Good news for Team Starkid fans in Michigan! "A Very Potter Sequel" will be performed live May 14-16. Not in Michigan? Don't fear. A recorded version of the show will play at Infinitus this July in Orlando, Florida. The stars of the musical will then hold a panel and have live performances of their songs.
Team Starkid, the makers of the original YouTube hit "A Very Potter Musical," made the announcement via Twitter.
Are you going to check it out at Infinitus? Thanks to everyone who emailed in!
Likely to tie in with her upcoming episodes from Universal Orlando, The Ellen Dengeres Show has announced that they are looking for kids "who know everything about Harry Potter":
Do you have a precocious child who knows everything there is to know about Harry Potter books and movies? Is talking about Harry Potter his or her favorite subject? If so, we want to hear about them! Click here to tell us about your little wizard.
You can fill out the submission form on this page. The page doesn't explicitly state any age limit - so everyone should feel free to apply!
British television station ITN caught up with Bill Nighy - the actor who plays Scrimgeour in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - at an event the other day while he promoted his new film Wild Target.
In it, Bill spoke about working with Deathly Hallows cast and crew.
Watch the small interview bit here on YouTube!
We're in a very slow news period. So much so, we've been forced to post this very trivial story.
Variety is reporting that ABC Family will be airing Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in late 2011:
Deal continues a relationship between ABC Family and Warner Bros. Domestic TV Distribution, which sold the title to the channel. ABC Family also has the rights to the first six "Harry Potter" features, via WBDTD, with "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" set to air in late 2011.
Read more at this link. Thanks to Daniel for the tip!
NBC Universal has passed along a high-res photo of the Hogwarts Express from The Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure. A full description can be read below:
"The Hogwarts Express arrives at Hogsmeade Station as The Wizarding World of Harry Potter continues to develop at Universal Orlando Resort. As guests enter Hogsmeade, they will be greeted by the iconic, smoke-billowing steam engine, made famous in the Harry Potter books and films for transporting students to a world of magic and wonder. Opening in Spring 2010 only at Universal Orlando Resort, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will feature multiple themed attractions, shops and a restaurant."
For everything we have on the theme park, check out our Wizarding World section.
We'll be getting an inside look at the making of Universal Orlando's Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park in just three months.
NBC has announced that they'll be airing a "Making of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter" special on Sunday, June 6th.
No details about the special have been announced. The Hollywood Reporter only says it is "a sneak peak".
We'll have more details if any are announced. We'll also remind you about its airing in June!
March has arrived, as has a brand new episode of our Harry Potter podcast! Join Ben, Jamie, Eric, Micah and I for another great episode as we discuss the latest news, continue our Chapter by Chapter series, bring back Make the Music Connection, and much more:
- Finally, some Deathly Hallows information straight from the stars!
- Ben smells scandal all over the JK Rowling/Stephenie Meyer Oscar invite and subsequent turn down.
- Chapter by Chapter this week covers Chapters 7 - 9 of Prisoner of Azkaban.
- We talk boggarts, Snape's anger, house points, Crookshanks VS Scabbers, Harry's protection, and much more.
- Make the Music Connection returns - each host connects a Top 40 song to Harry Potter.
All that and a LOT more can be heard by downloading! Refresh your iTunes Podcast section to get the latest episode. If you haven't subscribed (for free), click here! No iPod or MP3 player needed!
You can also visit the MuggleCast website to listen right within your browser, or to download the MP3 file to your desktop.
The Harry Potter series has topped a poll of books British people are most likely to pass on to the next generation, according to the BBC.
The survey of over 1,000 people ages 18 to 64 asked people across Britain what book from the past decade they would pass on. Other books that made the top 10 include The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, Stephenie Meyer's Twilight, You Are What You Eat: The Plan That Will Change Your Life by Dr. Gillian McKeith and Barack Obama's Dreams From My Father.
Thanks to PeteMK!
We have an update today from the Harry Potter Alliance with respect to the Helping Haiti Heal fundraiser held back in January to assist those devastated by the effects of the Haitian earthquake.
The official presentation of the check for $123,754.41 was made by Andrew Slack to Partners in Health representative Jackson Compere. You can read all about it right here.
Additionally, photos from the first plane arriving in Port-au-Prince, appropriately titled "Harry," can be seen below. The plane landed at 8:22 a.m. ET on Wednesday, March 3 with over 16,000 pounds of life-saving medical supplies. Ron and Hermione are scheduled to follow.
- Partners in Health rep with Harry's plane
- Supplies from Harry's plane
- More supplies from Harry's plane
- Supplies with Goblet of Fire book
Thank you again to everybody who contributed!
There are a few new ride details out thanks to a copy of Universal Orlando's 2010 Brochure, found at this link (in PDF format).
- The Flight of the Hippogriff ride will have Hagrid teach you the proper way to approach a Hippogriff. It dives through a pumpkin patch and brings you past Hagrid's Hut. You must be 36 inches (3 feet) tall.
- The Forbidden Journey ride will take you through Hogwarts classrooms and corridors of Hogwarts, then lets you soar above the castle. The minimum height requirement for this ride will be 48 inches (4 feet).
- The Three Broomsticks is described as a "counter service" restaurant, implying that you will pick up your food cafeteria-style.
Thanks to Screamscape for the tip.
Thanks to Carla and Paula for pointing out that Scholastic's official Harry Potter website is currently closed as it gets a revamp. The site reads:
"New Harry Potter Online Experience coming soon! Come back in two weeks to discover the magic of the Harry Potter books and demonstrate your wizarding skills."
In addition to this message, Scholastic has opened "The Real Magic of Harry Potter Sweepstakes"! By entering the contest at this link, you will be entered to win one of four grand prize trips to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park. The contest is only open to those in the US between the ages of 7 and 14. You have until June 1st to enter!
Their contest page also includes a small new video of the park. To view it, click here and then click the "Play Video" button towards the bottom right of the page. It shows a small family experiencing a store with Quidditch supplies.
Finally, there's this small new piece of concept art depicting the Hogsmeade area of the park. Hopefully Universal will release it in high-res soon!
We should be getting an interesting new look at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park at Universal Studios Orlando, as Ellen DeGeneres will be filming a segment in the area later this month.
The Orlando Theme Park Examiner reports:
Ellen DeGeneres (pictured at right) is breezing back to Universal Orlando in the end of March to tape shows that will air on April 1 and 2. Both episodes will be taped on March 28.
While she's there, she will explore the brand-new Wizarding World of Harry Potter which is set to open this spring.
We're not sure how good of a look Ellen will get, but we'll post video of Ellen's visit when it's made available online!
MTV has a new interview online with actor Rhys Ifans, who plays Xenophilius Lovegood, in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. He talks about getting the part, what it was like on set and working with the cast.
"When you're an English actor and you get the 'Harry Potter' call-- it's like Batman, you know? You have a phone, you have a normal phone, and then you have one that is made out of wood. That's the 'Potter' people. They call you up [and] you get your wand out, you put your cloak on and off you go. It's a real honor. It's like getting knighted or something.""You just sit with all these actors you've starved with in the theater... sitting there dressed as wizards [and] having wand-offs. So it's very pleasantly surreal."
Thanks to Tom for the tip!