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Adding to the torrent of great interviews from the grand opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Hollywood this week, SnitchSeeker have posted interviews with Tom Felton and Warwick Davis,  on which attraction they think should be added to the park.

Tom Felton stayed loyal to his character, saying he’d love to see Malfoy Manor, and even said he’d agree if he was asked to be involved in the process of making it!:

“I would like to see Malfoy Manor – obviously a bit biased there. I think it would maybe make a good ghost house or some sort of like spook train or whatever. There’s enough dark sides of that house to scare any child, I think. Yeah, there’s more look forward to. Something tells me this isn’t the end of it.”

On Fantastic Beasts, Tom Felton was confident that the newest venture in the cinematic Wizarding World will live up to Potter fans’ standards:
SnitchSeeker: What are your thoughts about the Fantastic Beasts series? What are you hoping to see, as a fan, as part of the series?
Tom: No expectations. I haven’t thought about it. I know it’s the dream team. You’ve got Heyman, Yates and Rowling back together, so they can’t really do much wrong, I don’t think. I have every faith in their ability to convert Jo’s work to the best of their abilities. I just think it’s exciting that she’s keeping the flame going, in a different sense. She’s creating more content.

SnitchSeeker: What would be your advice to that cast, just coming into this fan base, for Eddie Redmayne and everybody else?
Tom: I don’t think they need to take advice from us. We don’t share any similarities, really. At 9 and 10 years old, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. They know exactly what they’re getting themselves into. And Eddie’s an Oscar-winning actor. The last thing he needs is advice from me.

Tom also spoke about his career choices, and projects he’s currently involved in:

SnitchSeeker: What do you have coming up, project-wise?
Tom: Something released? A few things this year. There’s an animation film called, Sheep & Wolves, there’s a British spy film called, Stratton and a film that I just did with Troian Bellisario, an American drama called, Feed. I have no idea when any of these films will be out, but I know they will be at some point. This year’s going to be mostly commercial.

SnitchSeeker: You pick so many different projects. How do you choose them? What motivates you?
Tom: Just people. I don’t particularly go for character or story. I mean, it all plays a part, but I’m more interested in working with people that I get on well with. I don’t consider the outcome to be the reward or the result. I just purely base it on my experience, and what comes out of it is really neither here nor there to me. If the Harry Potter films were a complete failure, I still would have loved them as much as I did. So yeah, just enjoying the experience.

Watch SnitchSeeker’s video of the interview below, and read the full interview here.

Warwick Davis also told us what he’d add – he takes a dark route, similar to Tom – it’d definitely be interesting to see some sort of haunted mansion-esque ride with the darker places in the Wizarding World featuring somehow!:

SnitchSeeker: If you had a voice in how to expand the Wizarding World here or in Orlando or even Japan, what would you like to see come to life?
Warwick: I would like to see Azkaban. I’m intrigued about what goes on in Azkaban. We hear about it but we never really get a chance to see in Azkaban. So I think that’d be interesting.

SnitchSeeker: How would you envision it?
Warwick: A dark experience, wouldn’t it be? It’d be spooky, kind of like a Haunted Mansion-type thing that they have at Disneyworld. You go through and it’s one of those exploratory rides that takes you through. Lots of shocks and stuff, and really into special effects.

Speaking on Fantastic Beasts and Cursed Child (which Warwick admitted he’d love to have a part in),  Davis seems just as excited as Tom, with all the trust in Jo Rowling and Jack Thorne to give us amazing stories, and links this to the abilities of the theme park to add to the Potter stories in ways we’d never imagined:

SnitchSeeker: So Fantastic Beasts and Cursed Child, it’s basically a new chapter in the entire Wizarding World. What are your thoughts on it – starting with Fantastic Beasts?
Warwick: Fantastic Beasts will, I believe, give us another glimpse into the Wizarding World J.K. Rowling’s imagined. That’s quite exciting, isn’t it? It’ll be a slightly different perspective of that world. I’m looking forward to seeing the movie.

SnitchSeeker: Have you poked J.K. Rowling to get her rolling there? Because we know there are goblins in Fantastic Beasts?
Warwick: You don’t know who to drop hints to, these days. I used to do that with Star Wars. That was my old trick. If there’s a character, I would hope that they would ask me to do something. As I said, I’m just excited that they’re actually going to make some more stuff that gives us another look into that world. 

As do things here in the Wizarding World. Forbidden Journey is a chance to experience further adventures – something you don’t see in the movies. So all of this stuff expands on it. The play in London will also do a little bit more of that, as well. It’ll be a slightly different glimpse into the world.

SnitchSeeker: So what advice would you give to the actors in Fantastic Beasts, as somebody whose been surrounded by millions of fans over the years? They’re about to hit that, as well.
Warwick: They’re certainly going to find it an interesting experience. And one I should imagine they’re preparing themselves for because, obviously, when we made the first Harry Potter film we knew the books were really successful, there were two books out at that point. 

We never had a concept of how successful the movie was going to be. And then the fact that we were going to go and make eight in total. So at this point I imagine they actually have some idea like, “Yeah, this could be pretty huge, this.” But, you never can tell, but they’re always going to be known for being cast members in Fantastic Beasts. That’s what’s going to happen.

In terms of projects he’s working on, Warwick is very secretive – SnitchSeeker try to get us some hints, but to no avail, unfortunately! We look forward to the eventual revealing of his role in films to come:

SnitchSeeker: So what’s coming up for you, project-wise?
Warwick: I’m in loads of stuff at the minute. Much of it I can’t talk about, which is a shame, but rules of secrecy exist quite prominently in the film industry now. There’s lots of exciting things, but stuff I can’t talk about. Sorry.

SnitchSeeker: Possibly back in Star Wars?
Warwick: Again, I couldn’t talk about it.

Again, see SnitchSeeker’s interview with Warwick below, and read the full interview with him here.

Catch more with Tom, Warwick and other Potter actors from the event here and here!

A graduate of London’s Central School of Speech and Drama, 26-year-old Cherrelle Skeete’s appearance on the cast breakdown for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child has raised many questions, mainly due to The Voice reporting that she has ‘a leading role’ in the play. Could Cursed Child have found its Rose Weasley?

The Birmingham-born actress first appeared on the West End in The Lion King in 2012, and in the Olivier-nominated Amen Corner at the National Theatre a year later. Her other theatre appearances can be found here.

Skeete made her TV debut in the BBC series Call the Midwife, and starred in the BBC1 drama Ordinary Lies. She also appeared as Dee Dee in Danny and the Human Zoo, which also starred Evanna Lynch!

According to The Voice, Skeete ran the Paris half-marathon for Children With Cancer, has worked with the Lozells-based Lighthouse Project, which aims to raise awareness of child sexual exploitation.

In January, she spoke at Birmingham Town Hall on her concerns about the increases in shootings in Birmingham, as part of an annual tribute to Martin Luther King Jr, saying:

“This generation out there now needs to be healthy in heart and mind so we can change what is going on out there.

“We need a new generation of young people who can rise up and be anything they want to be – even if it doesn’t yet exist.”

Born in 2006, Rose Weasley should be 11 years old in 2017, when ‘Nineteen Years Later’ should technically be set, meaning she’ll be starting Hogwarts alongside Albus Serverus and Scorpius. This has raised questions about the probability of 26 year old Cherrelle Skeete playing the daughter of Hermione and Ron.

