This is not an official Harry Potter page. All Harry Potter names and characters
belong to J. K. Rowling, Bloomsbury, Scholastic, and Warner Bros.
The old
state-owned British Rail used to be much maligned, so much so that it was
privatised in the mid-90s. Now that we Britons have suffered from a worse
railway, we can look back to British Rail with affection. However, few realise
just how much British culture owes to British Rail, beyond the legendary bad
sandwiches that inspired many a joke. For in the summer of 1990, a young woman
was stuck on a delayed train from Manchester to Kings Cross, and to amuse
herself, she dreamt of a boy wizard who didn’t know that he was a wizard. The
young woman did not have access to a pen, so her daydream flowed on, possibly to
enough to encompass 7 whole volumes. We all know what happened next, although
only the woman herself still knows the resolution of the daydream. However, it
was a few decades before, on a train in travelling in the opposite direction,
from Kings Cross to Scotland, that this young woman’s story actually began. Her
mother was travelling on the same train as her father when they met for the
first time. Her mother felt cold, and her father offered to share his coat with
her. They got on so well that marriage followed a year after, and the young
woman, Joanne Rowling, arrived the year after that, at Chipping Sodbury
Hospital, not far from a town called Dursley.
The year was 1965.
Joanne’s first memory was of the
birth of her younger sister, 2 years later. Their father worked for Rolls Royce
at Bristol. In 1971, the family moved to Winterbourne, where Joanne met a family
called the Potters, whose surname she liked (her own surname was the subject of
mirth – hilarious jokes about “rolling pins” would be uttered in her presence,
and she would later be subjected to the theme of “Rawhide” on a regular basis).
Around about this time, the daydreaming Joanne began to write stories. In 1974,
the family moved again to Tutshill in the Forest of Dean – a bit of an isolated
community that has a strong local dialect. Both of her parents were originally
Londoners who dreamed of living in the country. However, the local school was
small and old fashioned, and Joanne’s teacher was strict and frightening to her
(reminds me of the school in
Dennis Potter’s
“The Singing Detective” – ed). Later she attended Wyedean Comprehensive, where
she delighted in telling her friends fantastical stories which involved them.
Unlike Harry Potter, she did not excel at sports, but like Harry, she did suffer
a broken arm, although she did this playing netball rather than quidditch.
Joanne was popular and became Head Girl.
Joanne then read French and
Classics at Exeter University, although she would have preferred to have studied
her favourite subject, English. However, her parents did not think that there
was much that you could do with an English degree. Joanne’s mother was also
half-French, so this probably influenced her choice of study. One of the
advantages of the French course was that it involved a year of living in Paris.
After university, Joanne worked as a researcher and bilingual secretary for
Amnesty International in London, where Joanne spent perhaps too much time
sneakily writing up stories on the computer. However, one could argue that the
prisoners of conscience were not neglected that much, as apparently the Harry
Potter books are now the favourite reading material for the prisoners of
Guantanamo Bay.
In 1990, Joanne and her then
boyfriend decided to move to Manchester together. It was while she was on a
delayed train back to London that Joanne began to dream about a boy wizard who
didn’t know that he was a wizard. However, on December 30th 1990,
Joanne’s mother died after suffering from Multiple Sclerosis for 10 years.
Joanne was devastated, and moved to Portugal soon after, where she taught
English as a foreign language. Joanne’s mourning for her mother made its way
into the Harry Potter manuscript that she was working on, and is most noticeable
in Joanne’s favourite chapter from “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” –
“The Mirror of Erised”. While in
Oporto, Joanne met and married a Portuguese journalist, Jorge Arantes. The
marriage did not last, but had resulted in the birth of Joanne’s first baby, a
daughter. Mother and child moved close to Joanne’s sister in Edinburgh in 1994.
Joanne knew that she would have to
start teaching again soon to earn some money, and this motivated her into
completing “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone”, even though she sometimes
hated the process. But she had to do it or else it would not be completed. The
first agent she sent her synopsis to sent it back almost immediately. The next
agent she sent it to did want to see the rest of the manuscript. Joanne had
chosen this agent because she liked the name – “Christopher Little” – and the
letter the agent sent back was appropriately little, being only 2 lines long. It
took the agent over a year to find a publisher, but he rang Joanne in 1996 to
inform her that Bloomsbury had made an offer. Bloomsbury decided that the target
audience of young boys might be put off from reading a book by a female writer,
so they suggested that Joanne use 2 initials rather than her first name. Joanne
does not have a middle name, so she plumped for “Kathleen”, which was her
grandmother’s name. So, “J. K. Rowling” was born. “Harry Potter and the
Philosopher’s Stone” was published in 1997.
