How to use this Page

We used to have to take time off from work --or at least leave work early-- to watch the Olympics on TV. Now we can thank the engineering marvels of DVR and web replay for protecting our love affair with the Games from our evil work schedules. We are, rightly, mesmerized by the combination of talent, discipline, skill, and genetics embodied by the world’s greatest athletes.

The post Should we watch the Olympics? appeared first on OUPblog.

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of attending Dallas Comic Con. James and Oliver Phelps, or sometimes more well known as Fred and George Weasley, have attended Dallas Cons quite frequently in the past few years. Two years ago, I was actually fortunate enough to meet them. This year, however, I only got to see them from afar as they took the stage for a Q&A session. Along with their Q&A session, they had a couple photo ops and were out on the floor for autographs in their down time.

When I met James and Oliver, they were both very kind and inviting. I got a photo op and an autograph with them both. As the line in front of me progressed and I finally made it into the photo op room, I was struck by how happy they both looked. It was one of the very first times I got to meet people at Comic Con, back when I was still treating them like gods instead of humans and acted like the human disaster I am when I met them. Despite my awkwardness, they greeted me with grins and didn’t force me to be too sociable as they placed their arms around me and we took the photo. The autograph was much the same except I had a little more time to greet them and ask them how they liked Texas.

Here’s the aforementioned photo from two years ago:

This Con’s Q&A was particularly entertaining. The Phelps Twins are always entertaining. I was quite impressed by the fact that they chose to stand the entire time, I definitely do not have the energy to stand for 40 minutes while being interrogated by fans of varying degrees of craziness. No offense, I do believe I have quite a high degree of craziness myself.

They ran onstage after the interviewer announced them, greeting the cheering crowd, but then ran off again with a quick “hang on.” They came back a few seconds later, James wearing a Texas Rangers baseball cap and Oliver in a ridiculous cowboy hat. The crowd loved it.

As I mentioned before, James and Oliver are very polite people. Right off the bat, they thanked everyone for being so kind to them and pointed out how glad they were that no one had collapsed at their signing table yet.

Just to clarify for the crowd, the interviewer tried to name which twin was which, but he ended up getting them wrong the first time! To be honest, the only way I could tell is I knew that James was standing on the left and Oliver on the right…

Now, since it was a forty-minute long panel, I’m not going to write about the entire thing. I will, however, put the video that a friend of mine took at the end!

To start, I’d like to kill a rumor that circulates through the fandom quite a bit. “I heard that y’all would sometimes switch roles, sometimes, on set. I was wondering, what is the longest stretch of time that y’all went without getting caught.” This question has come up at both of their panels that I’ve been too. Sorry to burst your bubble, but they never switched roles. They knew that, if they had done, it would have taken a lot of time and money to refilm those scenes and they didn’t want to be a nuisance to the other people working on the film. They did admit to doing it during rehearsal though.

Fan questions at Q&A panels aren’t always the most entertaining. They can be very repetitive and, sometimes, a bit stupid. But occasionally you get that fan who has thought long and hard about their question before asking it, making sure it was unique and interesting.

“If you could do anything besides acting in the film industry, what would it be?” This is a question I had never heard before! And since I am a film student I was very curious to hear their answers. There are hundreds of people with hundreds of different jobs that work on a single movie. Cameramen, video editors, sound editors, directors and assistant directors, producers, etc. You have an encyclopedia of options for working in the film industry. James said that he’d want to be “Grip”, or a person who mounts and moves the camera on a track. Oliver, on the other hand, seemed quite content with acting, but did say he was interested in the makeup department.

“What one scene from the books do you wish they would have put in the movies?” As fans, we all have several different scenes from the books that we were quite upset weren’t put in the movies. Not only scenes, but characters as well. The actors had to put up with the differences without complaint but they must have had opinions too, right? Well, James and Oliver both agreed that they wanted the swamp scene from the fourth book to appear in the movie, but they knew there was a chance it wouldn’t show up.

“What was your favorite book and movie?” I always feel that a persons favorite Harry Potter installment can tell you a lot about their personality. That and I am a very nosy person and just like to know these things about people. James knew immediately that his favorite book was the Prisoner of Azkaban. He informed the crowd that it was the book he was reading when they were cast as the twins. He seemed to add as an after thought that his favorite film was the Goblet of Fire and Oliver picked it up there saying that was his favorite book. James and Oliver like to tease each other quite a bit, which is evident when Oliver informs the crowd that his favorite film is The Deathly Hallows Part 2.

I guess I should stop boring you with my perspective on their panel. But watch the video of the full thing below! You don’t want to miss any of their bickering or stories of pranks they pulled on and off set!

The red carpet event celebrating yesterday’s grand opening of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Hollywood took place on the 5th April.  Leaky fans were on the ground covering the event, which you can read about here, but of course there are more interviews with the Potter cast than we can count!