Anthony Boyle was announced as Scorpius Malfoy last month, and at 21 years old, proves that it is certainly not out of the question for Skeete to be portraying Rose Weasley.

She is certainly an amazingly talented actress, and we look forward to seeing if the rumours were true!

Read more about the actress here, and find her Twitter here.

Cursed Child is opening for previews in late May 2016, and for official opening performances in July 2016 at London’s Palace Theatre – bookings are being taken until May 2017!

Fans of Phillip Pullman’s book series His Dark Materials may remember the the 2007 movie adaptation of the first book, called The Golden Compass, and look back with vague disappointment at what we were given, yet a sombre sadness that the movie series was left unfinished.

Now, Phillip Pullman is teaming up with none other than Cursed Child writer Jack Thorne to pen a tv show based on the trilogy!

Hypable reports:

“It is such an honor and a privilege to be given this opportunity to delve into Philip Pullman’s world,” said Thorne in a statement to Deadline. “The His Dark Materials trilogy are vast and glorious books full of beautiful characters and I’m going to work as hard as I can to try and do justice to them.”

“I’m delighted to welcome Jack Thorne as writer on the TV dramatization of His Dark Materials,” added Philip Pullman, who will be an executive producer on the series. “Jack is a writer of formidable energy and range, and I’ve greatly enjoyed talking to him and learning about his plans for bringing His Dark Materials to the screen. I’m certain he’ll do a superb job, and I look forward to seeing the whole project develop as he shapes the story.”

The series will be aired on BBC One. Read the original article by Deadline here, reasons why TV could be the perfect format for the series at The Guardian here, and the original BBC announcement of the TV adaptation back in 2015 here.

We look forward to hearing more about Thorne’s newest venture!

Incredibly successful, Tony-award winning, Olivier-award winning Harry Potter and the Cursed Child producer, Sonia Friedman, sat down for an interview with BBC Radio 4’s Kirsty Lang. The two talked of how the Harry Potter sequel came to be–how an idea was developed into producing a play.

Though J.K. Rowling has played a large part in the writing and production of the Harry Potter sequel, Sonia Friedman and a fellow producer had the idea for a Harry Potter play, a new story, and brought it to Rowling’s attention. While working on the script for Fantastic Beasts, Jo turned down the offer to write the script for Cursed Child and handed over the reigns of her world to Jack Thorn.

Sonia Friedman was very clear in emphasizing that Jo has been incredibly instrumental, “very crucial,” “very involved in the story,” and apart of all aspects of the production process for Cursed Child. After Jo said “yes,” and her gave approval to explore the idea, she was introduced to John Tiffany who lead her to Jack Thorn.

Broadway&West End producer #SoniaFriedman reveals plans for #HarryPotter stage show
Listen: https://t.co/WwotpFKACIpic.twitter.com/yglbfUi5Z2

— BBC Front Row (@BBCFrontRow) March 25, 2016

Friedman also addressed her responsibility for casting, and the discussion around Noma Dumezweni playing Hermione. Dumezweni is an incredibly talented actress, and her performance in workshops won her the role of Hermione. When Friedman was asked if she was purposefully making a political statement about race with Dumezweni’s casting, she said no, “not in the casting of Hermione.”

Sonia Friedman goes on to talk about her other plays, the beginning of her career, and the difference between working on the London West End and on Broadway.

The entire interview (only 28 minutes long) can be heard here.

Back in 2007, J.K. Rowling told us about a very intriguing new project – a ‘political fairytale’ that has yet to see the light of day:

However, this morning a fan asked her about this project, and it appears that Jo may have given up on it – for now!

We can imagine how busy she must be, leading the double life of bestsellers Rowling / Galbraith, writing new wizarding world stories, leading the script for Fantastic Beasts and overseeing Cursed Child.

Speaking of Fantastic Beasts, Rowling also told us that she’d be watching a first cut of the film yesterday, reminding us just how close the release date really is! Well, that is if you’re patient enough to call November close…

Thanks to Hypable for the heads up!

Harry Potter actors have been making a splash with the success of their new acting projects. Their stage work has been exceptional, as well as their silver screen work–Olivier exceptional. Both members of the old and new Harry Potter family have been honored with nominations. Among the nominees are Imelda Staunton (Dolores Umbridge), Kenneth Branagh (Gilderoy Lockhart) and Sonia Friedman (producer of Cursed Child).

Imelda Staunton has been nominated for Best Actress for her role in Gypsy. It is her 11th nomination, 3 of which she has won awards for. A video of the Olivier Nominee answering a few questions about her staggering role can be seen below.

Kenneth Branagh has had an extraodinary year with his Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company. He is also nominated for Best Director and Best Actor in his play The Winters Tale. The Official London Theater reports:

 

“Following a year of hugely high profile appearances on the London stage, the hotly contended leading acting categories both see five names make each list. Last night’s newly crowned Academy Award winner Mark Rylance (Farinelli And The King), Kenneth Branagh (The Winter’s Tale), Kenneth Cranham (The Father), Benedict Cumberbatch (Hamlet) and Adrian Lester (Red Velvet) will face off for Best Actor, while Gemma Arterton (Nell Gwynn), Denise Gough (People, Places And Things), Nicole Kidman (Photograph 51), Janet McTeer (Les Liaisons Dangereuses) and Lia Williams (Oresteia) are in the running for Best Actress.

“Chichester Festival Theatre’s triumphant West End hit Gypsy has earned a staggering eight nominations at this year’s Olivier Awards with MasterCard, with the show’s stars Imelda Staunton and Lara Pulver both in the running for awards.

 

“2016’s awards mark a huge success for Branagh. His current inaugural Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company season at the Garrick Theatre has garnered a total of seven nominations, including a nod for Judi Dench in the Best Actress in a Supporting Role category, and sees the stage and screen legend nominated in both the Best Actor and Best Director categories.

“Kinky Boots’ leading men Killian Donnelly and Matt Henry will go head to head for the Best Actor in a Musical Award, joined by the similarly conflicted pairing of Guys And Dolls co-stars Jamie Parker and David Haig. Rounding up the category is Mrs Henderson Presents’ Ian Bartholomew.”

 

The new Harry Potter family has been experiencing great success. Jamie Parker (the adult Harry in Cursed Child) is nominated for Best Actor in a Musical Award. Sonia Friedman (Cursed Child producer) has received a staggering 20 awards through her production company.

The entire list of nomination list can be seen here. The Olivier Awards will take place April 3, on ITV.

Over the weekend, it may or may not have been leaked that the young actor, Anthony Boyle, is playing Scorpius Malfoy in the stage production of the eighth Harry Potter story. The quick eyes at MuggleNet and SnitchSeeker spotted an update on the young actors resume…that has mysteriously been re-edited and the information has disappeared.

For those of you wishing to know more about this kid-wonder, soon to be Scorpius, his “entire” (not really, anymore) resume can be found on Spotlight. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child released an entire cast photo a few weeks ago. It can be analyzed and scrutinized and the subject of guessing-games, here.

Jack Thorne – script writer for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – met with The Independent to talk about his personal life, and various other huge projects he’s worked on, along with how this fits into being so involved in creating the new generation of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World.

