Just who is off to play wizard in HBO's new Harry Potter series

The upcoming Harry Potter TV show will see British actors Nick Frost and Paapa Essiedu alongside US star John Lithgow join the cast for the HBO original series.

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The majority of the new cast come from theatre backgrounds, following in the footsteps of the franchise's star actors who also began their careers on stage including Imelda Staunton and the late Alan Rickman and Dame Maggie Smith.

The new series, with Hogwarts' creator JK Rowling as executive producer, has not yet cast its younger characters-including wizard Harry Potter, but will stay authentic to the original books.

Here are the actors who will play the school staff:

John Lithgow