Here are some of the best below:

Entertainment Weekly sought after the actor’s questions for J.K. Rowling since the series finished filming.

James and Oliver Phelps wanted to know what happened to George after Fred’s death:

OLIVER: I think with George, it would probably be what does he do with the company. Like, does he expand it? Or does he just keep it as homage to his brother? Or does he go, we’re going to open it up elsewhere?

JAMES: Did he franchise it?

Oliver Phelps came up with a great theory regarding Fred’s ultimate fate, which he told Seventeen:

“I think he’d dive into the family business even more and try to make it even better in Fred’s memory, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Fred was a ghost in the shop.”

Tom Felton told Entertainment Weekly that he missed Draco, and had endless compliments for J.K. Rowling regarding the character:

“There’s a beautiful understanding between him and I, I think. I miss him. I miss him a lot. But Jo has such a wonderful way of making these characters so rich and full anyway. I suppose all the things that I don’t know are assumed. But I also know that Jo is an endless wealth of knowledge so if I ever have anything that was puzzling me, I know she’d be more than happy for me to ask her. You’ve got me picking my brains now. I’ll have to message her tomorrow.”

Evanna Lynch obviously had the most questions about Luna – being a huge fan of the books, she wanted to know more about Luna’s family:

“I think the big blank is her mom. I’ve always wondered what she’s like. We’ve just been told her name is Pandora and that she died doing an experiment, and I just wonder, I really am curious what was her relationship with Luna? Because obviously she’s so close to her dad, and I find that there’s always one parent that you have more in common with or that you confide in more, and I wonder … was that her mom? Or just what kind of person she was.”

Make sure you catch the full article from Entertainment Weekly here.

You can also read a hilarious exclusive interview with Tom Felton playing ‘Marry, Snog, Stupefy’ with Bustle here, and a snippet from the interview below:

“When given three names of Harry Potter characters, Felton must choose which he’d most like to marry, snog (kiss), and stupefy, which, according to Harry Potter wiki, to stupefy someone means to “render a victim unconscious and/or halt moving objects.” So basically, it’s a less morbid version of the “kill” option most muggles are accustom to.

But before I can give him three options, Felton declares: “I’d snog Bellatrix.” …. I remind him of the rules — I give you the three options, Tom — and we begin.”

MSN also spoke to Evanna Lynch, about the roles she is currently looking for, which appear to steer away from ‘darker’ roles in shows such as The Walking Dead:

“I really just want to do characters a I really love,” Lynch told AAP on the red carpet at the grand opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios in California.

“There are other scripts that come along and I see them but I don’t really have the passion unless I connect with the character.

“I am sick of zombie movies, all these things about undead people. I want things that make the world lighter rather than scarier.

“Everyone says it’s so good but I hate zombies and that kind of violence.”

She also commented on J.K. Rowling’s constant development of the wizarding world – which we know she is excited about and understandably wanting to be involved in! Evanna spoke about what she’d like to see from any sequels involving Luna:

“She (Rowling) has created another world and made it so rich and varied and interesting and I feel like it will never end,” Lynch said.

“I’d love if she did a sequel, I would love to know more about Luna and I feel like there is a lot more to explore.

“I would love a wildlife show with Luna and a documentary series.”

Read the MSN interview in full here.

She revealed her thoughts on whether she thought the pairing of Neville and Luna should have gone any further to Movie Pilot:

“Definitely not. I think he’s very much a homebody, a stay-at-home dad. And Luna wants to go out and explore the world and different creatures, and I think she wants to have several different relationships and not be committed forever. Neville would want a good sturdy wife who cooks, and that’s not her.”

Evanna also gave Extra a VIP tour along with James and Oliver Phelps, which you can view below:

Warwick Davis also attended the event, and spoke to Hollywood Life about the how he’d feel about appearing in Cursed Child. Of course, he’d be more than thrilled:

“To be back in something that has been created by J.K. Rowling and something that goes on to have a life beyond that is exceptional and it would be lovely to do that!”

“I love performing, I am an actor. This is what I love doing So however I manage that and have that manifest itself is a great pleasure!”

He also revealed his aspirations for TV:

“It would be to have a chat show, I mean that is my last bucket list to take on”

“I have done everything else in my career that I have wanted to take on and what I want to do but the chat show still remains elusively something that I would still love to do and a thing that I think I could do very well!”

Read the full interview at Hollywood Life here.

SnitchSeeker also caught up with James and Oliver Phelps to ask them about the theme parks, and about the newest ventures into the wizarding world (Fantastic Beasts and Cursed Child). They posted a video of the interview (below), and you can catch their transcript here.

Make sure you catch our full coverage of the event at this link!

