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Harry Potter superfan Hayley Malsom, 21, picked up the three ultra-rare books for £3 each
MAGICAL FIND

Harry Potter fan finds first edition books for just £3 in charity shops – and they’re worth THOUSANDS

Hayley Malsom, 21, bought ultra-rare copies of The Goblet of Fire, The Order of the Phoenix, and the Half Blood Prince from a Gloucester charity shop for £3 each

A HARRY Potter fan could be looking at a £180,000 windfall after snapping up a rare trio of first edition Hogwarts books for just £9.

Hayley Malsom, 21, bought ultra-rare copies of The Goblet of Fire, The Order of the Phoenix, and the Half Blood Prince from a local charity shop for £3 each.

 Harry Potter superfan Hayley Malsom, 21, picked up the three ultra-rare books for £3 each
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Harry Potter superfan Hayley Malsom, 21, picked up the three ultra-rare books for £3 eachCredit: SWNS:South West News Service

She had no idea how rare the books were until she got home - where she discovered that they sell for up to £60,000 each.

The price of a first-edition Harry Potter book can vary wildly depending on condition.

 

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Hayley, from Gloucester, said: "As far as I'm aware the staff in the charity shop are unaware that they are first editions as I obviously didn't realise until later that day.

"I haven't had mine valued but after a quick Google I did see that one went for around £60,000.

 Some first editions can fetch up to £60,000 at auction
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Some first editions can fetch up to £60,000 at auctionCredit: SWNS:South West News Service

Spellbound: How to check if your copy of Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone is a first edition

Is your copy of the first Harry Potter novel worth a fortune? Here's how to check...

All first editions will be published by Bloomsbury, with a copyright page citing the date at 1997
The print line will read "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1"
There will be a printing error on page 53, which lists the words "1 wand" twice. The error was later corrected in other editions.

"I am a massive Harry Potter fan and have been since I first read The Order of the Phoenix in 2007 as part of a summer project before starting senior school."

Despite the massive price tag, Hayley plans to keep the novels.

Last year a first-edition copy of The Philosopher's Stone sold for a world-record £60,000 at auction.


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