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Into the Pensieve: The tragic tale of Frank Bryce

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The outside of the Riddle's house at night from the Goblet of Fire.

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## Who was Frank Bryce?

Frank was a gardener for the paternal grandparents of Tom Riddle, aka Voldemort. He lived alone in a cottage on the Riddle House grounds, which stood on top of a hill overlooking the village of Little Hangleton. A Muggle who’d returned from fighting in the war ‘with a very stiff leg and a great dislike of crowds and loud noises,’ Frank had been tending to the Riddle House gardens ever since, apart from a brief moment of time when he’d been arrested for suspected involvement in the mysterious deaths of the Riddles – Voldemort’s Muggle father, also called Tom, and his rich, snobbish parents. 

We know, of course, that all three Riddles were actually killed by Voldemort via means of the Killing Curse. He’d sought them out after a visit to his mother’s nearby home revealed the truth about his parentage. After Stupefying his Gaunt uncle, Voldemort had made his way to the Riddle house, killing the Muggle man who abandoned his witch mother, and, for good measure, the grandparents who tied him to that unworthy Muggle lineage. 

For those investigating the Riddle’s deaths, however, the fact that they died without a mark on them was perplexing, to say the least. But it did mean they were forced to let Frank go. To the Little Hangleton villagers’ surprise, he returned to live on the Riddle House grounds, and so, unfortunately for Frank, that was where he was when another strange visit occurred.

## When did he first appear in the story?

Right at the beginning of Goblet of Fire, when a weakened Voldemort was taking refuge in the Riddle House under the ‘clumsy care’ of Wormtail (aka Peter Pettigrew).

## What was Frank doing when we met him?

Having been woken in the middle of the night by his bad leg, Frank noticed lights on in the Riddle House. Suspecting some local children had broken in and started a fire, he went up to investigate. Having no phone and a deep distrust of the police, he did so without anyone else knowing, which would prove to be a mistake – not that Frank could possibly have predicted what he would find in the Riddle House: a rat-like wizard and the barely human man he served, who could talk to snakes and kill with a single flash of green light.

When we met him, Frank was nearing his seventy-seventh birthday and was very deaf. His bad leg was stiffer than ever, and he used a walking stick to get around. When he later appeared to Harry as a result of Priori Incantatem (or, ‘the reverse spell effect’), in the graveyard after the final Triwizard Tournament task, Frank wore a look of mild surprise, as he leaned on his walking stick and told Harry:

‘Killed me, that one did … you fight him, boy ...’

## What was Frank like?

He might have appeared in only a handful of scenes and his death might not have been considered important by the Ministry of Magic, but Frank’s tenacity and courage shone forth in every one of those scenes. Stubborn and persistent, Frank returned to the Riddle House once after the war, and again after his wrongful arrest, and just quietly got on with things, even as the villagers gossiped about him and the young ones threw stones and ruined his lawns. Frank had a bad war, someone at The Hanged Man pub said, so he’d presumably endured a lot worse than rumour and speculation.

But while his post-war years might have been solitary, he was just as brave as an older man. The fact that he went to check on the Riddle House when he thought it was on fire is one thing. But the fact that he stood his ground in front of actual Voldemort, speaking with defiance and having the presence of mind to invent a wife who’d be worrying about him, proved that beyond any doubt.

‘Is that right?’ said Frank roughly. ‘Lord, is it? Well, I don’t think much of your manners, my Lord. Turn round and face me like a man, why don’t you?’

## How did Frank make a difference?

Months before he appeared to Harry as a result of Priori Incantatem, Harry had seen Frank in a dream. To be more precise, Harry had experienced Frank being murdered by Voldemort through a vision. It was an early example of the connection that later allowed Harry to look into Voldemort’s mind, but at the time of the dream Harry knew little about all that. He simply woke as if from a nightmare, his scar throbbing and his mind full of concern about the old man he’d witnessed Voldemort murder.

But if Frank had not appeared in Harry’s dream, there wouldn’t have been knowledge of his murder at all. As Dumbledore later said, the Ministry of Magic did not seem to register Frank’s disappearance, and they certainly didn’t investigate his connections to the Riddles. As a solitary man living alone, Frank’s death might have been ignored, were it not for Harry’s dream and the attention Dumbledore paid to Muggle newspapers. His death served as a reminder for just how capable (and comfortable) Voldemort was with killing – something Harry would witness again months later. Finally, without the death of Frank, Dumbledore may not have had cause to suspect Voldemort had briefly returned to the Riddle House.