Tuesday night, Harry Potter stars, Hollywood stars, the esteemed John Williams and many CEOs gathered to celebrate the red carpet premiere of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal Studios Hollywood. The new Harry Potter theme park opens today, April 7.

Leaky had two very willing Leaky and Harry Potter fans, Christina and Jeasica, were on the ground for Leaky, covering the event as our volunteer freelance reporters! Christina and Jeasica were on the red carpet, asking our favorite Harry Potter stars, and several others, questions.

Many stars were in attendance for the event, and answered a few questions on the red carpet. As the press release stated, those guests included:

John Williams conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick), Tom Felton(Draco Malfoy), Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood), and James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley), Stuart Craig (Production Designer, Harry Potter films and “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter”), along with Hollywood celebrities, including Chris Hardwick (comedian/host, “Talking Dead”), Vanessa Hudgens (“Grease Live”), Sarah Hyland (“Modern Family”), Mindy Kaling (“The Mindy Project”), Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight), Alanna Masterson (“The Walking Dead”), Ed O’Neill (“Modern Family”), Thandie Newton (Crash), Greg Nicotero (Executive Producer, “The Walking Dead”), and Billy Bob Thornton, among others.

Also attending are Larry Kurzweil, President, Universal Studios Hollywood; Tom Williams, Chairman & CEO, Universal Parks & Resorts; Mark Woodbury, President, Universal Creative; Ron Meyer, Vice Chairman, NBCUniversal; Kevin Tsujihara, Chairman & CEO, Warner Bros. Entertainment and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti.

Film director and producer Stephan Spielberg, who had an interest in adapting the Harry Potter books to film in the early stages of developing movie rights, was also in attendance. Spielberg was not chosen to direct or adapt the first Harry Potter film, as Jo and Warner Bros. felt Chris Columbus was a better fit. Mr. Spielberg was accompanied by Larry Kurzweil, Tom Williams, Mark Woodbury, and Kevin Tsujihara on the red carpet:

Jeasica and Christina conducted brief interviews with the stars. The video clips of this can be seen below.

The first is with Warwick Davis, talking about his favorite part of the Wizarding World theme parks. We were excited to watching John Williams conduct the L.A. Philharmonic Orchestra too!

[MORE VIDEOS COMING SOON]

The red carpet questioning was followed by a beautiful ceremony. The presidents and CEOs of Universal and Warner Bros, and the Mayor of Las Angeles gave speeches about the theme park and the magic it will bring to the Hollywood area. John Williams and the Harry Potter stars were introduced.

Leaky’s Jeasica and Christina had great seats to watch the introduction ceremony, and captured these clips of the speeches.

Tom Felton, Evanna Lynch, and Warwick Davis entered stage the same way all other guests and speakers entered. The Phelps twins–in proper Fred and George style–rolled in, driving the Weasley car:

The ceremony included a performance by the Hogwarts frog choir, and concluded with a magnificent light show on the castle that featured all four Hogwarts Houses, and was accompanied by John Williams conducting the L.A. Philharmonic!

One of the ever-mysterious Pottermore correspondents was at the event, reporting on the Harry Potter site’s behalf. They too, talked to stars and captured beautiful photos of the event.

Pottermore talked with Billy Bob Thornton on his visit to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. He was there with his daughter, who is a big fan of the series. Pottermore reports:

‘She’s really into it,’ Thornton admitted. ‘Half the stuff she talks about, I don’t know what it means. She and her best friend have secrets they won’t tell us about. I think they take something out of Harry Potter and they invent their own worlds.’

With a string of iconic roles under his belt, does Mr Thornton think he would make a good wizard?

‘Well, I’ve been called a wizard, and a few other things, so who knows? I’ve cast a spell or two in my time.’

Pottermore talked to other stars about who they thought were Hollywood wizards, saying:

‘Blake Lively,’ affirmed Jaime Camil, of Jane the Virgin fame. ‘I saw her Instagram today and she said she was up to no good.’

Comedian Chris Hardwick has clearly thought about this question before.

‘[George] Clooney is definitely a wizard.’ He announced. ‘It’s the smoky eyes. Clooney is definitely a guy that was, like, President of the Hogwarts school newspaper. President of everything.’

Pottermore also caught up with the Harry Potter cast, and talked to them about the nostalgia of visiting the Harry Potter theme parks. Pottermore reported:

‘You just feel immersed in it,’ James admitted. ‘You forget you’re not at Leavesden Studios filming. You still feel – I don’t mean to be cheesy – but the magical thrill of it.’ In full Fred and George style, James and Oliver even turned up to the bash in the iconic, blue Ford Anglia.

While Warwick Davies waxed lyrical about how much he loved the Butterbeer, Evanna Lynch, who is famously a huge fan of the books, was simply soaking in as much atmosphere as possible.

