Dreams really do come true at the Olympics. (And no, we're not just talking about you, Michael Phelps.)
Director Danny Boyle's Olympic Opening Ceremony has officially cemented itself as one of the most memorable in the sporting event's history thanks to one particularly dazzling duel between Lord Voldemort and Mary Poppins.
A fight between the magical nanny and the Harry Potter villain may sound like a scene out of an over-imaginative 12-year-old's dream, but the scenario was made real on Boyle's "Isles of Wonder" -- of course, that too, was a part of a dream. The magical skit was part of a broader section of the ceremonies, entitled "Second to the Right, and Straight On Till Morning" -- the famous directions to Neverland, as given to Wendy by Peter Pan. The bit highlighted children's literature and featured a few terrifying villains, from Lord Voldemort to the Child Catcher from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
A fleet of Mary Poppins -- approximately 30 of them -- flew down into the stadium on their umbrellas to defeat a 100-foot inflatable (and all-around quite alarming) Lord Voldemort. Sadly, Harry Potter was not on hand to assist during the battle -- he was probably busy with little Albus Severus -- but the Poppins brigade seemed to handle the Dark Lord just fine.
Here's a photo of the scary guy, with a gallery of all the happenings below it:
Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly stated that the inflatable Lord Voldemort was 40-feet tall. It has been updated to reflect its accurate height.
Photos From Today's Events:
