Tom Brown (character) boy, and falls afoul of the school bully, Flashman. Over the course of the novel, Brown changes from a timid boy to a brave young man who has overcome his initial fear of Flashman and his ilk. In the 2005 television adaption, he was played by Alex Pettyfer. In the sequel novel, "Tom Brown at Oxford", Brown is now attending Oxford University as his adventures continue, albeit without Scud East, who has since joined the army. Tom Brown later appears in the historical novel "Flashman's Lady" (1977) by George MacDonald Fraser, in which he is reunited with his former rival,
Harry Potter influences and analogues a boy who arrives in this strange school to board for the first time and makes good, solid friends and also enemies who use bullying and unfair tactics", notes Fry, "then is ambiguous about whether or not he is going to be good or bad. His pluck and his endeavour, loyalty, good nature and bravery are the things that carry him through – and that is the story of Tom Brown's "Schooldays"". Fans of author J. R. R. Tolkien have drawn attention to the similarities between his novel "The Lord of the Rings" and the "Harry Potter" series; specifically Tolkien's