‘When I see new things in the park, I get excited and I feel spoiled that I get to go wherever I want,’ she enthused. ‘I love coming back here every time.’

‘It’s a bit like walking through your old school’, [Tom Felton] told us. Felton promised to return often, and recalled that, last week, he had wandered around for about an hour without anyone noticing. 

‘Hogwarts as a whole is a wonder to be around, so the fact that we have it a few meters behind us all is special.’

‘It’s my childhood,’ the actor added.

To read the entire Pottermore account of the night, and see the beautiful photos they uploaded, read the original article here.

You may view the entire ceremony here:

Wednesday, the the Harry Potter stars gathered for a media panel and one-on-one interviews, and the park opened to the general public (and press) in the very early hours of this morning.

Evanna Lynch told Leaky’s Christina, coming off the Ride of the Hippogriff, that she enjoys the out door rollercoaster. We do too, Evanna, we do too!

James and Oliver Phelps answered questions for Harry Potter’s official Facebook page. This video can be seen below:

Warwick Davis and Evanna Lynch were next in the Facebook hot seat. They too answered fans’ questions, and this video can be seen below:

Fox News reporters were also dressed up in their house robes, interviewing fans.

Tonight, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Universal’s Hollywood theme park is hosting their Red Carpet Premiere. Universal Studios has a live update available on their Twitter. The event has a live feed streaming through YouTube, which can be viewed below.

Leaky is proud to have two of our fans at the event, Christina and Jeasica,  volunteering as free lance writers for us. The press call is at 4:30 pm PT, so we will be hearing more soon.

According to the Wizarding World Press Release, the following people will be in attendance at the red carpet event:

Legendary Oscar, Emmy, Golden Globe, BAFTA and Grammy award-winning composer John Williams conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra; Harry Potter film talent, including Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick), Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood) and James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley), Stuart Craig (Production Designer, Harry Potter films and “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter”), along with Hollywood celebrities, including Chris Hardwick (comedian/host, “Talking Dead”), Vanessa Hudgens (“Grease Live”), Sarah Hyland (“Modern Family”), Mindy Kaling (“The Mindy Project”), Jennifer Jason Leigh (The Hateful Eight), Alanna Masterson (“The Walking Dead”), Ed O’Neill (“Modern Family”), Thandie Newton (Crash), Greg Nicotero (Executive Producer, “The Walking Dead”), and Billy Bob Thornton, among others.

Also attending are Larry Kurzweil, President, Universal Studios Hollywood; Tom Williams, Chairman & CEO, Universal Parks & Resorts; Mark Woodbury, President, Universal Creative; Ron Meyer, Vice Chairman, NBCUniversal; Kevin Tsujihara, Chairman & CEO, Warner Bros. Entertainment and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti.

Please stay tuned to Leaky for more!

Oliver Phelps (George Weasley) served food as a waiter, to contribute to Street restaurant’s fundraiser to find a cure for leukemia. The restaurant in Earlsdon, Coventry hosted many famous faces, who came to provide entertainment for dinner guests.

Oliver Phelps was one of the many celebrities serving food, while other’s provided live entertainment–music and comedy. The Coventry Telegraph reported the event, saying:

On the way to raising a whopping £2,500 for Cure Leukaemia and the Professional Cricketers Association, the night was masterminded by England and Warwickshire cricketer Ian Westwood.

The aim was simple: to raise money in an event which Coventry residents could be proud of – and, boy, was it a success.

There was some great feedback from punters, with Harry Potter star Oliver Phelps appearing to serve food, alongside cricketers Jim Troughton, Tim Ambrose and Ian Westwood.

“All food and drink was served by the celebs, who took it really seriously. They gave great service – along with making time for a few selfies with customers throughout the night!”

The night was hosted by comedian Billy Bell, who interviewed the stars and kept diners laughing all night.

The evening was finished off with Paul Roberts wooing the ladies, singing plenty of Stranglers hits and more.

What a pleasant surprise it would be to sit down at a restaurant and have a Weasley twin ask what you would like to drink. Perhaps he’d slip disruptive Weasley Wizard Wheezes under your table as he passed by, perhaps not. It is always a joy to see Harry Potter cast members offering their support for charity!

Harry Potter: The Exhibition, made its debut in China last Friday at the Super Brand Mall in Shanghai, China. The exhibition has been travelling across the world since its opening in Chicago in 2009.

James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley) attended the opening event, and welcomed the first guests to the exhibition, which opened to the public the next day.