So Frank was important because he reinforced just how deplorable Voldemort was, and because his experiences provided valuable insight into the Riddles – insight Dumbledore was later able to expand on. But he was also important in his own right. His steadfast acceptance of the situations he found himself in was accompanied by a quiet bravery. His words to Harry during Priori Incantatem might have been brief, but they were to-the-point. Along with Cedric, Bertha Jorkins and his parents, Frank provided additional support at a time Harry needed it most.

Frank was a Muggle in a world full of magical characters; plus, he appeared in only two chapters of one book in the entire Harry Potter series. So we’d forgive you if you don’t remember much about him – even Harry only ever knew him as ‘the old man.’ 

But we can’t help but admire Frank’s spirit, and we hope that by reminding you about him here, we’ve done the old man some justice.

***

You can visit other characters in our 'Into the Pensieve' series, such as [Bob Ogden](https://www.wizardingworld.com/features/web-into-the-pensieve-bob-ogden) and [Professor Kettleburn.](https://www.wizardingworld.com/features/into-the-pensieve-silvanus-kettleburn)

The power of positivity in the wizarding world

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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

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and the Prisoner of Azkaban

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When it comes to dealing with the blues, there is something to be said about the Wizarding World’s way of handling things. No, not magic. We’re talking positive thinking.

Look at the Boggart spell, for instance. Boggarts, as we know, are shape-shifting creatures that take the form of whatever the person in front of them fears the most. Even Muggles are able to feel a Boggart’s presence, which says a lot about the nature of fear. Because obviously, we don’t have to see a thing for it to make us feel anxious.

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Witches and wizards get rid of Boggarts by making them comical – and while we don’t have the option of forcing fear into a funny hat, the idea of laughing at things that scare you is not new. There's the cliche of telling people who dislike public speaking to imagine the audience in their underwear. Or how we laughingly scream through old horror movies. And isn’t the way we share ridiculous (Riddikulus?) memes to help us deal with sometimes fearful situations kind of like point-ing our phones at all manner of unseen Boggarts in a bid to try and laugh them away?

OK, the Riddikulus spell only gets rid of the Boggart and not the underlying fear, but what it shows is the importance of attitude to a spell’s effectiveness – or, indeed, anything. It’s not just about ability; not always. With spells like this, it’s about your emotions.

When Lupin introduced Harry’s class to the Boggart, he asked them to think about their fears, and then to imagine how they might turn them into something comical. In other words: change your thinking and you’ll find your fears reduced. Basically, he introduced the concept of positive thinking.

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The Boggart exercise makes this seem a fairly simple task, but given Lupin’s class was the be-ginning of a long series of practice sessions for Harry, it is clearly not easy. Add in external stressors (Dementors, Azkaban escapees, Blue Monday emails) and thinking positively becomes a lot harder. Even in the wizarding world. 

Nowhere is this more apparent than with the Patronus charm. That’s the big one. The defensive spell to end all defensive spells, and apparently the only one to have caused Hermione trouble. Because it’s extremely difficult. Like, extremely-advanced-magic difficult.

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Now on paper, the Patronus charm doesn’t look all that different from the Boggart experiment: just think of a single, very happy memory whilst also saying the correct incantation.

Except when Harry first tried it, he couldn’t grasp it at all. Aside from the fact that saying one thing whilst doing something else is a feat of memory beyond magic, is it actually easy to think of a single, very happy memory? How happy is very happy? And anyway: how do you hold onto any memory when you’re surrounded by Dementors? 

Basically, the answer to all these things is practise (and, in the meantime, chocolate.) There are no shortcuts when it comes to casting a Patronus, although some characters struggle more than others. Hermione, for all her magical achievements, has a propensity to fixate on negative possi-bilities: her Boggart is Professor McGonagall telling her she’s failed her exams. This is clearly not helpful when it comes to the Patronus charm, which depends entirely on conjuring up positivity in the midst of a dark fog of misery. 

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Maybe that’s why Harry naturally excels at Defence Against the Dark Arts in a way Hermione doesn’t. His attitude to magic is instinctive and emotional, and while he’s not always expert at managing his mood he certainly knows how to focus his energies.

