James and Oliver were born in the Sutton Coldfield area of Birmingham, West Midlands county, England on 25 February, 1986. They are the only sons of Martyn and Susan Phelps. Oliver is the older of the two, by 13 minutes. Growing up, they attended Little Sutton Primary School and The Arthur Terry Secondary School. They left school in 2004, having taken their A-level exams. While at school, they often played pranks on their teachers and fellow students by switching names like their characters in the Harry Potter films.
Both James and Oliver showed an interest in acting at an early age, having performed side by side in a few school drama productions when they were younger. In 2000, when they were 14 years old, the twins were cast as Fred and George Weasley in the film Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. "Our Mum had heard open auditions for the characters were being held in Leeds. We were seen by the casting director, Janet Hircheson. We were asked to meet the director, producer and writer. That happened about six times including, the screen test. Then we were told we had the parts.
James and Oliver's best friends in the Harry Potter cast are Devon Murray and Matthew Lewis. Outside of the Harry Potter films, James has worked as a runner on the Potter sets, and other film productions, such as The Da Vinci Code.
The twin brothers support rival football clubs in Birmingham. Oliver supports Aston Villa, while James suports Birmingham City. In May 2006, they both took part in a celebrity football tournament called Celebrity World Cup Soccer Six.Recently, the twins planted trees at the National Forest, in Leicestershire. The wood that helped make the Harry Potter broomsticks were replanted by the boys, the trees being birch and ash.
In April of 2010 the Phelps twins visited Niagara Falls while they were in Toronto at the Harry Potter Exhibit at the Science Center.