The exhibition measures  1,400 square meters, and comprises dramatic displays inspired by the Harry Potter film sets (Hagrid’s Hut, the Great Hall and the Gryffindor Common Room) along with authentic costumes, props and creatures (Buckbeak, a Hungarian Horntail and a Dementor) from the films. Visitors will also be able to partake in activities such as pulling a screaming Mandrake from its pot, or throwing a Quaffle in the Quidditch area.

From SnitchSeeker:

“It’s amazing to see so many hardcore Harry Potter fans in China. They love the Harry Potter films, collect the books and even dressed up as wizards and witches!” said James Phelps. “Seeing them eager to immerse themselves in the Harry Potter experience is overwhelming, the response to the exhibition during last night’s event was fabulous. This is our very first ever visit to China and we love Shanghai, it’s a beautiful city and spending time with fans surrounded by all the great costumes, props and creatures brought us lots of surprises and good memories from working on the films! “ added Oliver Phelps.

An exclusive audio tour is also available, providing behind-the-scenes insight into the making of the Harry Potter films, with commentary from the producers, prop designers, costume designers and creature designers.

Tickets are on sale now. The exhibition will be running in Shanghai until 28th February 2016.

Salt Lake City’s Comic Con took place over the past weekend, and the Phelps twins led their own panel, answering questions and meeting fans in a very full ballroom.

Mugglenet reported on the event:

‘In Potter-related topics, James admitted he had seen a game of Muggle Quidditch and that he was surprised at how brutal the game could be. When asked what his strategy would be if he were the Snitch trying to avoid the Seekers, his answer was an amused, “I don’t know… run like hell?”

Oliver, meanwhile, admitted that he does have a few things from the set of the films, though not his wand (which he, like so many other members of the cast, wanted). Instead, he told the audience that he has a framed Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes bag on his wall and next to it, George’s ear!’

When asked about stories from the set of Harry Potter, the twins set straight the myth about them switching roles during filming and having to re-shoot scenes. They only switched seats for a rehearsal in the Great Hall, and switched back for filming so that the rest of the cast and crew wouldn’t have to waste time.

James and Oliver also told the audience that they would often visit the driving range set up behind their set, and try to hit golf balls at Wayne Manor on the Dark Knight film’s neighbouring set.

When asked about their potential Patronuses, James answered that he thought his would be a hedgehog (so he could avoid confrontation) and Oliver said he was a ‘chill guy’, so his would probably be a sloth.

The audience spent most of their time laughing as James and Oliver were coaxed into speaking in American accents. They also told a hilarious story about having to bleach their eyebrows to make them ginger, and an intern leaving Oliver’s bleach on for too long so set members ‘draw on his eyebrows for a couple of weeks’ because they were so white!

When asked by a fan what they thought of the The Wizarding World of Harry Potter’s version of Butterbeer, they said it was a lot better than on the set of the films seeing as it ‘actually tasted nice’. Oliver revealed that the Butterbeer seen in the films was actually ‘orange juice with a bit of whipped cream on top’!

Oliver told the audience that he would love to feature in a Western film, so he could ‘shoot some things’ and wear a hat, whilst James said he used to love the cartoon ‘Doug’, so his ideal role would be to play ‘Skeeter’ in a live-action remake.

We hope those of you who attended had a lot of fun – it certainly sounded like a great weekend!

Thanks to Mugglenet for the heads up!

Fan Expo Canada 2015 took place over the weekend, and details of each panel are slowly being revealed.

Saturday marked the day of the Hogwarts Reunion panel – featuring Tom Felton, Rupert Grint and James and Oliver Phelps – and on Sunday the Harry Potter cast members took part in autograph and photo sessions. The convention was the first fan event that Rupert Grint had attended.

In his own panel on Friday, Tom spoke of his visit to Universal Studios in Japan. Tribute Canada‘s article reported:

‘He mentioned that he did try the butter beer and found it very sweet and felt like he was drinking a thousand calories. He told fans he enjoyed playing Draco, saying, “There’s something about playing a slimy little git that’s fun.”

He said that Rupert Grint (Ron) often got a case of the giggles while filming. He spoke of the transition from Richard Harris to Michael Gambon as Dumbledore, saying it was a smooth one. While Harris had a powerful voice, Gambon had everyone laughing and trying to keep the mood light. Fishing is still a big hobby for Felton, and he has fished by the St. Lawrence River and even in Vancouver. He expressed his love for Canada.’

You can read more about the various panels in Tribute’s article here.

SnitchSeeker also attended the Hogwarts Reunion panel event on Saturday.

Their article reported that the actors talked about various topics, such as their best and worst memories and characters, and Tom Felton spoke about a conversation with J.K. Rowling regarding Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them:

‘Tom Felton revealed that he spoke to J.K. Rowling about two months ago and tried to get information about Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and while she wouldn’t tell him much, she joked that he and other Harry Potter actors would have background roles.’

