We've been re-watching the entire Harry Potter series. In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Delores Umbridge is placed into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry by the Minister of Magic. Ms Umbridge happens to be particularly fond of cats and her favourite colour is any shade of pink. Ostensibly she’s there to teach but she has a secret agenda as the Ministry seeks to gain control of the school. Clipboard in hand, Umbridge clinically assesses the staff and decides who stays and who goes. Sybill Trelawney, the Divination teacher, is marched out while the entire school looks on in dismay. With the connivance of the Ministry, headmaster Dumbledore is sacked. The highly-respected wizard who devoted a lifetime of service to the school is forced to leave. In a memorable scene, Dumbledore refuses to go quietly and disappears in a spectacular flash of flame. "You have to admit that Dumbledore's got style," concedes one member of the Ministry. This story springs to mind today, the first anniversary of my own experience of the dark art of retrenchment. This will be the only anniversary because I would like to obliviate those unpleasant memories and move on.
