There was a boy called Mark Evans in Privet Drive though he never went to Hogwarts.

 

It was implied by JKR in an interview after the sixth book publication.

 

But I was talking about James' hypothetical mother, not necessarily Dorea, when I said that. We know Dorea died in 1977, but (as I made clear in my original comment) we only know that James' mother died before him (otherwise she would have taken Harry). That gives a maximum gap between James' birth and his mother's death of 21 years - potentially much less. It's only 17 years if we assume it's Dorea, which I wasn't doing - although I am very open to the possibility.

Apology accepted.

 

Can we all just agree Rowling (like most authors) is just bad at Math, and didn't really think things like this through?

 

Thank you.

 

Math? Pfft, muggle rubbish and nonsense.

 

What is actually the canon source for the fact that Wizards live for very long? I know there are examples of old wizards, but those could just as well be the exceptions, not the rule.

 

Besides specific examples, I know of two other sources. The first is a JKR interview in which she says wizards live longer than Muggles.

Another is this image. The Daily Prophet lists wizard life expectancy at 137.5 years.

 

I like how just beneath the "Kids Corner" there's "Black Magic" and "Pink Magic" listed in the index.

 

Well, if that's the case, then sure, have one.

@Odran: I've become used to only CinemaSins paying attention to things of gold like that anymore... A little ray of sunshine in this rather dreadful day.

 

Apparently that's not old, by wizarding standards.

The relevant JKR quote, via the Lexicon, is as follows...

Given the fact Dumbledore was closing in on his 116th birthday when he died of unnatural causes, I don't think you could really say that Dorea was "elderly" or "old in wizarding terms" when James was born.

Griselda Marchbanks was still alive and kicking, while being (at the very least) seven years older than Albus, because she presided over his NEWTs. That's if she went straight from being a Hogwarts student to head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority without having to work her way up the ladder (a possibility I can't discount, given the corruption inherent in the Ministry - it's always possible an influential relative simply handed her the job, without her having to follow a path of promotion). The Lexicon is more generous, giving her a decade on Albus.

Less compelling but worth mentioning: Contrary to the movies, McGonagall still had black hair, rather than gray, when Harry started Hogwarts, at which time she was rapidly approaching her 66th birthday (Oct 4th), if the Lexicon's estimate of 1925 as her birth year is correct. Still, she seems pretty spry, even after Umbridge's aurors fuck her up during exam time.

Now, I'm not saying Dumbledore and Griselda are typical of wizard kind in their longevity, but it's something to think about. Also, I feel it's worth mentioning that there's no indication that power (whatever that is and if it even exists outside of being a synonym for "skill") equals longevity, so there's no reason to assume Dumbledore only got that old by being a super wizard or something (besides, we'll never know what age he might have reached, had he not contracted the Creeping Crud, drank the Killer Kool-Aid, got hit with the Killing Curse, and fell a zillion feet to the ground - wtf is he, anyway, Rasputin?).

Until we get official numbers for average wizard longevity (and the onset of menopause in witches), I'm coming down on the side of Dorea being too young to fit JKR's description of James's mother.

Could JKR change her mind or "fix" her numbers? Yes.
Would any of the above stop me from writing a fic where Dorea and Charlus are Harry's grandparents? No.
Would any of the above stop me from reading and enjoying a fic where Dorea and Charlus are Harry's grandparents? Again, no.
​

Yeah, it was a typo and has been fixed.

 

Fair enough, and thanks for fetching the quote. I think I'll have to put this down as yet another example of Rowling just not thinking things through. As if we needed another.

 

I have to be good for something.
So, it's this stuff and the occasional cheap joke.

Hehe, I completely missed these comments. I think this was fanon creeping into my head: Between canon, "word of god" that may or may not be canon that you may have actually read on a fan fic website, and complete fanon you most certainly read in fan fic, it's hard to keep this shit straight. And, it only gets harder the more fic you read and the more "word of god" that gets released (not to mention stuff that was in the movies or games that was never in the books - some of which was later made canon somehow...).

So, Hogwarts: No
An Evans showing up on Privet Drive that caused mass speculation in the fandom: Yes. The wild theories were out in full force after his appearance in the books, and it went absolutely nowhere. On the other hand, nobody blinked when Umbridge turned out to share a middle name with Hermione, but it got changed. Go figure.

 

The really dumb part is that leaving Hermione and Umbridge with the same middle name would have been the stronger move. It would almost be a warning flag for Hermione- 'Try too hard to be part of the system and this is how you may end up'.

Silly billionaire writer.

 

To be fair, Hermione is Rowling's Self-Insert, and it wouldn't do to have the Self-Insert have anything in common with the evilest character in the Series.

 

And taking that into consideration, all H/Hr shippers actually ship Harry/Rowling.

Yeah, I know it's not exactly like that, but I can't help but chuckle...

 

Since when is Umbridge the evilest character in the series? There's this Voldemort dude that wants to purge the world of Muggles, Grindelwald, Fenrir Greyback, Malfoys, Blacks, Lestranges...

Not that she isn't evil, but damn.

 

Umbridge is evil?

 

Shipping of muggleborns to concentration camps is considered evil nowadays.

 

Not to mention sending Dementors to eat the soul of a fifteen year old boy.