Little-known Harry Potter post-credits scene solves plot-hole the film left out

Cast your mind way back to the heady days of 2002; David Beckham got redemption against Argentina, The Office was the funniest thing on TV, and people were mad about Harry Potter.

And fans are just realising that a post-credits scene explained a big plot hole all those years ago:

It's been over 20 years since the release of the second film, The Chamber of Secrets, with Daniel Radcliffe and the gang returning for a second year at Hogwarts.

Those of you who have seen it, which is pretty much everyone on the face of the Earth, will recall that it's another tumultuous term for Potter and his pals, with Lord Voldemort up to his old tricks once again. The dafty.

We were also introduced to a whole host of new characters, most notably the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Gilderoy Lockhart, played by Kenneth Branagh.

The literary hero is given a job at the school, where he is tasked with teaching the young wizards some life-saving skills.

Warner Bros.

But it turns out he's a big old faker, and steals stories from other wizards, passing them off as his own.

Now, in the book, he eventually gets his comeuppance when his memory charm backfires, leading to him being treated at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries in The Order of the Phoenix.

Readers are told that he never quite recovers from his ordeal but still loves signing autographs for his fans.

Strangely, though, it was never quite explained in the movies. Or was it?

Well, it turns out that at the end of Chamber of Secrets, there's a post-credits scene that many fans never knew existed, which reveals what happened to poor old Gilderoy.

And it's pretty much what you'd have guessed.

In the brief clip, the conman is seen wearing straitjacket on the cover of his new book Who Am I? in the window of Flourish and Blotts.

So yeah, it doesn't look good for him, does it?

Warner bros.

Now, if that Harry Potter factoid doesn't sate your appetite, we've got more for you.

Did you know that the real meaning behind Professor Snape's first words to Harry in the beloved franchise changes everything we always thought about the character.

The final instalment of the saga reveals Snape was deeply in love with Harry's mum, Lily, when they were both students at Hogwarts and was heartbroken by her death at the hands of Voldemort.

In The Philosopher's Stone, both in the book and the film, Snape asks Harry during his first potions class: "Tell me, what would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

According to Potterheads out there, the real meaning behind his words were down to the following: "According to Victorian Flower Language, asphodel is a type of lily meaning, 'My regrets follow you to the grave' and wormwood means 'absence' and also typically symbolised bitter sorrow.

"If you combined that, it meant, 'I bitterly regret Lily's death'."

Mind blown? You're welcome.

Topics: UK News, TV and Film, Harry Potter, Daniel Radcliffe, JK Rowling

Dominic Smithers

Dominic Smithers is LADbible's Editorial Lead. After graduating from the University of Leeds with a degree in French and History, he went on to write for the Manchester Evening News, the Accrington Observer and the Macclesfield Express. So as you can imagine, he’s spent many a night wondering just how useful that second language has been. But c'est la vie.

@SmithersDom