SnitchSeeker also gave a list detailing main points from the Hogwarts Reunion panel, which can be read at the end of their article here.  The panel sounded brilliant, and one of our favourite moments to read about in SnitchSeeker’s article was:

‘Oliver said his least favourite dead character was Hedwig because on set of the second movie there was a evil owl in the car’.

Videos of the panels will reportedly be released by SnitchSeeker soon, so keep posted at their website here!

Ice Cream Man (infamous Rupert Grint news source) were also reporting on the event based on visitor experiences, and gave a list of quotes from the panel in their article:

‘“We grew up on those sets. We kind of became the people we are today on those sets.”

“My Little Pony. A Brony. The Brony thing.” – On what Rupert would cosplay

“Yeah, I’d never get rid of that. It’s my prize possession.” – Rupert on his ice cream van. He also mentioned he doesn’t drive it around any more because ice cream men can be territorial and he doesn’t want to start a turf war

“I always say Rupert as the next Bond. The world is ready for a ginger Bond.” – From Tom’

Ice Cream Man also published a gallery of photos from the event, featuring the four cast members with various fans. The gallery can be seen here.

Fan Expo Canada’s Twitter has been flooded over the weekend with photos, videos and live tweets from panels,  you can read the ones on the Hogwarts Reunion panel below (click to expand):

They retweeted some great photos from the event:

Tom, James and Oliver also tweeted their farewells and thanks to the Expo:

It certainly sounded like an amazing weekend, and we hope those of you who were lucky enough to attend had a great time!

Playbill.com is reporting that actress Katie Leung (Cho Chang) will make her stage debut this winter in the play "Wild Swans." Leung has been cast as Er-Hong, one of the main characters in the play. "Wild Swans" is based off the memoir of the same name by Jung Chang about a family living during Mao's Cultural Revolution in China.

"Wild Swans" opens February 15, 2012 at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Mass. until March 11, 2012. It will then move to London's Young Vic beginning April 13, 2012.

James and Oliver Phelps (Wesley twins) helped officially open a new teenage cancer unit at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in their hometown of Birmingham. Video coverage of the actors at the opening and speaking to the BBC can be seen here.

Yesterday, 1st December, Leaky attended the Blu-ray and DVD release event at Harrods, where 300 fans had their copies of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" signed by Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick and Griphook), James Phelps (Fred Weasley), Oliver Phelps (George Weasley), Mark Williams (Arthur Weasley) and Jessie Cave (Lavendar Brown). Attendees at the launch event received goody bags stuffed with t-shirts, scarves, the film's soundtrack, stickers, keyrings and more! Leaky was given the opportunity to ask the actors questions in a press roundtable shortly before the signing and you can find the full transcript of that interview below, with the audio and photographs from the event to follow later this evening.

Update: Full audio of the interview can be heard right here!

"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" is (finally!) out on Blu-Ray and DVD in the UK from today, 2nd December.

Interview with Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick and Griphook), James Phelps (Fred Weasley), Oliver Phelps (George Weasley), Mark Williams (Arthur Weasley) and Jessie Cave (Lavendar Brown) at Harrods, London on the 1st December 2011.

What was the last scene you filmed on the very last film?
Warwick Davis: I think it was something to do with the dwarf and whats-his-face…

Bogrod?
WD: Yeah! Don't quote me on whats-his-face! [Sorry Warwick!] That was my last day on what was officially the last day, that was my last day.
Oliver Phelps: Mine was filming with James on the battlement sequence when Fred and George see Voldemort's army coming in. That was all done ad lib and that was quite cool.
James Phelps: Same!
Jessie Cave: Mine was my death scene. Which is quite fitting, really.
Mark Williams: Mine was the Great Hall, the big Great Hall scene, mine was the same day as Alan Rickman's and Thewlis' and a lot of other people, a lot of us wrapped at the same time.

Rosi for Leaky: Because [James and Jessie] had big death scenes, or seen death scenes, do you feel that meant you had more of a final end to your time on the films than maybe other people will have had?
WD: Clever!
MW: See, you don't get away with anything with this lot.
JC: I definitely -- it was really nice kind of ending even though I was--
MW: Nice?!
JC: Not nice! Sort of…
MW: Nice as in precise.
JC: Yes, precise! Precise ending, full stop.
JP: For me it kind of seemed like a normal scene because I didn't do anything but it was the fact that because it was in the great hall--
MW: Did you fall asleep?
JP: I did in rehearsals yeah. Because we've filmed in the great hall for like ten years, we've shot so many things there so it just seemed like another great hall scene to be honest with you, but on reflection I guess it was a fitting end. Luckily it was in the last movie and not the first.
WD: I died and then I was alive again. It's funny because when you do these death things you want to look good and I said to David Yates, I could be death like this [twists self] I gave him a few options, but he went for the most contorted one, you see, which was really uncomfortable and I just lay there for six hours watching Voldemort strut up and down. But it was quite funny because on one occasion they put so much blood everywhere, you can't really see in the film, but there was gallons of this fake blood all round--
MW: --it was really slippery--
WD: and Ralph slipped on it at one p

James and Oliver Phelps (Weasley Twins), Jessie Cave (Lavender Brown) and Warwick Davis (Flitwick/Griphook) will make an appearance at Harrods' Harry Potter shop on December 1st to meet fans and sign copies of "Deathly Hallows: Part 2" on Blu-ray Triple Play.