The success of the book can be
marked by the fact that the American rights were bought by Scholastic for over
100,000.00 US dollars. This allowed Joanne to concentrate on writing full time,
giving up her job as a part-time teacher at Leith Academy. It won the Smarties
Book Prize Gold Medal for ages 9-11, and won the Children’s Book of the Year at
the British Book Awards. The US edition, re-titled “Harry Potter and the
Sorcerer’s Stone”, was released in 1998. “Harry Potter and the Chamber of
Secrets” was released in 1998, and I can remember the buzz surrounding Harry
Potter when I worked at a bookstore at this time. “Harry Potter and the Prisoner
of Azkaban” was released in 1999, occasioning the first of the legendary
Amazon.co.uk Harry Potter days, in which I participated. All 3 books stubbornly
occupied the top 3 places on The New York Times Bestseller List for months.
“Azkaban” won J K Rowling her 3rd Smarties Prize, and she admirably
requested that she not be nominated again, to give other authors a chance.
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” followed in 2000. 2001 saw the publication
of “Quidditch through the ages” and “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”, 2
booklets which raised money for Comic Relief. There would be no new Harry Potter
novels though, for 3 years. However, fans were kept amused by the release of the
films – “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” in 2001, and “Harry Potter
and the Chamber of Secrets” in 2002. To add further mystery to the release of
the next book, its title was kept secret. “Harry Potter and the Order of the
Phoenix” was released in 2003. “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” – the
best movie from the best book in the series – was released in 2004. The next
book, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”, was published in 2005. The next
film, “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”, will also be released in 2005. In
2005, J. K. Rowling was named the most “influential woman” in the UK by Forbes
Magazine. She was awarded an OBE in 2001. The title of Harry Potter book 7 has
been revealed as “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”. Joanne Rowling lives in
Scotland with her husband and 3 children.
I miss my mother so much
– J. K. Rowling’s account of her mother’s death from MS. It includes a detailed
account of how her mother met her father. J. K. Rowling is patron of the MS
Society, Scotland. More people in Scotland suffer from MS per head than any
other nation
My girl J.K. – J. K. Rowling’s father writes about their relationship
J. K. Rowling tells the
story of her life – more about J. K. Rowling’s early attempts at fiction,
and her time at school
From Mr Darcy to Harry Potter by way of Lolita – J K Rowling writes about
her favourite books
The trailer for “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” has been released – view it here
Rock star Marilyn Manson has criticised Harry Potter at the Kerrang Awards in
London. On picking up his award for ‘Icon of the Year’, Manson said: “I
get blamed for being bad but this kid is practicing witchcraft from a very early
age which is totally unacceptable”. I’m sure Marilyn Manson would love to have a
fan base amongst kids, but he just hasn’t got it. 28/08/05.
Film director and former Python Terry Gilliam has revealed that he was J. K.
Rowling’s original choice to direct the Harry Potter films. And he doesn’t like
how these movies were filmed: “I
was the perfect guy to do Harry Potter. I remember leaving the meeting, getting
in my car, and driving for about two hours along Mulholland Drive just so angry…
Chris Columbus' versions are terrible. Just dull. Pedestrian." 29/08/05.
Jim Hill Media
has a report from a former Disney insider who says that Mickey missed the
opportunity to acquire the North American publication rights for Harry Potter.
The anonymous author says that the Disney executive who passed on Harry Potter
in the late 90s, Lisa Holton, has now joined Scholastic (who do hold the North
American rights). The anonymous author speculates that Disney may be planning to
acquire the Harry Potter North American rights by purchasing Scholastic itself.
Daniel Radcliffe is rumoured to be one of the candidates to star as James Bond
in a movie adaptation of Charlie Higson’s novel “Silverfin”. 08/09/2005
J. K. Rowling has asked fans to lobby eBay to stop them listing Harry Potter
items with forged signatures. Signed copies of the latest novel are especially
rare. 09/09/2005
J. K. Rowling has authorised all 6 novels to be available as digital audio
downloads from iTunes (www.itunes.com).
10/09/2005
Katie Leung, who plays Cho Chang in the forthcoming “Harry Potter and the Goblet
of Fire” movie, has revealed that she has been the subject of hate websites from
jealous girls. 10/09/2005
Harry Potter publishers Bloomsbury have announced that their pre-tax profits for
the first half of the year are up by 12.4 percent. Year end profits should not
be less than £20 million. Sales of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” will
be accounted for in the figures for the second half of the year. The latest
novel in the series sold more than 2 million copies in the first 24 hours.
