THE brother of Richard Harris has urged the makers of the next Harry Potter film to give the role of wise and benevolent Hogwarts Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, to the late actor's former hellraising pal, Peter O'Toole.
Speaking from his Dublin home, Harris' brother Noel, 70, told the Daily Mirror: "I think Peter is the only man who could follow my brother in the role.
Dicky made that role his own . He will be a hard act to follow. Peter was a great friend of Dicky's for most of his life. An he has similar qualities on screen.
"Our family would be delighted if he was offered the part."
Filming on Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is due to begin in March, but the casting of the pivotal role of Dumbledore has still not been finalised and is giving Warner Brothers studio an increasingly painful headache.
Harris tragically died of cancer in October last year at the age of 72, but was so dedicated to fighting the disease that he continued to work on Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, even though he had lost three stone in weight due to chemotherapy and was sometimes so ill that a body double had to be used as a stand in.
In a typically bold Harris-ism just a few weeks before his death he told director Chris Columbus "If you f****** think about recasting me, I'll f****** kill you!"
Noel said: "He loved the role and was especially looking forward to getting his teeth into the third instalment, Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban, because Dumbledore gets a much meatier role.
"He talked about how great it was going to be. It's a tragedy he died before he could do that one."
He added: "Of course he would have been happy to see it go to Peter. I just hope he is offered it and then it will be a decision for him to make."