Cursed Child Director John Tiffany has apparently warned Thorne about the pressure of working on such a huge project, but Jack notes the important opportunity writing Rowling’s story into theatre opens up, bringing the potential for a new audience of theatre-goers:

“John says it will define us, whether it’s good or s***, and that’s true. [But] we’ve got an opportunity to reach an audience who don’t go to the theatre at all and say, ‘Look at the story we can tell.’ And that’s a real privilege. So let’s hope we get it right.”

Thorne also explains the splitting of Cursed Child into two parts (both costing normal West End prices). According to The Independent, he “insist[ed] this was for artistic reasons, a desire to create a fully magical world – although the suggestion came from the producer, Sonia Friedman”.

On the news that Hermione would be played by Noma Dumezweni (regarding which Rowling and various other Potter actors were quick to express their full support). The Independent interviewer comments about how casting a woman of colour was progressive, allowing more people to imagine and relate to fictional characters, Jack Thorne said:

“Yeah, that’s important. That’s a whole other [side to the casting choice]. It’s interesting, the whole diversity discussion and #Oscarssowhite… it’s a slow, slow journey.”

Thorne is (understandably) a “massive fan of Harry Potter”, and of his informant, J.K. Rowling:

“Jo’s awesome, a lovely lady. She’s so sure of the person she wants to be. It’s taught me an awful lot about how you behave.”

“To even let someone else write a word that Harry says is an incredibly generous act. She’s very trusting, and is prepared to say, ‘Nah, you’ve got it wrong.’ And then, as a person, she’s prepared to stick her neck out on important issues. I admire her.”

He confessed that his wife has to read his emails to Rowling before he sends them, because “She doesn’t want me to be embarrassing.”

Read the full interview here!

That’s right, ladies and gentleman, after a long and earned-filled wait, your Pottercast withdrawals are over! Pottercast is BACK! The gang is back and discussing Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

The release of the “eighth story,” and now “the eighth book,” has stirred up a lot of conversation and debate. In the latest episode of Pottercast, Melissa, John and Frak give their thoughts and opinions on Cursed Child, its form as a play versus a book, the publishing of the script (or “book”), and the relevance of Cursed Child not being solely written by J.K. Rowling.

Of course, one could not get away without talking about the many Pottermore revelations that have occurred as of late, so there’s a little extra thrown in there about additional Wizarding World content in addition to Cursed Child.

Pottercast episode #256 is available to download through iTunes, here. In order to download the new episode, please subscribe to Pottercast! It’s great to be back!

Yesterday, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was made available for preorder shortly after the announcement of its publication. (I preordered a hard copy lat night from Amazon, as soon as they put it out there.) The book, that is not a novel but still a book, of the eighth Harry Potter only took hours to top charts.

Despite being already half-off (available for preorder at only £10.00) on UK book dealer, Waterstones’ website, and the full price of $29.99 for a hard copy on Amazon US, price doesn’t seem to be a factor in it’s success already. Interestingly enough, Barnes and Noble is also making the book available for preorder, already advertising 28% off and offering the book for $21.59.

Both Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes and Noble’s Nook are pricing the electronic book at $14.99. It assumed that Amazon, in the coming weeks (the book has only been available for less than 24 hours) will adjust its pricing to a more competitive number to match the market. (Click on the Amazon and Waterstones links to preorder your copy, and contribute to the chart-topping statistics.)

The book was trending news immediately after its publication announcement, yesterday, as the world exploded with the idea of getting more Potter in print, and the fairness of not having to fly to London to get the rest of the story. Though it never left number one Trending News on Facebook, the byline of the title changed form “Rowling releases 8th Harry Potter book,” to “script of upcoming play reaches No. 1 on book sales charts.” Honestly, who expected any less?

The book, being published by Little, Brown and Scholastic, and authored by all three script writers (J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany), is being released in both paper copy and electronic versions. Both formats seems to be over taking charts everywhere. Waterstones, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon serving as an example:

The Gulf News reported on this chart-topping phenomenon and ringed Little, Brown for comment and questioning on whether or not such success would warrant a midnight release party for the books–a phenomenon that Harry Potter introduced to the publishing industry. Gulf News reports:

Little, Brown, publisher of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, said it was “too early to say” whether there would be midnight openings this time round, but that Rowling herself would not be doing any events.

As the book topped the Waterstones, Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com bestseller lists – where it is already discounted to half price – James Daunt, Waterstones chief executive, said there were “no sweeter three words to the ears of a bookseller than ‘the eighth story’.

“Younger booksellers now face, of course, the dubious prospect of their older colleagues rolling out war stories of Harry Potter launches for the next five months. On 31 July, we will put these into the shade.”

Simon Heafield of Foyles said the bookshop chain was “massively excited at the news and are already putting our heads together on the question of how to mark the occasion in style.”

“It’s great that bookshops will get the chance to benefit from this new chapter of Harry’s story,” he said.

David Shelley, chief executive of Little, Brown, said on Wednesday that Rowling and her team had received many requests from fans who cannot see the play to publish it in book form: “We are absolutely delighted to be able to make it available for them,” he said.

The full report may be read here.

Following speculations, Pottermore and Little Brown UK have just announced that the script book for Cursed Child will be released July 31st (Harry Potter / J.K. Rowling’s birthday)!

Pottermore reports:

A host of new print and digital publishing has been announced from J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World, including a Special Rehearsal Edition of the script book of new stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts I & II. 

Print and digital editions will publish simultaneously after the play’s world premiere this summer, and will comprise of the version of the play script at the time of the play’s preview performances. 

Theatre previews allow the creative team the chance to rehearse and explore scenes further before a production’s official opening night. Harry Potter and the Cursed Childopens for previews several weeks before its official first performance on Saturday 30 July and the Special Rehearsal Edition of the script book will later be replaced by a Definitive Collector’s Edition.

The news confirms that fans around the world will be able to join this next venture into the Wizarding World, so don’t fret if you didn’t get tickets to the play!

Pottermore also announced the release of Special Editions, and Jim Kay’s next illustrated edition of Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets!:

Next year will see the publication of four special editions of the first book in the UK, one for each of the four Hogwarts houses. There will also be a brand new edition of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in 2017, with new content by J.K. Rowling, as well as new formats and editions of the Hogwarts Library books – Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Quidditch Through the Ages and The Tales of Beedle the Bard. 

Pottermore doesn’t play favourites, but we’re especially looking forward to nabbing a copy of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets illustrated by Jim Kay. That’s coming a little sooner, in October 2016, and we’ll be prodding Jim for a look at his latest work soon because we’re nosy like that.

2016 is looking like a huge year – Cursed Child, Fantastic Beasts, more Jim Kay illustrations – what more could we want?!

Huffington Post and Hollywood Life have recently published two cast interviews with Matt Lewis, Rupert Grint, Evanna Lynch and Katie Leung following A Celebration of Harry Potter.

Rupert Grint thinks Hermione and Ron would be separated (if not divorced), none of them would overlook a role in Star Wars, and Rupert thinks Cursed Child made a huge mistake.

First up is Huff Post, and their representative really got the cast talking, giving a great introduction about the importance of breaking out of viewing these great actors as their characters:

“What I enjoy as I sit down to speak with the group is how much these adults are unlike their characters (except for maybe Lynch, who is still delightfully Luna Lovegood-esque). It seems obvious, but we’ve such a tendency to want to lock actors into their iconic roles. It is challenge breaking out of that, especially when you’re remembered as being a cute, or awkward, or weird, or chubby kid on screen. Yet each has grown up, and gone on to other acting gigs and new pursuits.”