The event will start from 5:30 p.m., but only 300 wristbands will be handed out beginning at 10 a.m. Below are instructions for fans interested in attending the meet and greet with the cast:

Due to the limited time available, access to the queue will be strictly limited to 300. Wristbands will be issued from 10am at The Harry Potter Shop at Harrods on the day of the event on a first-come, first-served basis with a queue starting at Door 3 of the store.

Leaky's interviews with cast members and filmmakers from the Harry Potter film series from the red carpet for WB's Harry Potter Home Entertainment Celebration are now online and can be viewed via this link, or below:

PART ONE: Devon Murray (Seamus Finnigan), Nick Moran (Scabior), George Harris (Kingsley), David Bradley (Filtch), Rupert Grint (Ron) and Executive Producer David Baron.



PART TWO: Director David Yates, Executive Producer David Heyman, Stanislav Ianevski (Viktor Krum), James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley), Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy), and Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood)



In these interviews, we get to hear from a number of the cast members about their impressions of the Wizarding World and of how they are feeling now that one of the last big milestones in the Harry Potter films series, the final film's DVD release, is upon them.  We also speak with a few of the filmmakers, who discuss how they feel wrapping up the last eleven years of their lives and dish a little on what we might be able to see on a future Ultimate 8 Film Boxed Set.

The "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" DVD/Blu-ray is available in stores and online in the States now.

Enjoy!

Harry Potter: The Exhibition will be making its next stop at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, Australia beginning Nov. 19. To celebrate the opening of the Exhibition, Harry Potter actors James and Oliver Phelps (Weasley twins) will be making a special promotional appearance at the museum.

The Phelps will be interviewed by the press on Nov. 17 during a private event. On Nov. 18, they will be attending an Opening Party for the exhibition. Tickets can be purchased by fans interested in attending the party: $95 for adults, $75 for children. The ticket price includes entertainment, food, non-alcoholic drinks and exhibition entry.

Harry Potter: The Exhibition will be at the Powerhouse Museum until March 18, 2012. For more information, visit this website.

Thanks to SnitchSeeker for the news!

A red carpet event will be held on Saturday, Nov. 12 for the Blu-ray/DVD release of "Deathly Hallows: Part 2" and E! Online will be live streaming the event beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT.

The event is part of Warner Bros. and Universal Orlando's celebration of the Harry Potter films, which will be taking place next weekend, Nov. 11-13, at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. The festivities will mark a decade since the release of the first film and promote the release of the final Harry Potter Blu-ray/DVD, "Deathly Hallows: Part 2."

Guests confirmed to attend the event include actors Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley), Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy), James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley), Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood), Helen McCrory (Narcissa Malfoy), Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick), Mark Williams (Arthur Weasley) and director David Yates.

Leaky will also be on hand to provide full coverage and interviews with the cast and crew, so stay tuned!

Entertainment Weekly has released an exclusive behind the scenes clip from the "Deathly Hallows: Part 2" Blu-ray. The clip features interviews with the Weasley actors discussing Molly Weasley's (Julie Walters) famous line in the series when she battles Bellatrix Lestrange (Helena Bonham Carter). See that video here.

Another clip was unlocked by fans playing on the website Harry Potter: The Quest. This new feature focuses on Harry and Dumbledore's relationship through the years and includes previously unseen behind the scenes footage of Daniel Radcliffe and Michael Gambon joking around on the set. See it on YouTube or below:



"Deathly Hallows: Part 2" will be released on DVD and Blu-ray on Nov. 11 in the U.S. and Dec. 2 in the U.K.

Tweet

By Edward Zelinsky

It is noteworthy when eight ideologically diverse justices of the U.S. Supreme Court all decide a First Amendment case the same way. Thus, Snyder v. Phelps is a noteworthy decision. The Westboro Baptist Church is well-known for its demonstrations at military funerals. Indeed, the Westboro Church, led by (and, some say, principally consisting of) the Phelps family, has the rare distinction of having been denounced by both Jon Stewart and Mike Huckabee.