14/09/2005
Pupils at Rupert Grint’s school have been advised that they risk detention if
they keep pestering him for autographs. Rupert is famous for portraying Ron
Weasley in the Harry Potter films. 19/09/2005
“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” has won the US Best Seller Award for
books for the year of 2005, despite having only gone on sale two weeks before
the closing date. Over 600,000 copies have been sold in the US, selling nearly 3
times as many as its nearest competitor, Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code”. The
strong performance of the novel also helped Scholastic, Harry Potter’s US
publisher, drop its losses down to $21million from $50million a year ago.
23/09/2005
Scots actor Robert Carlyle has said that he would never appear in a Harry Potter
movie, saying that it would sicken him. Meanwhile Warner Bros have started
casting for “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”, which will be directed
by David Yates. It is due to be released in June 2007. 30/09/2005.
Contrary to Robert Carlyle, British actress Anna Friel has said that they would
love to be in a Harry Potter movie. The former Brookside actress said that she
would especially like to play Nymphadora Tonks, Professor Lupin’s lover in
“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”. Indeed, Anna Friel could be said to
be already playing this part, since her real life lover is David Thewlis, who
plays Professor Lupin in the films. Anna Friel is currently starring in the
movie “Goal”. 03/10/2005.
Ralph Fiennes says that life will never be the same again after accepting the
role of Voldemort in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”. “People come up to
me and ask if I’m really ‘he who must not be named’.” He regards the role as his
biggest ever. 03/10/2005.
The Harry
Potter series of books have now sold in excess of 300 million copies.
CBC
have reported that “Wyrd Sisters”, a Canadian folk group, is suing Warner Bros
along with Radiohead and Pulp for $40 million, and are trying to prevent the
distribution of the movie “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” in Canada.
Members of Radiohead and Pulp play members of a fictional band called “Wyrd
Sisters” in the film. The name of the band is apparently not mentioned in the
film. CBC states that in “their
statement of claim the Winnipeg group said the movie infringes on their
trademark rights and will damage their reputation.”
This is what happened according to the “Wyrd Sisters” webpage: “It
all started with a phone call recently from a warner bros lawyer. The fellow
said: ‘We're making a big movie and putting together a band of famous musicians
together called the wyrd sisters. We're going to make a big splash, sound tracks
the whole shebang! So... you don't want our army of lawyers shutting down your
girls' band... sign this piece of paper and we'll give you $5000.’…Here's the
way it is. We said no. It is our name. We own it. We're not about to be
threatened into giving up our name. And Warner Bros has no business making a
movie with a band with our name in it without at least some simple courtesy.”
However, to make things more complicated, it has to be observed that the
first person to use “The Wyrd Sisters” as a title was that other British author
of comic fantasy, Terry Pratchett. “Wyrd Sisters” is the title of a novel in
Terry Pratchett’s Discworld series, published in 1988, 2 years before the
formation of the “Wyrd Sisters” band.
03/10/2005
"Shadowmancer" author G. P. Taylor was asked to leave a comprehensive that he
was talking at when he mentioned the words "bum", "bogey", "crap", and "pee" and
also referred to Harry Potter as not "the only gay in the village".
Headteacher Barbara Vann said "His language was going to go even further
but he stopped himself. He started to use the F-word and that is not acceptable
in a school environment." However,
G. P. Taylor said that he had described TV as being "crap" in comparison to
books, and used the word bogey whilst talking about "Fungus the Bogeyman", an
established children's classic. G. P. Taylor is also an ordained priest, so must
be well practiced to the art of inoffensive public speaking. Besides, he has
given the same talk at many other schools without any objections. With regards
to the remark about Harry Potter being "the only gay in the village", G. P.
Taylor had accurately assessed that his audience of 12 to 13 year olds would be
familiar with this catchphrase from TV's "Little Britain". 06/10/2005.
The security guard who stole 2 copies of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood
Prince” from a Corby distribution centre appeared in court yesterday.
He admitted stealing the books and possessing an imitation firearm.
Still at issue however, is whether Aaron Lambert actually pointed the
imitation firearm at a reporter.
Aaron had tried to sell the books to national newspapers.
A date has yet to be set for the next hearing of the case.
Meanwhile, a Harry Potter fan in Germany has been arrested for stealing 6
copies of the recently released German edition of “Harry Potter and the
Half-Blood”. The 24 year old man stole
the books from a shop in Hanover railway station, and finding it a bit difficult
to run with the 6 large books, he stormed into another shop to demand a carrier
bag. He punched a shopper in the
face who protested at his rudeness.
The thief threatened to kill anybody who got in his way.
He was not armed, and was finally apprehended by the police.
He told the police that he just could not wait to find out who the
half-blood prince was. 10/10/2005.
J. K. Rowling has won 2 Quills Awards for “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood
Prince”. She won the book of the
year category, and best children’s chapter book.
“You’ve made a sleep-deprived mother very happy,” said J. K. Rowling in
her acceptance speech. The awards
were voted for by the reading public.