Although it’s not even just about practise and determination – Harry’s real breakthrough arrived in Prisoner of Azkaban, when he discovered that the Patronus he’d thought was his fathers was actually his own. In that Time-Turner-enabled scenario, Harry cast his first (or second, depending on where you are) fully-formed Patronus in the presence of actual Dementors, precisely because he thought he’d achieved it before.

> “‘I knew I could do it this time,’ said Harry, ‘because I’d already done it ... Does that make sense?’"

Success breeds success, after all. It’s like Ron when he thought he’d swallowed Felix Felicis. Once you think you can do something, you’ll start to do it unconsciously.

So: casting a Patronus is difficult, just as maintaining a positive attitude is difficult. They both take time, dedication and support – but get it right once, and it becomes easier every time. After all, if practise makes perfect it’s no wonder Harry was the Patronus expert. No other Hogwarts stu-dent had quite as many dealings with Dementors.

The pros and cons of being... Minister for Magic 

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Every wizarding community has its own Ministry of Magic. America’s version is called [MACUSA](/features/macusa), and in *Fantastic Beasts: Crimes of Grindelwald*, we stepped foot in the French Ministry of Magic for the first time.

With every Ministry comes a valiant leader – who can help shape the wizarding world for the better, or, in the case of some, for the worse. For example, [Cornelius Fudge](/features/cornelius-fudge) used his power in the position to try and deny the truth about Lord Voldemort’s rule, while Ministers of the past have been far more useful, such as Eldritch Diggory, who fronted the Auror recruitment programme. So, if you were Minister for Magic, how would you change the wizarding world? Here are some pros and cons to the career choice...

## Pro: You get to make a real difference

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The first pro is pretty obvious, of course. You’re Minister for Magic! You can create your own departments of the Ministry of Magic, you can instigate new rules, you can follow your passions, you can be a wizarding world legacy. In the history of British Ministers for Magic ([which you can read about in deeper detail here](/writing-by-jk-rowling/ministers-for-magic)) we’ve had Ministers who have lobbied to have the Quidditch World Cup hosted in Britain, we’ve had Ottaline Gambol, whose interest in Muggle technology led to the inception of the Hogwarts Express – and then there was Millicent Bagnold, who fought for the wizarding community’s ‘inalienable right to party’ after Lord Voldemort’s demise. 

## Con: But if you mess up, it has huge consequences

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Of course, it’s not all fun and games all of the time – and certain Dark wizarding world events have shown us how certain Ministers for Magic react in harder times. In the case of Cornelius Fudge, his fear of Lord Voldemort led to us seeing the more cowardly side of his reign – using his [influences with the Daily Prophet](/features/journalism-in-the-wizarding-world) to try and cover up the whole thing. After finally having to admit the truth, Fudge was unceremoniously sacked – leading the way for Rufus Scrimgeour, who didn’t fair much better, eventually being killed by Lord Voldemort, who then took over the Ministry. 

## Pro: You may be able to influence Muggle events

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Over the centuries, the Ministry of Magic have had their ups and downs with the Muggle world – with some Ministers working with their non-magical counterparts, and some, not so much. For example, Cornelius Fudge had a relatively awkward working relationship with the Muggle PM of his era, usually having to inform him of unfortunate Wizarding World events, such as the escape of [Sirius Black](/features/sirius-black), and then later, the ascent of Lord Voldemort. In the 1700s, the Muggle Prime Minister of the day, Lord North, actually sought out the help of current Minister for Magic, Porteus Knatchbull, to see if he could help King George III’s mental health. Then there was Priscilla Dupont, who used to magically torment the Muggle Prime Minister Lord Palmerston, such as turning coins in his pockets into frogspawn.

On more serious occasions, Minister for Magic Archer Evermonde banned the British wizarding community from getting involved in helping with World War I (though thousands defied him) while in America, there was the 1777 debate, [‘Country or Kind’](/features/the-witches-and-wizards-who-meddled-in-muggle-events), where thousands of wizards and witches debated on whether they should get involved in the American Muggle Revolutionary War – with the US deciding yes and the UK deciding to ‘sit it out’. It’s an interesting thing to think about for anyone taking the post. 

## Con: It is a lot of power to have

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Albus Dumbledore famously turned down the Minister post several times, explaining that he didn’t think he could be trusted with such power. This didn’t stop Cornelius Fudge corresponding with Dumbledore on a frequent basis, haplessly asking for advice...