Members of the Westboro Church demonstrated near the Maryland funeral of Marine Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder, killed in action in Iraq. Mr. Albert Snyder, the corporal’s father, sued the Westboro Church and its members for various torts including intentional infliction of emotional distress. Mr. Snyder prevailed in a jury trial. In invalidating the jury’s verdict, the U.S. Supreme Court, except for Justice Alito, said that the Church and its members were exercising their free speech rights in a constitutionally-protected fashion.

As the Court described the facts of the case, it is hard to disagree with this conclusion. According to those facts, the Westboro Church and its members told the local authorities of their intention to demonstrate at the time of the Snyder funeral and “complied with police instructions in staging their demonstration.” The Westboro demonstrators stayed “behind a temporary fence…approximately 1,000 feet from the church where the funeral was held.” The demonstrators went neither to the church where the funeral was held nor to the cemetery, and were nonviolent throughout their demonstration.

On these facts, the message conveyed by the Westboro Church is obnoxious (“God Hates the USA/Thank God for 9/11,” “Thank God for IEDs,” “Thank God for Dead Soldiers”) but constitutionally protected.

The problem is: Those were not all the facts of the case. Only Justice Alito confronted this reality. After the funeral, a member of the Westboro Church posted on the Church’s website a hate-filled message aimed specifically at the Snyder family. Among its other assertions, this website message accused Mr. and Mrs. Snyder of having “raised [Matthew] for the devil.” The Snyders, the web message continued, “taught Matthew to defy his Creator, to divorce, and to commit adultery.” Then the Snyders sent their son “to fight for the United States of Sodom, a filthy country that is in lock step with his evil, wicked, and sinful manner of life.”

Media accounts of the Court’s decision have largely ignored this web-based attack on the Snyders. Media accounts have also largely ignored the eight Justices’ acknowledgment that, if this web-based attack is considered, Westboro and its members may indeed have stepped over the line, forfeiting First Amendment protection by this vicious internet attack on the Snyder family. As Chief Justice Roberts put it in a footnote to his majority opinion, this “Internet posting may raise distinct issues in this context,” issues which the Court declined to consider because of the failure of the Snyders to press this point in their petition to the high court.

Justice Alito disagreed with his colleagues in his willingness to confront the facts of the case as they were presented to the jury: Westboro and

For those of us who follow actors Tom Felton (Draco), Matt Lewis (Neville) and James and Oliver Phelps  (Fred & George) via their official Twitter pages, you will have noticed several statements about various UK radio and television interviews underway before the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince DVD.

As per Feltbeats, Tom Felton will also be a guest on <>Switch with Annie and Nic... Read the rest of this post

Several stars from the Harry Potter films were out and about in London, England recently and we have some new photos to show you. First, actor Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy) and Bonnie Wright (Ginny) attended the EA Children's BAFTAs, with photos of Jason here, and Bonnie here, with additional photos now available here in our galleries.  Also as seen via his official Twitter, Tom Felton (Draco) w... Read the rest of this post

As announced earlier, WB will be releasing Harry Potter: Wizarding World DVD game on December 1st, just a few days before the release of Half-Blood Prince and the special Ultimate Collector's editions DVDs. As such Amazon.com has a brand new trailer for the DVD game which you can see right here in our Video galleries. Last month we told of the details for the game which covers elements from Har... Read the rest of this post

Last night in the UK, two more behind the scenes specials on the making of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince were aired. While both contained many interviews with cast and crew, of note were the new clips from HBP, and we have them both now in our video galleries. SPOILER caution:  At approx 15 min here in the Sky Movies special with Alex Zane, you can now watch the intense Unbreakable Vow... Read the rest of this post

As posted before UK Channel 4 was set to broadcast a special on Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Recorded during the London premiere of the film in Leicester Squarey, thanks to our Order partner BonnieWrightOnline, you can now watch the show with part one here, part two here, and part three here. In the program you can see footage of many of the cast and crew, as well as interviews condu... Read the rest of this post

Premieres for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince continue around the globe. James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George) are in Sweden for that premiere, with a new interview of the brothers airing here on Swedish TV.  Now here in our galleries, you can also see screencaps of the interview here, which included two quick clips of previously release scenes from the attack on the Burrow and at We... Read the rest of this post

Over the past month or so, long time readers will know we have been experiencing some down time for our galleries. Tonight we are delighted to report our galleries are back in business and have some lovely new photos for us to enjoy. WB has officially released to all the media now a slew of new clips and high res images. Starting at this link, there many many new photos from the upcoming<> Harry ... Read the rest of this post

Attention magazine fans! The new edition of Movie Magic magazine contains a large feature on Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Thanks to Megan from Magical-Menagerie, we can now preview part of the magazine, as seen in these scans which features interviews with the Trio, Tom Felton, Bonnie Wright and more. Notable are new comments from producer David Heyman on the opening scene of Harry P... Read the rest of this post