12 Stars you probably didn't even realise appeared in the 'Harry Potter' movies

It often seems like every British actor (and a few musicians) have made an appearance in the Harry Potter films. By now they're something of an acting institution, and introduced American audiences to a whole cast of performers who were household names in the United Kingdom at the time, but who were relatively obscure elsewhere. There are so many of these cameos, either from those who were well known at the time or who wouldn't gain notoriety until later, that it's actually quite hard to keep up with them all.

So we've decided to collate a list of all the cameo appearances that you might have missed on your first watch. Scroll down to check them all out below!

Michelle Fairly is best playing the Stark matriarch Caitlyn Stark (née Tully) in HBO's fantasy series Game of Thrones. But before she was cast, the Irish actress had a brief appearance as Hermione's mother in Deathly Hallows, replacing Heather Bleasdale from The Chamber of Secrets.

Frank Dillane, who plays Nick Clark in Fear the Walking Dead, plays a creepy adolescent Voldermort opposite Jim Broadbent's Professor Slughorn, in a pensive flashback sequence in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

3. Jarvis Cocker

Pulp frontman Jarvis cocker plays a wizard rockstar from the band Wyrd Sisters, in the Yule Ball scene in Goblet of Fire. His bandmates consist of Radiohead members Johnny Greenwood and Philip Selway, as well as Jason Buckle, Claydon and Steve Mackey.

Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown has a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo as a wizard stirring his tea in the Leaky Cauldron pub in Diagon Alley in this scene from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Actress Zoë Wanamaker, best known for the sitcom My Family, and seminal British miniseries The Edge of Darkness, appeared in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone as broomstick instructor Madame Hooch. She was supposed to appear in subsequent instalments, but then director Chris Columbus realised that Professor McGonagall could fill all her exposition instead, and thus she was never seen again.

Jessica Hynes, best known for playing Daisy Steiner in Spaced and Siobhan Sharpe in the BBC sitcoms 2012 and W1A, makes a voiceover-only cameo as Ministry of Magic official Mafalda Hopkirk - the witch whose voice issues from a howler sent to Harry after he breaks wizarding law by using underage magic outside of school in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

Harry Potter fans might have been more than a little irked that mischievous poltergeist Peeves didn't appear in any of the movies. But he was supposed to appear in the flesh (or in the ghostly pallor) played by Blackadder and The Young Ones actor Rik Mayall. However, since the character was of only nominal importance to the overall plot, he was discreetly dropped from the final cut.

British comedian Paul Whitehouse (best known for his many characters in the classic sketch show The Fast Show) made an appearance in a deleted scene in Prisoner of Azkaban as irate knight errant Sir Cadogan, who guards the Gryffindor common room for a short time in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Interestingly enough, Whitehouse is one of the favourite actors of Johnny Depp, who is now playing the part of Gellert Grindlewald in the Fantastic Beasts spin-off franchise.

English actress Kate Fleetwood, best known for her work on the stage in various Shakespeare productions, has a small but noteworthy role as Mary Cattermole in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - the woman whom the trio rescues from Dolores Umbridge while sneaking into the Ministry of Magic.

Vicar of Dibley star Dawn French also makes an appearance as the portrait of the Fat Lady, who usually guards the Gryffindor common room and asks for a variety of colourful passwords to permit students entry. She can be seen here in this humorous excerpt shattering a glass with her voice alone.

Jamie Campbell Bower, an actor, model and musician best known for appearing in Sweeney Todd: Demon Barber of Fleet Street and playing the part of Caius Volturi in the Twilight movies, makes an appearance playing the part of a teenage Gellert Grindelwald in a flashback sequence in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Interestingly enough, he started dating Bonnie Wright (who plays Ginny Weasley) after meeting her on set.

David Tennant is best known now for playing the heroic role of the 10th Doctor in Doctor Who, but when production began on Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire in 2004, he was two years away from playing the time lord. You've probably forgotten then that he plays the part of Barty Crouch, who is masquerading as defence against the dark arts teacher Mad-Eye Moody.

I don't know about you, but this list has got me feeling very nostalgic. But it looks like we're all set to enjoy many more adventures in the Wizarding World for years to come. But if you want to depress yourself, then check out this bleak observation about the Harry Potter franchise that will change the way you think about it.