Those are some pipes!

Question: How big are the pipes that inhabit the walls of Hogwarts Castle?


Seriously, what is their diameter?


I'm currently re-reading The Chamber of Secrets (in French) and it has occurred to me that I have always simply taken it for granted that the Basilisk that lives in the Chamber makes its way around the school through the pipes, as Hermione deduces.


But think about it. That great big snake is described in the climactic scene of the novel as being massive. Fawkes, a fairly good-sized bird, flies around its head in an effort to blind it. Harry battles it with the Sword of Gryffindor, a pretty fair sized weapon in its own right, and kills it by thrusting this sword into the Basilisk's head.


That means that the pipes through which it travels must be fairly large themselves. Huge, in fact.


Does that make sense? Don't pipes need to be large enough to perform their function but small enough to fit within walls and floors, to keep the water that passes through them under enough pressure to be useful?


I don't know what the answer is. Maybe the Basilisk can make itself very long and thin. Or maybe the pipes really are ridiculously large.


But it seems strange to me, that's all.

I just love the way Emma Watson whips out the Sword of Gryffindor

By now, many of you have seen the final film. How was it? Was it great? Did it meet your expectations, fulfill your hopes?

As you might have guessed, I have not seen it yet. My life just isn't allowing me time to go to see it. And it's killing me.

I watched the trailers and excerpts again on Rotten Tomatoes. And there were two more today. Both were little documentaries on aspects of the movie: one on Snape's life and the other on Gringott's and Goblins. Great stuff.

The second one gave me a chance to get a preview of Helena Bonham Carter channelling Emma Watson in the scene where Hermione has taken polyjuice potion to pose as Bellatrix for the break-in to the Lestrange vault. Bonham Carter is hilarious in the scene and it's fun to hear Watson's voice trying to sound Lestrange.

My favourite single moment so far, though, has got to be in the Lestrange vault itself when Emma Watson as Hermione whips the Sword of Gryffindor out of her little bag and tosses it to Daniel Radcliffe as Harry. Watson does it with such panache, such style. It's a cool moment.

Once I see the movie, I'll probably have more "cool moments" to talk about but, until then, I think I'll enjoy this one a few more times.