and posed for a powerful portrait in which he stripped naked and set himself on fire. He lives in Essex.