http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/ PotterWatch.com en-us images/_toprow_bg.gif http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/ Dedicated to JK Rowling\'s Harry Potter Saga in all its forms. 88 31 http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=515 November 17, 2008

In a twist of ironic fate, Warner has sent out a brand new trailer for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince just one week before the film was originally scheduled to open.

Just a few months ago, Warner yanked Potter from its November 21 date and pushed all the way into July 2009. Electronics subsequently made the same move with its game for PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii based on the movie. The "official" reason for the move was to fill in a summer slate hit hard by the writer's strike earlier this year. Thu, 20 Nov 2008 20:12:46 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=514 Using a technological quirk, movie disk pirates are selling so-called Blu-Ray disks, which can be made cheaply, and what’s more hard to spot for users.

The rub is in the fact that the average user can’t tell the quality difference between the ultra high-definition and high-priced Blu-Ray format used by Hollywood, and the Advanced Video Codec High Definition (AVCHD) format, which is high-def, but not quite as good as Blu-Ray. The former’s display resolution has 720 horizontal lines versus the latter’s 1,080. Nevertheless, AVCHD’s picture is sharper than ordinary mpeg2-encoded DVDs on high-definition TV sets.

The pirates rip the movies from Blu-Ray disks by conventional means then re-encode them. The lower resolution means they can then be put on ordinary blank DVDs instead of more expensive blank Blu-Ray. The method is therefore quite profitable for pirates, says the MPA, which has made it its mission to battle piracy on behalf of studios owned by Walt Disney Co., Viacom Inc., Sony Corp., News Corp., Time Warner Inc., and General Electric Co. Thu, 20 Nov 2008 20:10:07 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=513 The young students added mermaid tears into a mixture of gargoyle dust and elixir of life.

To their delight, the colorful concoctions bubbled and foamed and turned very cold.

Julian Manes, a third-grader at Alta S. Leary Elementary, was happy to get a chance to dabble in the magical arts for a day for one reason.

“I love Harry Potter!” said Julian, 8. Tue, 11 Nov 2008 20:36:12 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=512 With publishers and booksellers nervous about Christmas sales, a little $12.95 book might be the season's savior. The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a Harry Potter offshoot by J.K. Rowling, is being published by Scholastic on Dec. 4. This will be the first Rowling book to be published at the height of the holiday season; all her previous Harry Potters were published in the summer—and the timing, although ideal in the gift-giving sense, may present some logistical distribution challenges.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a slim collection of five stories, including “The Tale of the Three Brothers,” which appeared in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, will have to ship from wholesalers during the Thanksgiving rush. Ingram Book Group's director of merchandising Mary McCarthy says the logistics will be “challenging.” The company meets weekly to review orders and transportation to ensure that everything will go smoothly. Although she doesn't expect Beedle to sell at the same levels as Deathly Hallows—Ingram's initial order was roughly one-third of its initial buy for Deathly Hallows—it is still a major title. Tue, 11 Nov 2008 20:34:59 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=511 Mummy star Rachel Weisz and Harry Potter actor Robbie Coltrane have been talking about their new film The Brothers Bloom, about an actress who comes up against two swindlers.

They spoke to Newsbeat about being conned, mastering difficult card tricks and what we can expect next from Harry Potter.
Robbie Coltrane and Rachel Weisz

Rachel, you had to learn a lot of skills for this, which was the hardest? Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:52:45 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=510 Harry Potter readers can be split into four distinct types, according to a marketing expert.

Each type conforms closely with one of the four houses found in Harry's school Hogwarts, Professor Stephen Brown of Ulster University said.

His research found 'Hufflepuff' readers take the tales at a slow, steady and systematic pace and enjoy re-reading the books over and over. Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:51:41 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=509 Youngsters from the King's School were in for a spooky night when they spent Halloween in the ghostly cloisters of Gloucester Cathedral.

The cloisters, famous for their part in the Harry Potter films, played host to 19 choristers aged between seven and 13 from the choir school on Friday night.

The boys usually have a hectic schedule singing evensong in the Cathedral six evenings a week as well as daily rehearsals. Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:50:32 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=508 LOS ANGELES, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Nine months in advance of its box office debut, "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince" is already casting a spell over moviegoers, according to a just-released poll from MovieTickets.com.

In a survey conducted between Aug. 8 and Oct. 5, nearly 4,000 movie fans who had just purchased tickets at MovieTickets.com weighed in with their picks for the "most anticipated" films over the next 12 months. Rounding out the top three films generating the most interest over the next year were sequels "X- Men Origins: Wolverine" and "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen." Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:49:32 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=507 AN historic abbey was invaded by ghosts, ghouls and sorcerers as it hosted a Hallowe’en themed witches and wizards activity day for kids.

Arts and crafts, magicians and storytellers kept visitors to Lacock Abbey entertained today, with the event held in the abbey’s cloisters, which were used to shoot scenes for the Harry Potter films. Wed, 05 Nov 2008 18:48:24 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=506 The House of Lords has refused to hear an appeal in the privacy case brought by Harry Potter author J K Rowling and her husband over photographs taken as they walked in the street pushing their young son in a buggy.

Big Pictures (UK) Ltd had petitioned for permission to appeal against the decision of the Court of Appeal in May that the law protects children from intrusive media attention. It upheld an appeal by J K Rowling - under her real name, Joanne Murray - and her husband, Neil, against Mr Justice Patten's decision to strike out their privacy claim the photographic agency on behalf of their young son, David. Wed, 29 Oct 2008 07:02:12 UT