This interview gave a broad sweep of the actor’s opinions on Fantastic Beasts, their characters, further roles in big franchises and more!

On giving advice to Fantastic Beasts and Cursed Child cast members: 

Matt Lewis: I don’t know how much advice I could ever give anyone. The people who have been cast, as far as I’m aware of, are very, very experienced. They don’t need any advice from me. But I guess just enjoy it. It has been a hell of an experience for me, and everything associated with it: the people, the fans, the environment. It was a good gig to be on! Just enjoy it because there’s nothing else like it, literally in the world. It is unique.

Rupert Grint: I think it’s going to be a very different film, I think. I don’t know much about it, but as Matthew said, just enjoy it. Go with the flow.

Evanna Lynch: I’d say trust David Yates, as well. He always knows better on the film. Sometimes I would go, “Oh, I’m doing terrible, I’m messing up.” He would come along and suggest something tiny, and it would change everything. He is very clever. And he is the one who has transitioned from one to the other. He has the whole picture.

On involving themselves in any large-scale productions again:

Q: This was very much your childhood, and your job growing up. If you had the opportunity now to enter another franchise that would consume multiple years – like Lord of the Rings or Star Wars – would you be reluctant to join that production?

A:

Lynch: No. I loved it. I love the family feel, and the idea you can get deeper into your character over a year. I have been on films that were just three or five weeks, and sometimes I’ve been like, damn, I’d only just started to get into it. It was nice to have something you could develop it, and learn and grow alongside your character. And I just loved the family thing. I got very comfortable there.

Lewis: Hey, if Star Wars come knocking on the door tomorrow, I’m not going to go, “Um no, guys, I’m sorry, I don’t want to do four films, it’s fine.” No, of course not. I’d think about it, and I love Star Wars, etc. But there would definitely be a bit of trepidation in joining a big franchise again for that amount of time. Just simply because I’m really enjoying the diversity of the roles I’ve been given recently. Playing a character is great, but I love the process of finding someone, finding a character, creating and drawing it up. And trying to figure out what makes that person tick. When you do something for however many years, it can start to become – I don’t want to say mundane because it was never boring on the films. But you kind of lose that spark a little bit you get in that first day of school, or on a new job. It is exciting. And I’ve gotten that so often in the last couple years, I’d be reluctant to give that up.

Leung: I kind of agree with Matt. If it goes on for any longer than a certain period of time, you do get really comfortable and feel very safe. Having done all the projects after Potter, it has been a few weeks, a few months for a project. You do really get to know a character, and it is wonderful knowing that, once you stop filming or being on stage and being that character, it essentially dies. So I quite like that. Of course, it depends who the character is you’re going to be playing. But yeah, if it’s Star Wars …

Lewis: Star Wars is welcomed.

Grint: I don’t know. I don’t think it’s put me off. There’s pros and cons. Harry Potter could be at times quite suffocating. It did take up our whole lives. So yeah, I suppose there would be tiny bit of reluctance. Now that I’m out of it, I can see beyond it and it’s nice to have a real life, and do things you want. There’s a lot of freedom in that. But yeah, I think it all depends on the material.

Who knows – maybe a role as another Resistance pilot, or as a key character to unveiling Rey’s mysterious past will come up. Make it happen, Disney!

The Huff Post representative also asked where they’d like to think their Potter characters will be in the future.

As we know, Ron and Hermione were married with two children (Rose and Hugo) at Nineteen Years Later, all of whom attended the 427th Quidditch World Cup in 2014. Ron and Hermione’s relationship seems to be going well – that is, unless you take Rupert Grint’s word for it:

Grint: [laughs] I would expect Ron has probably divorced Hermione already. I don’t think that relationship would have done very well.

Lynch: What?!

Like living in his own, low-rent bachelor pad?

Grint: Yeah. Exactly. He’s living on his own, in a little one-bedroom apartment. He hasn’t got a job.

Lynch: Don’t say divorced. Say they’ve split up. They can reconcile.

Grint: Yeah, they’re briefly separated.

Ron is on Tinder doing horribly…

Grint: Yeah!

Lewis: Living in a one-bedroom studio apartment all alone, doing nothing. He lives in Kings Cross, right in that area.

Evanna took a more career-related view for Luna, and we can definitely see this happening:

Lynch: I think Luna would have an adventure documentary series. She becomes a naturalist, and I think she’d travel the world and have a show. I could be a wildlife narrator.

Like a David Attenborough of the wizard world?

Lynch: Yeah, and she would prove all her creatures exist. Everyone is so dubious of her, and I’d like her to show they’re real.

Anybody else want this to become a mini-series?!

Katie Leung had aspirations for her character – we love her no-nonsense view of Cho:

Katie Leung: I reckon Cho would probably have become a really successful entrepreneur, and really cold and ruthless.

Lynch: Oh my god! [laughs]

[Interviewer] I like this. 

Leung: Yeah, she’s cried all the tears she could cry, and now she’s become real cold and heartless.

Lewis: This is dark! I love this!

[Interviewer] What kind of entrepreneur? She runs a tech company? Or a developer who tears down bachelor pads like Ron’s?

Leung: Yeah, yeah, that! Exactly.

Lynch: Oh…

Matthew Lewis bases his on information he received from J.K. Rowling herself, and even works Rupert’s view of Ron into his vision:

Lewis: Oh god. Neville works at the school, right? So he’s a professor, just enjoying that. Maybe he’s trying to get Ron a job, man. And he keeps throwing it back in his face, like, “I don’t need your help, Neville; Jesus, just leave it.” And I’m like, “Come on, it’s fine, we’ll sort it out, just trying to get you back into the fold.” Yeah, him and Hermione don’t see eye to eye because I’ve taken Ron’s side in the relationship, obviously. They’ve got everyone split off, friends wise. I don’t know who you guys chose? Did you choose Hermione?

Lynch: Ron!

Leung: No, Ron.

Lewis: Are you Ron as well? Jeez, Hermione is thin on the ground with friends!

Leung: Well, I’ll go with Hermione, then.

Lynch: I think Ron would need more help. Hermione would handle herself better.

Grint: Yeah, he’s in a bad way.

[Interviewer] But Ron could have a job as a replacement for Mr. Filch

Grint: Yeah!

Lewis: Yeah, I’ll get you in as the caretaker of the school, man. We’ll sort it out. Don’t worry about it.

Grint: Just get me out there. Just get me out of the house.

Lynch: And we’ll get you back together.

Read the full interview here!

Hollywood Life‘s interview focussed on J.K. Rowling’s newest endeavour: Cursed Child. Rupert Grint thinks they’ve made a huge mistake!:

“Um yeah, I think they made a huge mistake in not casting me,” 

He reportedly said, but of course he was joking – we’re all sure Paul Thornley is going to do an amazing job!

 “No, no. I think it’s going to amazing, that it’s going on, and I can’t wait to see it.”

