Gertie Keddle's diary was a personal journal kept by Gertie Keddle in the 11th century. It was written in Saxon. In the diary, Gertie Keddle inadvertantly recorded the beginnings of Quidditch, describing a game played on broomsticks, early Quaffles and Bludgers, and point scoring. The diary is now on display in the Museum of Quidditch in London, and extracts have been translated into modern English.
Known extracts
- "Tuesday. Hot. That lot from across the marsh have been at it again. Playing a stupid game on their broomsticks. A big leather ball landed in my cabbages. I hexed the man who came for it. I’d like to see him fly with his knees on back to front, the great hairy hog."
- — Keddle describes Kwidditch players.[src]
- "Tuesday. Wet. Was out on the marsh picking nettles. Broomstick idiots playing again. Watched for a bit from behind a rock. They’ve got a new ball. Throwing it to each other and trying to stick it in trees at either end of the marsh. Pointless rubbish."
- — Gertie Keddle's next Kwidditch description.[src]
- "Tuesday. Windy. Gwenog came for nettle tea, then invited me out for a treat. Ended up watching those numbskulls playing their game on the marsh. That big Scottish warlock from up the hill was there. Now they’ve got two big, heavy rocks flying around trying to knock them all off their brooms. Unfortunately didn’t happen while I was watching. Gwenog told me she often played herself. Went home in disgust."
- — Gertie Keddle writes about meeting with her friend Gwenog.[src]
Behind the scenes
In Quidditch Through the Ages, the diary is said to have been translated "from the badly spelled Saxon of the original". This is apparently a joke, keeping with the humorous tone of the book, as the spelling of English words was not standarized until some centuries later.[1]