Since this was the first time they were awarded, public awareness was not
quite as high as it could have been. The ceremony will be broadcast on October
22nd by NBC. 11/10/2005
Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has admitted that he is nervous about seeing
his nude screen in the forthcoming “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”.
Daniel is actually only topless in the scene, as he “had
a pair of flesh-coloured underwear on which was just like really something you'd
never want to wear!” 12/10/2005
Matt Lewis, who plays Neville Longbottom in the movies, has done an interview
with
Harry Potter’s page.
15/10/2005
Emma Watson, who plays Hermione in the films, has said that her schedule is so
busy, she has no time to see boys.
Living 2 hours away from the Harry Potter studios in Oxford, she has to get up
at 6 in the morning and gets home at 9 for 11 months of the year, due to the
films being shot back-to-back. When she’s away from the studios, the priority is
catching up on schoolwork, playing sport, and seeing friends and family. She
says, “It's
restricting. Long hours. I miss my family a lot… But if I had the chance to do
it again, in a million years I would always say yes. I'm so lucky.” 18/10/2005.
However, Emma Watson has now revealed that she’s fed up of the sexual tension
between Hermione and Ron in the films. She said, “Hermione
and Ron have got to get it together, it's been going on for so long now.”
26/10/2005
It’s been announced that British actress Imelda Staunton will play Professor
Umbridge in the movie of “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”. Imelda
Staunton recently received an Oscar nomination for her stunning performance as
the title character in the movie “Vera Drake”. “Harry Potter and the Order of
the Phoenix” will be directed by David Yates, and is due to be released in June
2007. 20/10/2005
Pulp front man Jarvis Cocker is disappointed that J. K. Rowling has vetoed a
commercial release of the songs he wrote for the upcoming movie “Harry Potter
and the Goblet of Fire”. Which is probably just as well, considering that Warner
Bros lawyers are already embroiled in a legal battle with a Canadian band over
the use of “The Wyrd Sisters” name. British film censors have also announced
that the movie will be given a certificate “12A” rather than the “PG” awarded to
previous films, due to the fact that Harry’s adventures are getting more scary
as he gets older. 23/10/2005
J. K. Rowling missed the first private viewing of the movie “Harry Potter and
the Goblet of Fire”, as she looked after her husband following his operation for
appendicitis. 26/10/2005
Daniel Radcliffe has said that he wants Harry Potter to die in the final film:
“I
think it would be a very good ending if he had to die in order for evil
Voldemort to die… (but) I wouldn't want it to be sentimental. I don't like
sentimental ends to books or films.” Radcliffe has also hinted that he may not
appear in the last 2 films, but we at Authortrek.com think that this is about as
likely as Ewan McGregor not appearing in Star Wars Episodes II and III (i.e. not
very likely). 27/10/2005
One of the Ford Anglias used in the filming of “Harry Potter and the Chamber of
Secrets” has been stolen from a Cornwall film studio. The car did not have an
engine, so it must have been towed away. The police are unsure as to the
motivations of the thief. 29/10/2005
At rare book sale, Harry Potter is set aside literary giants
– an interesting article by Michael Kunzelman about collecting rare Harry Potter
books
“The
Sunday Times”
has an interview with Patrick Doyle, who has done the music for “Harry Potter
and the Goblet of Fire”.
Screenwriter Steve Kloves to return to “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”
– latest movie news. 30/10/2005
2.5 million copies of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” have remained
unsold in the US, as struggling publisher Scholastic misjudged demand, and
printed too many copies. The firm now fears that they will be faced with an
avalanche of copies returned by bookstores. The firm has earned $600m from the
Harry Potter franchise, but misjudgements like this have prevented it from
maximising the profit. There were reports earlier in the year that Disney might
buy the North American rights for the Harry Potter series by purchasing
Scholastic. 30/10/2005
Growing up Potter
– an excellent profile of the young stars of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of
Fire”
Harry Potter has been named the greatest screen fantasy hero of all time in a
poll held by the Sci-Fi Channel. 1,500 people took part in the poll, which was
held to mark the channel’s 10th birthday. 31/10/2005
Warner Brothers’ official Harry Potter website has issued a warning to fans to
beware of scam emails that are currently in circulation. These emails inform the
recipients that they have been selected to take part in the casting process for
the movie of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”, and implies that J. K.