In a similar vein to his interview with MTV, Matthew Lewis spoke about feeling like his role as Neville was complete:

“I feel like the story arch that Jo wrote and that we tried our best to put on screen was a complete one,”

“I took that journey and finished it the way I wanted to. He will always hold a fun place in my heart, but I don’t feel like there is more that I can do with Neville. I’m happy to leave him.”

Evanna Lynch, however, has something to say about not being cast!:

“I don’t feel that way at all …  As happy as I am that they are exploring the universe and that there are new stories in the universe, I’m so angry I’m not a part of it…100% I’d go back and do more.”

Read the full Hollywood Life interview here. 

So there you have it – Evanna will soon be portraying a Resistance Pilot, the Wizarding World’s very own David Attenborough, and a West End star (kidding, unfortunately). 

You can read more about cast interviews from A Celebration of Harry Potter here and here!

The National Youth Theatre’s website has seemingly confirmed rumours that Cursed Child is casting more actors, this time looking for young male ‘white actors aged 17yrs – 24yrs’:

The casting says this is for ‘large, central roles’, so it’s entirely possible this is for one of the older Potter kids – either James Sirius, or potentially Teddy Lupin.

Another Casting Agency – Bonnie&Betty – have been pointed out by Mugglenet to be casting for a ‘new West End show’, which could very well be Cursed Child:

As Mugglenet reports:

The names of these roles have also not been revealed, but perhaps they are pointing towards Al Potter, Hugo Weasley, Lily Luna Potter, Rose Weasley, or maybe even Scorpius Malfoy.

This follows the open casting call for teens seen on Facebook in December, reportedly for the roles of Rose and Lily.

Initial productions of Harry Potter and The Cursed Child Parts I & II are set to begin in May, and – incase you hadn’t heard – the trio have recently been cast! Keep posted for updates on casting and more!

It would be putting it very subtly to say that Noma Dumezweni’s casting as Hermione in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child received mixed reactions. However, there are many more important discussion points and interest to take with the Harry Potter sequel other than the color of an actor or actresses skin. How Noma is planning on portraying Hermione, and playing the part, is definitely more important than her appearance and something we are all interested to hear about. Even she thinks so.

Noma sat down with the Evening Standard for an interview, and talked of her casting as Hermione in Cursed Child. She told the Evening Standard:

“It stems from ignorance. They don’t want to be a part of the creative act. To say it’s not as it was intended is so unimaginative. I don’t think they understand how theatre works. We’re here to heal you, make you smile and whisk you away.” 

Dumezweni, 45, said she had encountered “unconscious” prejudice when going for roles in the past, but had not experienced people questioning her ability to play a character because of the colour of her skin.

Noma was chosen by Jack Thorne and John Tiffany as the candidate they, and J.K. Rowling, thought embodied the character of Hermione the best. Noma commented on what she will bring to the role, saying:

She would not have taken the role unless she could bring her own interpretation to it, adding: “The only question we should ask is ‘Are they good?’ I’ve met great actors black and white and I’ve met bad actors black and white.”

There is no denying that Noma Dumezweni is a very talented actress; Pottermore described her many achievements and awards, which probably account for a few reasons why she was chosen for the role. We are excited to hear more from Ms. Dumezweni about her role as Hermione Jean (Granger) Weasley in the future!

Late last night, SnitchSeeker confirmed a Facebook blurb they found a month ago, advertising an open casting call for teenagers for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. The call out was for teen girls to audition for the roles of Lily Potter and Rose Weasley.

The Facebook blurb, and the site hosting the application process, have since been removed from the internet. However, one of SnitchSeeker’s readers was able to submit her application–CV and headshot–for the role, and was able to relate back to the Harry Potter news site that the auditions are indeed for the roles of Rose and Lily.

Interestingly enough, we now know that Cursed Child does not immediately pick up where Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows left off. The last time we saw the Trio, Harry was waving good bye to an 11-year-old Albus Severus, justing leaving for his first year at Hogwarts along with his 11-year-old cousin, Rose Weasley. Lily was even younger.

This begs the question, how many years after Deathly Hallows is Cursed Child? What year in the future is the story set (as it has yet to be 19 years later in real life)? If Lily is a teenager, there is a good chance Hugo is too. Is James Sirius Potter old enough to have graduate Hogwarts? (James was in his third year at Hogwarts when his younger brother started his first.)

Earlier yesterday morning, Hypable began posing questions that fans should be asking themselves about the play. With this new casting discovery, light has been shed on the validity of the questions they posed. Years down the road, are Ron and Hermione still married? Is it possible that their marriage–deemed rocky, and “probably” able to succeed with marriage counseling by J.K. Rowling–has ended in divorce? Or do they fight to save it because of their love for one another? Either way, taking a look into their adult relationship will be interesting, and probably make for good (possibly humorous) drama.

Hypable also asked “What if your favorite characters are dead?” If this play takes place several years after Deathly Hallows, it maybe likely that the older characters within the Harry Potter series have passed away. We left Mr. and Mrs. Weasley in their late middle ages, but now they are the elderly grandparents of teenagers and young adults. There are certainly characters that were older than Mr. and Mrs. Weasley that may have passed away–to save tears, we won’t name names.

Who is the focus of the play? The adult trio, or this new group of teenagers? The casting of the Trio was big news–and, no, not just because of Hermione. All the actors chosen are highly qualified, award-winning actors, as reported and confirmed by Pottermore. That is a lot of attention to bring to the adult Trio…so where does that leave their children? Is not Albus Severus the “cursed child?” The play is titled after Harry’s son, yet a lot of focus has been put upon Harry, himself and his two best friends.

Needless to say, we will not know the answer to this question until the casting of the Potter and Weasley children are revealed. However, with open casting calls, it is more than probable that the actors playing these teenagers may not carry the same notoriety as the actors playing their parents.

J.K. Rowling herself has spoken about the casting announcements made yesterday. Noma Dumezweni – a woman of colour – will be playing Hermione Granger!

For the most part, the Potter fandom have been the loyal, welcoming and imaginative people they always have been. Some merely argue that this actress wasn’t their personal view of Hermione – and, of course, fictional characters manifest themselves differently to each and every person. However, the negative responses to this casting decision have prompted Rowling herself to give Dumezweni the ‘canon’ stamp of approval – which we trust wholeheartedly, of course!

There have been arguments surrounding official artwork portraying Hermione as white, and of Emma Watson being ‘the real deal’, but Rowling – in a pinned tweet, no less! – says canon Hermione is ‘brown eyes, frizzy hair and very clever’. Now, the book might be in the readers’ hands, but Rowling herself has spoken, and the vagueness of this description suggests that we are free to imagine characters as we wish, not least because this is a continuation of the books, not merely of the films.

Matthew Lewis also gave his support to Dumezweni after tweets asking for his thoughts, saying that Neville in canon is actually blonde!

Evanna Lynch also chipped in, after a tweet from our own webmistress Melissa Anneli supported Dumezweni’s casting. Representation here is exciting, and shows a decision made based on talent, not just appearance. As Evanna says, it’s peoples hearts (and personalities) that count, not just their looks!

Pottermore have also given their response to the casting, giving more details on the actress:

“Olivier Award-winning actress Noma Dumezweni joins the cast as Hermione. She has received recent rave reviews for her performance in Penelope Skinner’s hit play Linda at the Royal Court.