But some deal with the power better than others, such as [Kingsley Shacklebolt](/features/kingsley-shacklebolt), who took out the Dementors from Azkaban prison, and generally instilled a calmer outset on the wizarding world. So it is possible to utilise your authority in a logical, sensible fashion, especially as you’re as cool and collected as our Kingsley. 

## Pro: The perks

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A guaranteed Top Box seat at any Quidditch World Cup, a fancy office, knowledge of what really goes on in the [Department of Mysteries](/features/most-mysterious-things-in-the-department-of-mysteries)... on top of all the murky stuff, you can’t deny the ultimate wizarding world job would have some nice perks. We might skip the wearing of a lime green bowler hat, though.

Discover the films

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to Fantastic Beasts

The dating disasters crossword

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Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

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and the Order of the Phoenix

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Let's see how you do.

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Visit our [puzzles page](https://www.wizardingworld.com/collections/potter-puzzles) for more challenges!

100 Years of Warner Bros.: Wizarding World and the Big Bang now streaming on Max

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Harry Potter: Magic Awakened is launching globally this summer 

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The wait is almost over for global audiences excited to get their hands on Harry Potter: Magic Awakened. [Pre-register now and get ready to master the magic.](http://go.wbgames.com/MagicAwakened)

Harry Potter Magic Awakened | Coming soon worldwide 

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In the game, you’ll play as a young witch or wizard starting at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Fans will be able to customise their character accordingly and enjoy the many facets of wizarding world life, such as discovering your Hogwarts house, perusing supplies in Diagon Alley, learning spells that can be cast in the form of cards – and taking part in Duelling Club. There will also be an intriguing story running through the game as you accumulate magical knowledge – so expect to meet a few familiar characters – and some exciting new ones along the way.

With [Hogwarts Legacy](https://www.wizardingworld.com/hogwarts-legacy) continuing to cast its spell on fans, and the news of another upcoming game coming soon, [Quidditch Champions](https://www.wizardingworld.com/news/harry-potter-quidditch-champions-invites-fans-to-play), its a big year for gaming gurus with a penchant for the Wizarding World.

You can visit our [Portkey Games page](https://www.portkeygames.com/) to learn more about all the offerings under our official gaming label.

Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions invites fans to be the first to play

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*Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions* is a fast-paced, online multiplayer game featuring the world’s most iconic magical sport. From Warner Bros. Games, under the [Portkey Games label](https://www.portkeygames.com/), it engages players in the sport of Quidditch and other broomstick adventures alongside friends in a competitive setting.

So, how to join the playtests? Simply visit [QuidditchChampions.WBGames.com ](https://quidditchchampions.wbgames.com/en?utm_source=wwd_web&utm_medium=newsarticle&utm_campaign=QuidditchChampions&utm_content=Games) to sign up for the chance to be a Quidditch Champion. 

***

While you wait for more info on *Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions*, you can still geek out with us about [Hogwarts Legacy over at our hub. ](https://www.wizardingworld.com/hogwarts-legacy)

Harry Potter: Magic Awakened reveals new story trailer 

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From your train journey to the Sorting Ceremony, Harry Potter: Magic Awakened will give you the full Hogwarts experience. The immersive collectible card and wizarding dueling game has already become the No.1 top grossing mobile game in Mainland China – and we love the unique artistic style this game is designed in. This latest look at the game puts you right in the center of the storyline, from Hagrid’s delivery of the Hogwarts letter to dueling lessons at Hogwarts.

Harry Potter Magic Awakened | Story Trailer

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As you can see, the game invites you to customise your look, go shopping in Diagon Alley and generally improve your magical knowledge – but we’re intrigued by some of the unfamiliar characters we see in the trailer too, such as the blonde Slytherin student intent on getting to her Potions class! 

[Harry Potter: Magic Awakened](https://www.wizardingworld.com/discover/portkey-games/harry-potter-magic-awakened) is one of many titles that sits under the Portkey Games label, which is dedicated to creating new Wizarding World mobile and video game experiences that place the player at the centre of their own adventure, inspired by J.K. Rowling’s original stories. You can learn more about Portkey Games here.

You can [pre-register on Google Play](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.netease.wb.goog.hpma&hl=en&gl=US&pli=1) or the [App Store](https://apps.apple.com/pl/app/harry-potter-magic-awakened/id1490196497) right now to learn more, or [visit the official website.](https://www.magicawakened.com/en-gb)