Janice has been collecting items for more than 10 years and needed somewhere to display them after realising her collection was taking over her house.

So she transformed her attic into the Gryffindor Common Room where she can display her collection.

Janice has no idea how much she has spent on her impressive collection – which includes wands, broomsticks, model characters, pictures, a fire and chandelier and even a life-size Dobby house elf.

A YouTube video of Janice’s attic has received more than 50,000 views. (Pictures: Dave Gillespie)

The 53-year-old fell in love with Harry Potter after she saw a film on television at her friend’s house.

Janice said: “I’d never seen it or bothered with it and I noticed there was a creature and I said who is that and she said it is Dobby.

“Well, I was just addicted.”

Janice, from Latchford, was then invited to watch the film at her son and his wife’s house, who are also fans.

Janice Burnett’s amazing Harry Potter collection, pictures; Dave Gillespie

Since then, Janice is the Gryffindor Editor of the Harry Potter UK Facebook page and also runs her own page, Dobby the House Elf on Tour.

Janice, who is a full-time carer, has made many friends who are fans of the franchise and the community often meet up at the Harry Potter Studios in London – which is one of Janice’s favourite things to come from her love for the wizarding world.

She added: “I love the films, I listen to the audio but I think just at the minute I’ve got a lot of friends.

Janice Burnett’s amazing Harry Potter collection, pictures; Dave Gillespie

“And we all meet up and it Is kind of like socialising – it’s a big thing.

“I have got some lovely friends and that’s a big thing for me.”

Janice also takes her eight-year-old grandson along to Harry Potter meetups as he is also a fan.

Janice Burnett’s amazing Harry Potter collection, pictures; Dave Gillespie

Janice Burnett’s amazing Harry Potter collection, pictures; Dave Gillespie

Janice Burnett’s amazing Harry Potter collection, pictures; Dave Gillespie

The evil wizard (Mads Mikkelsen, replacing the cancelled Johnny Depp) remains crushingly familiar (he’s Voldemort with a nose) but the Danish actor delivers a less showy and more creepy villain.

Now we’re in the 1930s and Grindelwald is hoping to hijack an election and become the first anti-Muggle leader of the magical world.

When Dumbledore and Grindelwald were young lovers, they made a blood pact never to fight each other, and sealed it in a magical amulet.

But while the Hogwarts’ headmaster can’t stop him with magic, he can scheme from the sidelines.

So a crack team is assembled made up of Newt, Newt’s brother Theseus (Callum Turner), witch Eulalie Hicks (Jessica Williams) and Muggle baker Jacob Kowalski (Dan Fogler).

Highlights include a subterranean prison break and a spectacular wand fight in the streets of Berlin.

It’s more entertaining than the first two films but there’s still a Hogwarts-sized hole in this series. I suspect it was the childish wonder of its young heroes that made the original Potter movies so magical.

Fantastic Beasts: The secrets of Dumbledore… in cinemas now

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Image courtesy of the Office of Historic Alexandria

The Apothecary Museum Harry Potter Birthday Tours

The Real-World Science Behind Harry Potter

Tickets are $8, available here.

In honor of Harry’s birthday on July 31st, the Apothecary Museum is offering a special guided tour for families (and adults who missed their Hogwarts’ letter) that will explore the old Apothecary and the historic muggle medicines that inspired the Herbology and Potions of Harry’s wizarding world.

Each timed entry will be a separate guided tour, so be sure to purchase your group’s tickets for only one timed entry. Due to the small spaces in the museum, the capacity for each tour is 10 people. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Everyone must purchase a ticket, adults and children. Touring the museum involves ascending and descending one flight of stairs. Photography welcome. This tour sells out quickly, so purchase in advance!

Downtown travelers can additionally participate in The Marauder’s Hunt, a Quidditch-themed scavenger hunt being sponsored by Reigning Cats Dogs. Get a hunt card at Miss Minerva’s, Rusty Willow Boutique, Vinosity, Jackleg, Reigning and Le Monkey House, all on East Davis Street.

Story by Reuters

Updated 4:35 AM ET, Mon August 15, 2022

The prank did not go down well with JK Rowling

Washington:

‘Harry Potter’ author JK Rowling has become the latest victim of a hoax by Russian comedians Vovan and Lexus who tricked the former into believing she was having a video call with the president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The prank did not go down well with Rowling. Her spokesperson slammed Vovan and Lexus, describing the hoax as “distasteful”, The Hollywood Reporter reported.

“JK Rowling was approached to talk about her extensive charitable work in Ukraine, supporting children and families who have been affected by the current conflict in the region. The video, which has been edited, is a distorted representation of the conversation,” the spokesperson said.