Noma starred in both The Winter’s Tale and Romeo and Juliet for the Royal Shakespeare Company and won an Olivier Award for Best Performance in a Supporting Role as Ruth Younger in A Raisin In The Sun. Doctor Who fans will also recognise Noma as UNIT Captain Erisa Magambo. She will make her directing debut at the Royal Court Theatre in February 2016 with I See You by Mongiwekhaya.”

In light of these responses, keep the discussion going over on our Facebook and Twitter – we’re looking forward to further announcements to come, so make sure you keep posted!

Cursed Child will be hitting London’s Palace Theare next summer, and Daily Mail reporter Baz Bamigboye (@BazBam) just tweeted the names and photos of the actors cast as Harry, Ron, and Hermione!

Paul Thornley will be portraying Ron Weasley:

Noma Dumezweni as Hermione Granger:

And, finally – Jamie Parker as Harry!

Here they are together:

How exciting! Let us know what you think over on The Leaky Caulrdon’s Twitter (@Leaky) and Facebook (The Leaky Cauldron).

NME recently released their cover interview with Daniel Radcliffe – which is hilarious as usual – and definitely worth a read.

Here are a few extracts:

‘Bouncing into a huge wood-panelled conference room above the photography studio where he’s just been shot for NME’s cover, Daniel Radcliffe is presented with a cup and reaches for the sweeteners. “How many of these are you supposed to use?” he asks, merrily clicking little white pellets into his drink. Each of those is one sugar, we tell him. You’ve just given yourself seven sugars. “Oh, right,” he laughs. “Well, we’ll leave that then.”’

Radcliffe was asked about his choices in on-screen and stage appearances since Harry Potter. From The Woman In Black, Horns, Kill Your Darlings and The Young Doctor’s Notebook, to Equus, How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying and – most recently – ‘Igor’ in Victor Frankenstein (released December 3rd):

‘“No, I don’t really have mainstream tastes,” he says. “People do ask me, ‘Why do you choose such weird movies?’ but I don’t think they’re weird, they’re just stories I’m interested in. Isn’t having weird tastes good, though? I think so. I think that’s better than always wanting to play the handsome hero. You think I’m weird? I’ll take that.”’

Answering on expectations of his acting abilities after Potter, and on his appearance in studio films:

‘“I had a huge amount to prove [after Potter],” continues Radcliffe. “Proving that you can be a young actor and not be a complete f*****g disaster when you grow up. That is the – quite unfair I think – image that people have of young actors. There are a huge number of child actors who grow up fine. Always with my career in film, I saw Potter as an amazing beginning to it. I’m sure I’ll never hit that kind of commercial peak again but very, very few people will.” ‘

…

”Doing studio movies is fun because you get to do stuff that you mostly wouldn’t get to do on an indie movie, in terms of action. There is a part of me that, because I grew up doing it, loves that stuff and really misses it. Frankenstein was just the most interesting and original script I’d seen from a studio. It looked like fun to make, and it was.”’

Dan even commented on the first images of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them:

‘We meet on the day that the first images were revealed of Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them, the 1920s-set Potter spin-off that stars Eddie Redmayne as a magical explorer who collects bizarre creatures. Radcliffe hasn’t seen the pictures and jumps up to look at them on my phone, clocking Redmayne’s swishy cerulean coat and barking, “Oh f*** you, Eddie, in your brilliant costume… I got jeans and a zip top for 10 years and you’ve got a greatcoat already?”’

The prospect of anybody else playing Harry is strange to all of us (including Dan), but exciting at the same time – so exciting that Dan says he wants to wants to see Cursed Child:

‘What’s it like knowing someone else is going to play Harry? “It’s weird,” he says. “But I’m happy for it to go on without me. I’ve no ownership of it.” Would he go and see it? “Now that I know [Harry’s in it] I actually really want to see it. It would be a mental thing to try and see it with lots of very excited Harry Potter fans. But I kind of would like to know what happens now.”’

And – finally – touching words regarding the success of Harry Potter in continuing to inspire the world, and the part he plays in its influence:

‘He goes all wistful for a minute. “I’d always thought in the years after Potter finished that it would die down, but it’s just grown more because the people who were massive Harry Potter fans in their teens are now adults. So you meet them more. They’re not at home with their parents, they’re out in the world. It always amazes me when someone says what a huge part of their childhood it was. I still have a natural reserve that makes me go, ‘Oh don’t be so silly, I wasn’t responsible for your childhood.’ But I think about the stuff that means a lot for me from my childhood, like The Simpsons, and how, when I did a voice on The Simpsons I got a signed thing from Matt Groening and that was so f*****g exciting. The thought that I might occupy that space in somebody else’s childhood…”’

We’d definitely recommend reading the rest of the interview here!

When the news of the eighth Harry Potter story finally being created (and being presented in the format of a play as Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), we were surprised that the news didn’t come from Pottermore’s Correspondent. Instead it was released by The Daily Mail. Honestly, it was almost hard to believe The Daily Mail when the PMC has been setting a good foundation for being the first source for all official Harry Potter news–and big news at that.

But have no fear, the PMC wasn’t completely left out of this exciting news coverage. It turns out that the PMC took phone calls to get the exclusive from John Tiffany and Jack Thorne. They waited until the initial hysteria died down a little to begin the conversation about bringing Harry to the floorboards of the London West End and still maintaining the same “epic sweep” as the original book series.

The PMC reports:

‘In all my years working in the theatre, I have never experienced anything like this,’ [John Tiffany] says.

‘What we’re doing here is taking the biggest literary franchise the world has ever seen into theatre and it’s… Well, people are so stoked up about it. I’m conscious of bringing the fans what they love, doing this story justice and exploring the psychology of a grown up Harry Potter with the same epic sweep as the books and the films, but in a different way.’

This is a man with a Tony, an Olivier, a Drama Desk and an Obie award on his mantelpiece and yet, on the phone right now, what I hear most is a smitten Harry Potter fan deep in a project that he cares about profoundly.

‘Jack went away and came back with the first forty pages. The big thing had happened. He’d written dialogue for Jo’s characters and they sounded like themselves. He’d brought them back. I can’t tell you what it was like to see that.’

…Jack Thorne who, as well being a world-class wordsmith, is a huge Potter fan.

‘Sometimes I can’t believe it; the idea that we have written the eighth story of Harry Potter. The whole time, I’ve felt this great responsibility to the previous seven stories. Theatre is very different to film; we’ve had to find our own way into the stories. We are starting to see it all come together in workshops now and it’s just wonderful,’ he says.

In addition to these statements, Pottermore also designed a visual about how to buy tickets for both parts of Cursed Child. Because there are so many dates and ticket options, it can be a little confusing. Though the diagram does not include the different price options (there are so many) for different dates, it does help fans in regards of seeing a play that is being staged as two separate productions. See the image here and below.

Tickets go on sale online THIS WEEK. Priority booking opens on October 28, 2015 at 11:00 am GMT. The general public can begin to purchase tickets on October 30, 2015 at 11:00 am GMT. Both sessions run on a first-come-first-serve basis. Please visit harrypottertheplay.com for more information.

All was well.

Yeah, it was. But it isn’t now! Because in the 19-years-later universe of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Albus Severus is clearly about to have some troubles.

In the same reeling, excited mania that follows any sort of Harry Potter announcement, never mind the one that says we have an eighth story to look forward to, the same questions are hitting us here at Leaky, over and over and over:

But how will I get to see it?