Rowling is in charge of the casting sessions herself. Eagle-eyed readers will
have spotted that the next Harry Potter movie to be made will be “Harry Potter
and the Order of the Phoenix”. The spelling in the emails suggests an American
origin, and the emails tantalise the readers further by saying filming will take
place in London, Spain and Greece. The hoax email even suggests that the casting
session may inspire J. K. Rowling to create new characters! The email then goes
on to ask for personal details. Warner Brothers say: “This is to advise that
Warner Brothers Entertainment Inc. does not engage in casting activity through
e-mail. These e-mails are fraudulent, and you should not respond to any such
e-mail. Feel free to forward any such messages to anti-piracy@warnerbros.com,
and we will do our best to investigate the fraudulent activity.”03/11/2005
The Superior Court of Ontario has thrown out the petition by the folk group “The
Wyrd Sisters”
to block the release of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” in Canada.
05/11/2005
J. K. Rowling didn’t attend the premiere of “Harry Potter and the Goble of Fire”
due to a family illness. 07/11/2005
The Hindu News
has an interesting interview with Shefali Chowduhry and Afshan Azad, who are
playing the Patil twins in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”. 08/11/2005
KillerMovies
has an interview with Katie Leung and Stanislav Lanevski, who plays Viktor Krum.
Growing up magically: Harry Potter stars mature with their characters
– the Boston Herald’s account of a “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” press
conference
‘Potter’ actors offer suggestions to Rowling
– Daniel Fienberg’s fine interview with the stars. 18/11/2005
Wizard! Harry Potter star is richest teen
– “The Sunday Times” story about Daniel Radcliffe becoming Britain’s richest
teenager
Kangaroo Island kids to act with Harry Potter star
– an ABC News story about the filming of Daniel Radcliffe’s next movie,
“December Boys”.
Radcliffe Embarks on Life without Potter
features an interview with Daniel as he starts to film this new movie.
Harry Potter star says latest movie deserved its restrictive rating
– another interview with Daniel Radcliffe in Australia
Two contrasting stories today about Christianity’s reaction to Harry Potter.
Emma Watson,
amongst other Harry Potter stars, has been given bibles by Christians trying to
point out the error of her ways. In contrast, the
Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines
has recommended the film of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”, despite its
depiction of witchcraft.
Looking for God in Harry Potter
also deals with this issue. 23/11/2005
Harry Potter starlet is a big hit in China
– a news story about Katie Leung’s promotional tour of China. 24/11/2005
JK’s gift is just magic
– how J. K. Rowling sent a signed first edition of “Harry Potter and the
Half-Blood Prince” to one of her fans to raise money at a charity auction.
26/11/2005
Harry Potter movie writer skips ahead to write “Prince”
– a profile of the Harry Potter screenwriter, Steve Cloves. 26/11/2005
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” has been beamed to the International Space
Museum especially for Commander William McArthur. Meanwhile, on Earth, the
success of the Harry Potter series has led to sales of science fiction and
fantasy books leaping by 8.5% in the last 5 years, as Harry’s readers get older.
28/11/2005
The release of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” has been the most
successful of all the movies so far, having taken over $400 million after its 2nd
weekend internationally, with half of that tally coming from North America.
28/11/2005
Mother Nature is the favourite amongst the betting community to take the title
of Time Magazine’s “Person of the Year”. Time does not always name a person or
event that has had a positive effect. Terrorist
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is currently 3rd favourite, with J.K. Rowling 2nd
favourite. Lance Armstrong, Pope John Paul II, and Bono are also considered to
be in the running. 29/11/2005
BBC Radio 4 will broadcast a half hour interview with J. K. Rowling and Stephen
Fry on the morning of Saturday December 10th. The programme is called
“Living with Harry Potter”. 30/11/2005
“Harry Potter” was mentioned in 5% of all blog posts in 2005, beating George W.
Bush, who only featured in 3% of blog posts. 12/01/2005
WebIndia123
has reported that J. K. Rowling is considering using a pseudonym for a non-Harry
Potter children’s book that she wants to write. Although, this will probably be
a waste of time, as I’ve no doubt that it will not be a secret for long.
03/12/2005
J. K. Rowling reveals her trial by burglars and drunks
– “The Sunday Times” report on the introduction J. K. Rowling wrote for “One
City” about her life in Edinburgh before fame and fortune. 04/12/2005
Jim Dale, who narrates the US Harry Potter audio books, has said that J. K.
Rowling wants to kill off Harry at the end of the 7th book. However,
Arthur Conan Doyle attempt to kill off Sherlock Holmes was unsuccessful, so the
portents are still good for the young wizard. 06/12/2005
Harry Potter offered new tax breaks to stay in UK
– a story from “The Guardian” about how new tax breaks offered by UK Chancellor
Gordon Brown will help persuade Hollywood films to shoot in the UK. 06/12/2005
Excerpts from J. K. Rowling Interview
– as revealed by “The Leaky Cauldron”. 06/12/2005
Walters returning for Harry Potter 5
– Comingsoon.net reports that Mrs. Weasley will be in “Harry Potter and the
Order of the Phoenix”. 08/12/2005
Rowling to treat kids to a handmade Christmas
– J. K. Rowling has commissioned artist David Plagerson to make 3 Noah’s Arks
for her kids. I guess they now know what they’re getting for Christmas!
