The Harry Potter books and films have been around for years now so we can't believe we've never noticed this before: there's a gaping hole in Harry's narrative, when he's just a baby. To be exact, there are 24 hours where he and Hagrid are totally off the grid.

So where were they, and how did it happen?

Pay attention, this is going to get complicated...

The Potters' death day

On October 31, 1981, Lily and James Potter were killed by Lord Voldemort in Godric's Hollow, somewhere in the West Country. Voldemort himself disappeared, presumed dead, after attempting to kill Harry, The Boy Who Lived.

Hagrid picks up baby Harry and the pair of them disappear until late evening of November 1, when they turn up by flying motorbike in Little Whinging, Surrey.

So what was going on in those 24 hours between Godric's Hollow and Little Winging?

Let's have a look at the evidence for the time lapse.

The facts

First of all, Professor Dumbledore does say when he arrives on Privet Drive that Hagrid is late – perhaps some sort of delay occurred? He looks at a watch in order to check it, though, so the delay he refers to is presumably minor and he must therefore have been expecting him fairly recently. Perhaps that afternoon.

Yet it can't be that no-one knew about Harry until the afternoon of November 1. After all, in the morning of that day, Professor McGonagall (disguised as a cat) is already standing on the corner of Privet Drive, apparently knowing that Dumbledore will turn up there sooner or later to confirm or deny the death of You-Know-Who.

And the only reason Dumbledore would be going to Privet Drive would be to leave Harry with his aunt. So they already know at least by that morning that Harry is alive and in need of protection.

Then of course there are wizards in cloaks all over the place, and whispers about the Potters and Harry at lunchtime, because Mr Dursley hears them.

The slow Hagrid thesis

So is it possible that Hagrid just didn't get to the solitary infant Harry until later on the 31st or even on November 1, and that Harry fended for himself alone?

No.

After all, Hagrid says that he got Harry out of the wreckage "before the Muggles started swarmin' around". We hardly think it would have taken long before someone called the emergency services about an almost-destroyed house. Godric's Hollow was, after all, a mixed Muggle and magic village.

Warner Bros.

But despite that, it is not until nearly midnight on the day after the Potters were killed that Hagrid appears in Surrey, bearing baby Harry.

So what had Hagrid been doing with the child all that time? Apart from scooting around on a flying motorbike (which seems like a dangerous way to travel with a fifteen-month old baby, incidentally).

Was there terrible traffic (in the um, sky)?

Actually, no – because Hagrid says he had no problems getting to Surrey. It shouldn't have taken an entire day to travel from the West Country, unless flying motorbikes are a particularly slow method of transport, of course. In which case, it begs the question: why choose it?

And how, previous to that, had Hagrid anticipated getting the baby to Surrey since he borrows the motorbike on the fly, as it were, from Sirius Black?

Thus far it remains a mystery, though we wouldn't be in the least surprised if JK Rowling takes to Twitter or Pottermore to reveal what happened during those lost hours. If she does, we hope she also addresses these further questions.

Warner Bros.

(a) Why is Dumbledore in charge of the placement of Harry, when he is not a relation or his godparent?

(b) Why does he entrust the task of rescuing Harry to almost the only person he knows who can't actually use magic to assist him?

Oh, and (c) Why does anyone think it's a good idea to leave a baby on a doorstep in November, all night, with only a letter to explain his presence? A baby old enough to toddle away, at that.

What, by the way, was Harry eating in the time he was with Hagrid? We get some idea of the sort of things Hagrid considers food in the later books – tooth-destroying rock cakes and 'beef' stew with talons in it.

But he apparently feeds a baby? Or does he just let Harry starve during that time? Well, we suppose it would get him into practice for life at the Dursleys...

Wizards are the worst.

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