A book gets published worldwide. A book is relatively cheap. A book is mass produced and translated and creates a common text. And fans are asking the very fair question of how the immense global demand will be sated when ticket prices for a single consumption is many times what one pays for a book; when the action is limited to London and a thousand or so lucky viewers each performance; when we won’t have the chance to talk about it together, digest it together, to do what we have done with Harry Potter for nearly 20 years, together. Plays, to be obnoxiously obvious, are very different media than books, and our experience of Harry Potter related content is so closely tied to the book experience – even when that book experience comes in the form of a filmed version – that it’s hard to understand how a limited, expensive experience could be fair for the average fan who lives thousands upon thousands of miles away from something they want so desperately to see —and who doesn’t have the means to change that.

As a lifelong theater fan, I want to only assert my excitement that Harry Potter is moving onto the floorboards. However, it would be hard not to acknowledge how easy it is for someone like me to say that, having grown up and living in New York City, where theater is everywhere.

Fans: It’s understandable if you are upset that you can’t get to London to see this show. It’s understandable to be upset that things cost what they do, and that you won’t be able to gulp down Cursed Child after a midnight release party and through the weekend. I get that completely.

But don’t worry.

Plays, as different media than books, have different lives as well. They don’t have timed, simultaneous releases the way books do, but the do reach mass production eventually. It takes longer, but: they tour, they get produced in schools, they get printed in books, they are sometimes filmed. They take longer to get there but they live the same long lives books do.

But if you’re feeling slighted because you feel as though this could have and should have been a book, that’s where we disagree.

Art takes whatever form it needs to serve its story. Plays – at least good ones – are plays when they can be nothing else. To ask J.K. Rowling not to best serve her story, or not to follow the creative urge where it was naturally leading her, or force this story into a different shape because it would be easier to send out into the world, would be asking her to disservice it in some way, shape, or form. And true Harry Potter fans never want that.

A play, when done well, can change you in the course of a night. It’s not meant to be huddled under a duvet with your flashlight; it’s meant to be spoken out loud, performed for people, and used to create a singular moment in concert with its audience to entertain, enlighten, explore (and other E words as well).

It will get out there. More slowly than we, as Harry Potter fans, as good as we are as waiting, would ever like. But it will. When a play or a musical is done well, it will travel across oceans and across countries and into schools and into print and into a hundred thousand small auditoriums.

We can’t all experience this one together, the way we’re used to. But that doesn’t mean we won’t all get a chance.

We’ll be covering the show’s progression obsessively here on Leaky, of course. So as we have said so many times over the years – stay tuned!

Okay, that slim chance that what we were told in December 2013 was wrong. That, like the Harry Potter encyclopedia transforming into Pottermore, the play had transformed into something totally different than what it was originally intended to be? It happened. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is a full blown sequel.

The plot of the play is revealed to be about Harry and his son Albus. The Daily Mail got the inside scoop on plot, ticket pricing, and more. They are the fist to report that the play picks up right where J.K. Rowling left off at the end of Deathly Hallows, and the cursed child refers to Albus Severus. In case this is too hard to believe, they quoted the plays producer, Sonia Friedman. The Daily Mail reports:

‘It’s safe to say that The Cursed Child picks up from where The Deathly Hallows ended,’ revealed Sonia Friedman, who is producing the play with Colin Callender.

The poster, unveiled here for the first time reads: The Eighth Story. Nineteen Years Later.

A statement from the creative team noted that Al must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted and that ‘past and present fuse ominously’ when Harry and his younger son learn the uncomfortable truth that ‘sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places’.

Friedman and Callender were cautious when discussing The Cursed Child. ‘We don’t want to spoil it for the audiences,’ Callender said, reasonably.

And when I asked if there would be any flashbacks to Harry’s own parents, Friedman said, more bluntly: ‘It’s for theatregoers and fans, and we’re not going to say any more about the story.’

‘Because it’s a play, it’s worth stressing that at this stage of the process it’s not our intention to have a high-tech show, but to go back to basic story telling,’ Friedman said. She and Callender both termed it ‘raw theatre’.

However, they have hired special effects experts and an illusionist. ‘We very much hope to deliver magic — but in our unique way,’ Friedman added.

Previews begin on June 7 at the Palace Theatre, when tickets to see both parts will be priced £20, £50, and £80 to £100. (They can be watched on one day on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays.)

From August 3, after The Cursed Child has opened, seats for the two shows will cost £30, £70, £100 or £130. Tickets to see just one part of the production can be bought at half the prices quoted.

Priority tickets for those who registered to see the June to September shows can be bought online from next Wednesday; others can buy seats two days later. The show officially opens on July 30.

The low priced tickets are to be sold in a lottery, considering the immense popularity the show is sure to have. We have all been begging for a sequel, and though J.K. Rowling said “never say never,” she still told us that she was also done with Harry’s story and that it was very unlikely to happen. My last post was wrong. My prediction was wrong. But, it was wrong in the best possible way. We are finally getting the sequel we have all been longing for, even if it isn’t in the format we thought (or hoped) it would be.

Picture from The Daily Mail. Jo is hard at work with her co-writers, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, respectfully.

A blurry poster shot that reveals more about the show than the promo artwork released earlier today. The photo is from the twitter of Daily Mail writer, Baz Bamigboye.

Earlier this afternoon, J.K. Rowling and Pottermore released the official artwork for the Harry Potter play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, via Twitter. Besides design and art for the sake of art, the new promotional artwork of the play (which will likely be used for play bills, posters, advertisements, etc.) reveals some details about the play.

Pottermore’s press release post clarified what it meant to have a play in two parts (more than just two acts, like to sequential plays). It appears that both plays are going to hit the London stage at the same time, in the same season–unlike movie sequels that are released year(s) apart. Pottermore says the plays are to be seen within the same day, or on two consecutive evenings. It is still unclear how tickets and pricing will be managed. Pottermore reports:

J.K. Rowling revealed last month that: ‘Due to the epic nature of the story we’ve been working on, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will be in two parts!’ The play is designed to be seen either on a single day or on consecutive evenings.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child comes to London’s West End summer 2016. There’s still time to register for priority booking at HarryPotterthePlay.com to have the first opportunity to purchase tickets before they go on general sale. Priority registration closes Saturday 24 October at 11.45pm BST.

 

Yes, it is aesthetically pleasing–as with all things Potter, it is done well. But what does this tell us about the play? It doesn’t directly say a whole lot, but it implies what the mysterious plot and story may be.

The focal point of the image shows a young boy hugging his legs. He appears trapped like a bird inside a snitch-shaped nest. If one were to assume that this young boy is a preteen Harry, based off the title “Harr Potter and…,” the image almost solidifies the assumption that the play is written about Harry in his torturous childhood years at the Dursley’s between Chapters 1 and 2 of Philosopher’s Stone.

J.K. Rowling was right, it is not a prequel as it takes place within the time line of Harry’s story presented in the Harry Potter series. It fills in the time jump between “The Boy Who Lived” and “The Vanishing Glass,” in which we get a glimpse of what Harry’s life is like right before he turns 11. One can assume that we will see an expansion of the story that “The Vanishing Glass” offers–giving us Harry’s years at boarding school, living under the stairs, being told how his “worthless” parents died in a “car accident,” and being punished by the Dursleys for accidentally doing magic he cannot explain.