09/12/2005
“Living with Harry Potter” transcript and audio
– J. K. Rowling’s radio interview as presented by “The Harry Potter News
Aggregator”
“The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe” has knocked
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” off the top of the US box office.
12/12/2005
Hurricanes and Harry Potter
– “The Book Standard” reports that Harry Potter sales were not enough to save US
publisher Scholastic from a poor quarter. 16/12/2005.
J. K. Rowling has been named “Time for Kids” Person of the Year. U2’s Bono and
Bill and Melinda Gates were jointly named “Time” magazine’s Person of the Year.
18/12/2005
Harry Potter wants a shot at direction
– newindpress.com reports that Daniel Radcliffe would like to direct a film when
he is older. 21/12/2005
Dream Park for Potter
– “The Daily Record” reports that Disney want to build a Harry Potter theme park
in Singapore. 22/12/2005
Tabloid Breached J. K. Rowling’s Privacy
– a story regarding the UK’s “Daily Mirror”. 22/12/2005
J. K. Rowling was has been given a Jim Henson Celebration Honor.
"By encouraging audiences of all ages to rediscover the magic of books and
reading, Ms. Rowling has truly made this world a better place," said Brian
Henson, son of the late Muppet creator. 22/12/2005
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” was the most successful film in the UK in
2005, making £43m so far, £4m more than “Star Wars: Episode III”. It only has to
make £3m more to overtake the movie of “The Prisoner of Azkaban”. 23/12/2005
Harry Potter cast a spell on accident-prone kids
– a story from “The Jerusalem Post” about how kids are less prone to injury in
the weeks following the release of a Harry Potter book. 23/12/2005
The place where J. K. Rowling wrote the early parts of Harry Potter will be
recognised by a blue plaque. J. K. Rowling wrote at Nicolson’s coffee shop in
Edinburgh. The coffee shop has now been converted to a Chinese restaurant.
24/12/2005
Ralph Fiennes has agreed to play Voldemort in the final, as-yet-to-be-named
Harry Potter adventure. 23/12/2005
McFly blast Harry Potter star Radcliffe
– a story from Digital Spy, which relates that the band McFly are upset about
comments that Daniel Radcliffe has made about them. 24/12/2005
Will Harry meet his maker in final chapter
– “The Scotsman” relates J. K. Rowling comments that the next book may well see
the death of Harry Potter. She will write the next book in 2006. 27.12.2005
Harry Potter Book 7 on July 7, 2007
– “The Harry Potter News Aggregator” speculates that the final Harry Potter book
will be released on 07/07/07. 27/12/2005
According to
HindustanTimes.com,
J.K. Rowling has been accused of being a "Scrooge" by fundraisers at the
Easterleigh Animal Sanctuary for turning down their request for a signed edition
of "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" for a charity auction. However, it
must be said that J. K. Rowling is well-known for her charitable endeavors, so
labeling her as a "Scrooge" is extremely unfair. J. K. Rowling, like anybody
else, has every right to pick and choose which charities she contributes to.
03/01/2006.
J. K. Rowling updates her diary with new resources
– Harry Potter’s page gives details of J. K Rowling’s New Year Resolutions,
including “Be ruthless about protecting writing days”, as she is no doubt
endlessly distracted by outside petitions to do this and that. 06/01/2006
“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” was officially the biggest selling book
of 2005 in the US, selling a total of 7.2m copies, 4.1m sold by and on day of
publication. 08/01/2006.
Harry Potter was born the day my mother died
– “The Telegraph” reports on a J. K. Rowling interview in “The Tatler”.
10/01/2005
Harry Potter star goes back to school for a spell
– “The Yorkshire Post” profiles Matthew Lewis (aka Neville Longbottom).
10/01/2005
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” is now the highest grossing 2-D IMAX of
all time, having grossed more than $16m so far. 11.01.2006.
Harry Potter 5 casting
– CinemaBlend.com reports that Warner Bros. are looking for an actress to play
Luna Lovegood. 11/01/2006.
A signed first edition of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” has raised
£4,500 in an auction for the Peace Hospice, a charity which cares for terminally
ill patients and their families in South West Hertfordshire. 11/01/2006.
Potter magic helps Bloomsbury amass £50m cash
– a report from “The Financial Times”. “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”
had sold 2.8m copies by the end of 2005. 12/01/2006.
J. K. Rowling may come to Romania
– “The Bucharest Daily News” reports that J. K. Rowling is due to attend a
charity function hosted by Baroness Emma Nicholson 12/01/2006.
