James and Oliver Phelps Talk Edible Toilet Paper, 'Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking'

Harry Potter fans know James and Oliver Phelps best for their roles as the copper-crowned Fred and George Weasley. But since the eight-film series wrapped up in 2011 with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, the boys have been busy hosting Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking, traveling with their Fantastic Friends around the world, recording content for their YouTube channel and podcast, Normal Not Normal, and running marathons. And the lads show no signs of slowing down.

After famously skipping school to attend an open audition for the role of the Weasley Twins, James and Oliver are once again back on the famous sets of Harry Potter, at the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London in Leavesden, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom.

"When we step back into that world, [into the] Great Hall, for example, it doesn't feel like 25 seconds have passed, let alone years," remarked Oliver. "[It's like a] little time capture when you're inside."

Season 2 of Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking takes its competitors around the world of the films, but even for veterans like James and Oliver, there's something new to learn.

"To be honest, it was walking back through the sets and seeing things which I'd completely forgotten about," added James. "And then all of a sudden, it's like you unlock a whole wave of memories you didn't even realize were still in your brain."

"I would write them after work," James said, regarding his discoveries of little details on the sets. "I want to [have] a document for myself and whoever wants to listen in 20 years' time. I'll be that old man in the corner of the pub."

Now that they're back in the kitchen for another spellbinding season, we asked the guys what some of their favorite moments have been.

James fell as hard as a love potion for the flavor of smoked chocolate mousse, and also the science behind it. “[Alex smokes chocolate] into a mousse … when you’re eating it, it just all complements each other, and it’s probably one of the best things I’ve ever eaten in my life. They’re not just bakers, they’re true — dare I say — wizards of what they do.”

This season features some illusion bakes that would make even the most seasoned Transmogrification wizard blush. Famous scenes and objects get the Is It Cake? treatment, and you won't believe your eyes. Neither did some of the Wizards of Baking production staff, apparently!

James told us that they played a game "with a few of the guys in the production office. When they came on the set afterward, we'd [put the set piece and the cake] next to each other and [ask them to] guess which one [is real]. Quite a few of them got it wrong!"

Oliver was a big fan of the bottle of bone-regenerating Skele-Gro, seen in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

"When you start seeing the level of detail [of] what goes into these bakes, that they look almost like art pieces more than a cake or a dessert … These things almost just belong in the museum."

Edible toilet paper. We watched it come to life, made from wafer paper by team Jenny and Alex. They ate it. We had to know: How is the mouthfeel of single ply?

"It was strange because of obviously what it's meant to be," laughed James. "But also knowing that you've got a load of cameras looking at you whilst I was licking toilet paper. You think this is everything you shouldn't do in life, but it's part of the experience. It's making things which aren't meant to look like food taste amazing."

It wouldn't be Wizards of Baking without Weasley hijinks, and even if the guys solemnly swear they were up to no good, we know to expect a few of the lads' signature Wizarding Wheezes.

"I'm not going to give them away, but there are some [challenges] that we had great joy in delivering," James said with a smirk. Oliver added: "It's great [to have] something which is going to be such a wow moment, which will keep everyone on their toes in the kitchen."

Now that the holiday season is here, we had to know what the guys get up to in the kitchen. After all, if you're going to host Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking, you're bound to pick up a few tips from the competitors.

"We'll make mince pies with the kids, and then Christmas Day dinner, I'll always make the dessert," chef Oliver said. "I'll make either a trifle … I don't mean the trifle like in Friends, what Rachel makes, but like a proper trifle."

As for James?

"I eat a lot of trifles. In fact, my mother-in-law actually gets me my own because I don't like to share."

Though he doesn't fancy himself particularly skilled in the baking arts, Oliver has proven himself an adaptable cook and parent.

"My youngest daughter has got a bit of a food intolerance, so we made a gluten-free Christmas pudding last year. And she was very excited, because as a tradition, you put like a penny in it, cover it with brandy and set this thing ablaze."

"And this is a dessert for children?” we joked. We'll stand back and leave the Incendio charm to you, Ollie!

But if there's one thing that they've taken away from two seasons of Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking, it's that not only has the show been great at getting families together to watch, but to bake together as well.

"It inspires people to want to get in the kitchen and bake, even if you're not particularly amazing at it, like myself," said Oliver. "It still wants you to get in there. And if we can encourage kids to [get interested in baking] as well, they may [show] more of an interest as to where [their] food comes from … [and] what ingredients are going into it."

"I think that's what the show's helped [do]," said James. "[People have] told us how they've watched it with their whole family. Definitely a screens-down kind of thing, like put your phone away. And then go and bake together, go and make something in the kitchen and really make good memories as a family."

We simply cannot get enough of these two, and after bingeing their travel series Fantastic Friends on HBO Max, we had to know: What's next for James and Oliver? They say they'll continue recording episodes of their podcast, dream of filming another travel show or a "revitalized version of Fantastic Friends" and, of course, hope to return to the London studios for another season of Wizards of Baking.