After his death in 2016, Rickman left a trove of revealing journals. In this exclusive extract, he recounts his 10 years playing Professor Snape – and the many political and Hollywood dramas along the way
• ‘An unbelievable Die Hard rip-off’: two decades of Rickman’s withering film reviews
From 1972, Alan Rickman kept a pocket diary in which he noted appointments, anniversaries, opening nights and addresses. In 1992, he started to produce a much fuller account of his life and work and bought diaries from a local stationer’s that gave him a page a day to play with. These number 26 volumes, several of which are colourfully and beautifully illustrated.
Why he kept a diary is unclear. Diarists come in all shapes, and their reasons for recording their lives are similarly diverse. Some people want to bear witness to earth-shattering events while others are content to detail what appears to be trivia but which, with the passage of time, acquires enduring significance. What follows is an edited account of the nearly 11 years defined by Rickman’s role as Professor Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films.
Alan Taylor, editor of the diaries