Harry Potter star joins EastEnders
– a profile of Tiana Benjamin, who is the Gryffindor Quidditch captain Angelina
Johnson in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”, and who is due to play Denise
Fox in EastEnders. 12/01/2006.
Rowling keeps tabs on spending
– a story from Lycos. 12/01/2006.
Hunt for Harry Potter girl draw thousands
– the search for an actress to play Luna Lovegood. 15/01/2006.
Student Harry Potter stars cost film bosses millions
– when Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson sit their exams this summer. 15/01/2006.
Lourdes banned from Harry Potter audition
– by mother Madonna. 17/01/2006.
One of the girls queuing up for the Luna Lovegood audition, April Waterman, says
that she was told by the production crew that she would not be allowed to
audition because she was from Essex. However Vanessa Davies from Harry Potter
Productions told “The Daily Mirror” that she “may
have overheard someone who was not part of the production say it. I don't know
where this has come from, not from anybody in our organisation”. 19/01/2006.
Man jailed for Potter theft
– “The Guardian” report on the jailing of Aaron Lambert
Potter movie magic for country girl
– will Jessica Hoggins snap up the part of Luna Lovegood? 20/01/2006.
E-mail scammers target Harry Potter hopefuls
– apparently the fraudsters ask kids for thousands of dollars for tuition
training to help them appear in the Harry Potter movies. 25/01/2006.
Harry Potter star dreams of shooting with Jolie
– a profile of Stanislav Ianevski, who played Viktor Krum. 25/01/2006.
Potter magic helps orphans
– J. K. Rowling helped raise over 170,000 euros for Romanian orphans.
27/01/2006.
Videos from Rowling’s trip to Romania
– 27/01/2006.
J.K. Rowling donates Black family tree to Book Aid
– more evidence of J. K. Rowling’s charity work. 28/01/2006.
George Harris will play Kingsley Shacklebolt in “Harry Potter and the Order of
the Phoenix”. Shacklebolt is employed by the Ministry of Magic as a Dark Wizard
catcher and is a member of the Order of the Phoenix, set up in order to fight
Voldemort. Robbie Jarvis has been cast as the young James Potter, who Harry sees
via Professor Snape’s memory. 30/01/2006
J.K. Rowling to guest at Queen’s party
- J. K. Rowling and Daniel Radcliffe will be some of the guests attending a
special event to celebrate the Queen’s 80th birthday on June 25th.
01/02/2006.
“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” begins filming on Monday next week.
14-year-old Evanna Lynch has won the role of Luna Lovegood. She comes from
Termonfeckin, Co Louth. She’s such a fan of Harry Potter that she once left a
hospital bed to queue up for a signed copy of “Order of the Phoenix”.
02/02/2006.
Harry Potter fan site “The
Leaky Cauldron”
won the People’s Choice Category in the Yahoo! Search Awards 2005. 02/02/2006.
Harry Potter: ‘I was the first Artic Monkeys Fan’
– Daniel Radcliffe claims to have been their number 001 fan. 03/02/2006.
J. K. Rowling: My Fight to Save Caged Children
– a Sunday Times report on her campaign against the practice of keeping children
in cages in Eastern European mental hospitals. 05/02/2006.
Ralph Fiennes’ new found love for Harry Potter flicks
– a report from newkerala.com. 05/02/2006.
Rowling Rat Love
– “The Daily Record” reports on J. K. Rowling’s love of rats. 06/02/2006.
Son of Dork to kick Harry Potter’s Ass
– Daniel Radcliffe comments on music get him into trouble again. 08/02/2006.
Warner Bros. have confirmed that Gary Oldman will play Sirius Black in “Harry
Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”, and that David Thewlis will be reprising
his role as Remus Lupin. Susie Shinner will play Lily, Harry’s mother as a
teenager. 08/02/2006.
Other casting details have been announced: Sian Thomas will play Amelia Bones,
Jason Boyd will play Piers Polkiss, Richard Macklin will play Malcolm, Robbie
Jarvis will play the young James Potter, Richard Leaf will play Auror Dawlish,
Nick Shim will play Zacharias Smith, and Charlie Hughes will play young
Wormtail. 13/02/2006.
Trainspotter
- J. K. Rowling has enlisted the help of actors Robert Carlyle and Neil Morissey
to help run an auction for the charity MS Scotland. 19/02/2006
J. K. Rowling backs expert in fight for Romanian children
– a report about the charity Children’s High Level Group. 20/02/2006
Wilsona axes Harry Potter
– school district trustees in a US town remove Harry Potter, amongst other
titles, from an approved reading list. 21/02/2006
Daniel Radcliffe paid £30,000.00 for the family tree of Sirius Black, which J.
