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=1244 I spent a lot of time writing for a political magazine once upon a time and every so often I find myself instantly ignoring some of the ridiculous things I hear on the news these days, because I grew so weary of the stuff when I was following it for a living. Sometimes I’m afraid to write about some of these things I DO hear because I know I’ll begin dissecting some of the absurd things people say out there that make up the news and I might never be able to stop writing. That or I would just simply keel over my computer in frustration. Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:21:01 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1243 Driving around L.A., which is definitely an industry town, you see billboards everywhere for Harry Potter asking CONSIDER in big letters. 



Obviously hoping to appeal to academy voters, the billboard is asking to consider Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 for Oscars other than the usual technical awards. Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:18:01 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1242 (Reuters) - Harry Potter fans could be getting a second theme park in the United States, and possibly further attractions in Japan and Singapore, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.

The Journal, citing sources familiar with the plans, said NBC Universal was planning to expand its Universal Studios theme park in Los Angeles with a section devoted to the boy wizard. Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:16:55 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1241 Jump aboard the Hogwart Express and enter the magical world of Harry Potter Down Under.

The exhibition of arguably the most successful movie franchise of all time has arrived in Australia.

Harry Potter: The Exhibition, which officially opened on Thursday at the Sydney Powerhouse Museum, features hundreds of artifacts and memorabilia from the story J. K. Rowling brought to life. Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:10:08 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1240 After decades of false starts and drawn out development, a "Doctor Who" movie may finally be headed to the big screen.  The BBC has brought in "Harry Potter" series helmer David Yates to develop a new incarnation of the character for a stand alone feature film.

Yates told Variety that he and Janet Tranter, head of BBC Worldwide Productions, are on the lookout for writers for the new project and will spend two to three years properly developing the material.  Yates was quoted as saying, "It needs quite a radical transformation to take it into a bigger arena." Wed, 16 Nov 2011 21:18:07 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1239 A new study helps to explain why some people loved or loathed the “Harry Potter” fictional series about a young wizard growing up in the world and fighting evil along the way.

According to Russell Webster, doctoral student in psychology at Kansas State University, people experience fantasy differently, and some people enjoy it more than others. Wed, 16 Nov 2011 21:16:27 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1238 Do you remember how you felt when the credits started to roll on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2? It was bittersweet to see our favorite wizards and witches arrive at the end of their fantastic 10-year journey.

But as sad as it was for us to see the franchise come to an end, it was even more painful for the stars to hear the final "cut." Check out this exclusive clip from the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 DVD to get a behind-the-scenes look at the emotional wrap party. Wed, 16 Nov 2011 21:15:15 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1237 It's no secret that a great many fans in the "Harry Potter" community — a whopping 89 percent, according to a wildly popular poll over at MTV Movies Blog — would have preferred that Hermione Granger end up with the boy wizard rather than with good ol' Ron Weasley. Perhaps the same sentiment occurred to author J.K. Rowling, who recently admitted that she almost sent Ron to an early grave. Tue, 01 Nov 2011 18:03:15 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1236 J.K. Rowling is in a dishy mood. Or at least she was last year when Harry Potter‘s creator sat down with the character’s big screen portrayer Daniel Radcliffe for a conversation filmed for the Blu-ray edition of Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2, on sale next week. By now you’ve probably heard about one provocative excerpt — how Rowling considered killing Harry’s red-headed best bud Ron Weasley while writing the seven novel series. The disclosure comes after Radcliffe asks if the author considered killing any of the big three: Harry, Hermione, and Ron. “Funnily enough, I planned from the start none of them would die,” Rowling says. “Then, midway through  — which I think was a reflection of the fact that I was not in a very happy place – I started thinking about polishing one of them off. Out of sheer spite!”

But there’s more. Tue, 01 Nov 2011 18:01:19 UT http://www.potterwatch.com/mpn/html/article.php?sid=1235 When I suggested that another "Harry Potter" complete DVD boxed set was on its way in the next year or so, I wasn't very far off. Warner Bros might be making a big deal of the fact that "Harry Potter" DVDs are being taken off shelves starting December 29, but they won't be gone forever. In fact, one head honcho over at WB says that yes, there will be a new even better special edition boxed set of all eight "Potter" DVDs due out by the end of 2012.

Entertainment Weekly chatted with Warner Bros's senior VP and general manager of their theatrical catalog Jeff Baker, who says that execs at WB are planning on a new boxed set focused on special features due out next year. Sun, 30 Oct 2011 19:04:38 UT