Or we could be totally wrong. However, this plot point was the original idea behind a Harry Potter play–before we knew the title, before we knew who was working on it with J.K. Rowling, before we knew the dates, and before we even knew if it was actually going to happen. It could have been like the Harry Potter encyclopedia, also known as “The Scottish Book,” a very real idea that turned into something entirely different (Pottermore) and didn’t come to fruition.

But here is why it is highly unlikely that we are wrong (there is still a possibility, though). We reported on the original projected story line of the play in December 2013, when J.K. Rowling first announced that it was real. At that time, J.K. Rowling herself said what the play was going to be about:

It will be based on Harry’s “early years as an orphan an outcast…featuring some of our favourite characters from the Harry Potter books, this new work will offer a unique insight into the heart and mind of the now legendary young wizard. A seemingly ordinary boy, but one for whom Destiny has plans…”

Since then, why has there been so much questioning about the plays story? About it being a sequel? We don’t know, maybe we all got amnesia.

Recently, J.K. Rowling took to Twitter to give us the news that there will not be a Harry Potter TV show, nor will there be a ‘Potter-on-Ice’. But rather than crushing our dreams (well, it did a little, if we’re honest), the hilarious ‘image of Ice Voldemort performing the triple salchow’ perfectly depicts Jo’s mastery of Twitter.

She sure knows how to use those 140 characters; thankfully, her early Twitter days of saying ‘you won’t be hearing from me very often’ didn’t last long. Her social media presence has become prevalent and powerful. She tweets for any occasion and cause, but most importantly, just to connect with her fans. As she answers fans’ questions, or stands up for what she believes in, Jo’s humour never fails to draw media and fans’ attention, love, and favouritism.

Without further ado, here are 25 of our favourite (and most hilarious) J.K. Rowling twitter moments – enjoy!

1) Her continued rage at desktop printers:

2) The time we had no idea what was going on:

Maybe a reference to Stephen Hawking’s ‘Zayn Malik in a parallel universe’ theory, but either way, it’s brilliant.

3) When #AddGoatRuinAQuote was used and responded to perfectly:

Ah, of course, the wise words of Aberforth Dumbledore, the goat charmer.

4) When she ‘Can’t decide whether touched or scared’ by our loyalty:

5) Behold, the flugly owl:

The perfect gift for a Hogwarts first year. If it can actually carry letters and fly.

6) The time Jo cleared up that issue with the names of Harry Potter’s kids:

7) Proof that Jo is, indeed, hardcore:

8) We thought she’d never answer this question… 

…And she didn’t, until very recently:

9) And this question, well:

10) In a parallel universe, Harry Potter doesn’t exist. Not because Jo is Zayn Malik, but because she’s an otter-weigher: 

11) We can all agree on this one:

12) Jo may not kill off as many characters as George R.R Martin, but she still feels bad about the ones she does kill:

13) The only way to celebrate Ireland’s victory:

14) Followed by the only way for such a brilliant author to slam the haters:

15) This is possibly our favourite burn of all time: 

Especially seeing as Jo seems to be one of the biggest Serena Williams fans out there:

16) Then there was that time that the world nearly broke her:

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is set to come out next year, and is most definitely not a prequel. You can find more information on the play’s website, and read more from playwright Jack Thorne here.

17) Perfect use of sarcasm:

We also think that #fideliuscharm has got to be one of the best hashtags around.

18) The time Matthew Lewis (aka, Neville Longbottom) appeared on the cover of Attitude magazine, and was too hot for Jo to handle:

19) Sometimes Tumblr knows her answers: 

20) But, let’s face it: at the end of the day, Jo Rowling knows all:

21) … Even if she can’t play tennis: 

22) This one got us wondering just how many of these budgies she sees: 

Almost as cute as these Potter-themed dogs:

23) NOBODY TWEETS IN CAPITAL LETTERS AND GETS AWAY WITH IT.

24) We’ve decided that pseudonyms work best when J.K. Rowling uses them:

And we definitely have to agree with Chris Rankin (aka Percy Weasley) on this one!

Insulting your literal other half isn’t fair, Jo!

This recent one gave us a laugh – we can only imagine the struggle of faux-quarrels with your writing partner:

25) And finally, the reason we’re all here after all. 

Not only has J.K. Rowling (and Robert Galbraith, of course!) given us books and films we know and love, but her sense of humour is absolutely spot on. Harry had to get his sass from somewhere!

Make sure you give her Twitter page a visit, if you haven’t already!

Playwright Jack Thorne has found himself thrust into the Harry Potter universe. Not only is he new to the insider world of of Harry Potter, but Thorne landed one of it’s most important roles, second to J.K. Rowling.

Jack Thorne wrote the script for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, in collaboration with J.K. Rowling and director, John Tiffany. He described his job to the Times as having “to crawl inside J.K. Rowling’s head,” something all serious Potter-heads dream of doing. The article talks of Thorne’s process in creating the story and working with Jo Rowling. If you have a subscription to the Times, the whole article will make a good read. Luckily, MuggleNet was able to access the article and offers a good preview:

When asked if he was ready for his life to change, pretty much a guarantee for any artist involved in bringing a Harry Potter project to the world, Thorne responded that he hasn’t experienced much of that – yet.

Everyone said that [it’s going to make me famous]. Everyone said: ‘Wait for the announcement. It’s going to change everything.’ Then I sent out a tweet on the morning, just going: ‘I can’t talk about it, but I’m so proud to be part of it,’ sort of thing and phoned up Rach [his wife] about an hour and a half later because I was in town, and I couldn’t see my computer, and I was like: ‘How many retweets has it got?’ Sort of: ‘Am I now famous?’ And she went: ‘It’s got six.’ So OK, fame hasn’t visited me yet.

A bit later on, the article reveals how Thorne came to be involved with the project.

The Harry Potter play’s producer, Sonia Friedman, saw Let the Right One In, about a boy befriended by a vampire, which Thorne had adapted for the stage from the hit Swedish movie. She approached its director, John Tiffany, who recommended Thorne. He worked with JK Rowling on the story and wrote the script, now safely encrypted in his computer. All anyone will say is that it is not a prequel. Thorne was fully conversant with the Potter universe having read all the novels and sneaked into the films wearing his Ghostbusters T[-]­shirt to show the families he was ‘here for the genre’.

And finally, although Thorne doesn’t divulge any plot elements of Cursed Child, he does reveal a bit about his process of working on the play and what collaborating with J.K. Rowling is really like:

I’ve now had to read every book again and work out what spells do what. The detail that she produced is absolutely sensational. Looking back at The Fades I kind of go: ‘I wish I’d sketched the world even larger, the way that she did with Harry Potter.’ I just didn’t want to challenge the audience too much with too much stuff, so I was: ‘Always keep it simple.’ And actually, Jo doesn’t, and that’s what makes her so special. That’s the great thing about doing adaptations: you just learn so much. My job is to crawl inside her head.

Pottermore retweeted Harry Potter Play’s ticket announcement yesterday. It has bee confirmed that tickets for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child will go on sale this fall. Those who have signed up for the Cursed Child email alerts are considered “priority members.” Tickets will be available to “priority members” before being released to the general public. Registration for priority booking is available on the play’s website.