K. Rowling drew by hand. All proceeds from the charity auction went to Book Aid
International, which provides books for schools in Africa. Daniel’s mother,
Marcia Gresham, bid on Daniel’s behalf. 22/02/2006
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” has joined the first 2 Harry Potter movies
in the top 5 movies of all time by taking more than $600m at the international
box office. 25/02/2006
J. K. Rowling has written on her webpage that she has a plan for the final Harry
Potter book, but she’s finding that what she planned for Harry to do in one
chapter, requires more than one chapter when it is actually written. She’s
hoping that the final book will not be as long as “Order of the Phoenix”… She’s
also attacked an article in a British newspaper which reported that while
attending a Brazilian literary festival, she bought a holiday home, with Mick
Jagger as her new neighbour… Except that J. K. Rowling has never been to Brazil!
28/02/2006
The director of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”, Alfonso Cuaro, has
said that he would like to return to the franchise in the future, also saying “I
can tell you that I spent the most beautiful two years of my life doing Harry
Potter. Everything around the J.K. Rowling product is surrounded by this very
beneficial energy”. 01/03/2006
J. K. Rowling “lures kids to Satan”
– these are the views of the Roman Catholic Church’s chief excorcist, Father
Gabriele Amorth, as reported by contactmusic.com. 01/03/2006
Are you the next J. K. Rowling?
– the UK newspaper, “The Sun”, launches its competition to find a writing
genius, to be judged by Jane Moore and Jeremy Clarkson. 02/03/2006
Robbie Coltrane and Imelda Staunton (who will play Professor Umbridge in the
movie of “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”) have both been awarded
OBEs by the Queen. 02/03/2006
J. K. Rowling has been placed 746th in the “Forbes Magazine” annual
list of billionaires. 09/03/2006
The DVD of “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” sold 5 million copies on its
day of release in the US, although the record is held by “Finding Nemo”, which
sold 8 million copies on its first day. 10/03/2006
“The Sunday Times” has reported that J. K. Rowling has signed a lease for a
holiday home in the Hamptons, which is east of New York, and much favoured by
America’s wealthy and celebrities. 12/03/2006.
More “Potter 5” filming details
– Dark Horizons reports on the filming of “Harry Potter and the Order of the
Phoenix”, with quotes from Daniel Radcliffe and producer David Heyman. The film
is due for release in 2007. 14/03/2006
The Harry Potter movie franchise has won the award for outstanding contribution
to the British film industry at the “Empire” Film Awards. 14/03/2006
Daniel Radcliffe is set for his first on-screen kiss, as the script of “Harry
Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” requires him to snog co-star Katie Leung.
Daniel says that he will be embarrassed as one of his parents will be on set,
but that
“I
will probably keep screwing it up so that I can keep doing it.” 16/03/2006
J. K. Rowling’s charity ball at Stirling Castle raised more than £200,000 for
Multiple Sclerosis Society Scotland. 18/03/2006
J. K. Rowling has painted a ceramic egg to be auctioned on behalf of Multiple
Sclerosis Scotland. The auction will be held at the Jam House in Queen Street,
Edinburgh. 22/03/2006
It’s been confirmed that Gary Oldman will return to play Sirius Black in “Harry
Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”. We never reported doubts that he would
appear, as it always seemed a foregone conclusion to us. 23/03/2006
“Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” has become the fastest selling DVD in the
UK ever, and with 1.4 million copies sold so far, it’s the 7th
biggest selling DVD movie of all time. 27/03/2006
J. K. Rowling will appear on the Richard & Judy show sometime in June or July.
27/03/2006.
“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” has been named Book of the Year at the
British Book Awards. J. K. Rowling said that the writing of the last book was
“coming along nicely”. 29/03/2006
J. K. Rowling’s hand-painted ceramic egg was sold for £2,600.00. The auction
raised almost £30,000.00 for Multiple Sclerosis Society Scotland. 31/03/2006
Harry Potter to boost Bloomsbury “for years”
– Saeed Shah’s report for “The Independent” about how Bloomsbury sees Harry
Potter making money for them in the future, despite the final book looming on
the horizon. The company had a 15% rise in annual net profit, helped by the
release of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”, which broke sales records
for the company. 05/04/2006
Rowling: Get me some paper!
– CNN reports on J. K. Rowling’s difficulties with getting holding of writing
paper in Edinburgh. 05/04/2006
Harry Potter Creator’s Fears for her Daughters
– “The Irish Examiner” reports on comments made by J. K. Rowling on her webpage
about super-thin models. 06/04/2006
The movie of “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phonenix” will be released on
July 13th 2007. 05/04/2006
Daniel Radcliffe is due to star in an episode of the second season of Ricky
Gervais’s “Extras”. 10/04/2006