In a 12-minute video of the prank, Rowling was told by the fake Zelenskyy that Harry Potter’s famous forehead scare resembles the “Z” symbol that the Russian military has used on tanks and other weapons.

« Harry Potter à l’école des SORCIÈRS »…
Littérature enfantine compatible régiment Azov…https://t.co/tSjvZgAtvG……

— STRATIGOPOULOS fred (@FredStrat) June 20, 2022

The pranksters asked Rowling if she would switch Harry’s scar to a more pro-Ukraine symbol, to which the author answered, “I will look into that, might be good for me to do something with that myself on social media because I think that will get into the newspapers.”

According to Variety, the pranksters also told Rowling that the Ukraine military would begin writing “Avada Kedavra” on its missiles, a reference to the killing curse in the “Harry Potter” franchise.

Prior to Rowling, the Russian comedians have pulled pranks on Elton John, Prince Harry, Billie Eilish, Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders and George W. Bush in the past.

Click for more trending news

Fans will be spellbound.

After months of anticipation, HBO Max has finally dropped the first official photo from the set of the highly anticipated “Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts” special.

“Like they never left,” the streaming platform wrote alongside the nostalgic Twitter pic, which depicts stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson conversing in the iconic Gryffindor common room.

The photo marks the first time three fantasy stars have been photographed together since the “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part Two” premiere in 2011.

The nostalgic retrospective commemorates the beloved film franchise’s 20th anniversary anniversary, which began with the immortal “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” in 2001.

HBO have yet to announce the special’s official length. However, “Return To Hogwarts” will provide a behind-the-scenes look at making of the eight films through “in-depth interviews” and “cast conversations,” Variety reported. A teaser for the retrospective aired Sunday night on TBS and Cartoon Network, featuring cameos from Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid), Matthew Lewis (Neville Longbottom) and Mark Williams (Arthur Weasley).

Along with the aforementioned stars, the reunion will feature cast and crew from previous films, including “Sorcerer’s Stone” director Chris Columbus, and actors Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Jason Isaacs, Gary Oldman, Tom Felton, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps and more.

Absent from the “Return To Hogwarts” roster will be the late great Alan Rickman (Severus Snape), who passed away in 2016 at 69 after a short battle with Pancreatic cancer.

Meanwhile, “Harry Potter” author JK Rowling also won’t be giving interviews in the special, but will appear in archival footage. However, it’s unclear if this decision was based on the viral controversy that was spawned last summer, when the fantasy scribe fired off a series of Tweets that were deemed “transphobic” by some Harry Potter fans and actors.

“There’s magic in the air here with this incredible cast, as they all return home to the original sets of Hogwarts, where they began 20 years ago,” Casey Patterson, “RTH’s” executive producer at Warner Bros., said in November.

The nostalgic special premieres on HBO Max on New Year’s Day, January 1, 2022.

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The LEGO Harry Potter modular style sets have been very popular since they were first introduced. Not only are they great for playing with but their modular nature lets you mix and match to create many unique combinations that fit very well on shallow display shelves. But with so many sets stacked on top of each other, Hogwarts students had a hard time moving between the floors. Well no longer. With the introduction of LEGO Harry Potter 40577: Hogwarts Grand Staircase gift with purchase, collectors, and fans will be able to give their Minifigs access to the second or even third floors in their scenes with a bit of creative stacking. Hogwarts Grand Staircase comes with 223 pieces and will be available from July 15th – July 31st with a qualifying purchase of $130 / €130 / £130 threshold, on Harry Potter.

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Unboxing the parts, instructions, and sticker sheets

The front of the vertical tab-sealed box features the finished model as well as the Harry Potter and Wizarding World branding elements. The lower right corner includes a composite image of Harry, Ron, and Hermione along with magical swirls from Harry’s wand. In the lower-left corner is an inset image of the Hermione Minifig that is included in the set.

On the back of the box, the model is shown again, this time demonstrating the play feature of the rotating staircase, as well as an image of the swap-able panels for the arches, one of which is the famous “fat lady” who guards the entrance to the Gryffindor common room.

Inside the box are three numbered bags, 2 loose plates, an instruction booklet in the new style with white bars across the top and bottom with faint line drawings of LEGO elements that matches the new paper packaging that LEGO has announced (the bags were all still clear plastic.

There was also a loose sticker sheet for the portraits which was pretty banged up and had to spend the night pressed into a heavy book to flatten it out.

The build

The build is pretty uneventful, starting out with two arches and some bricks. One thing of interest is the two sets of technic bricks and pins that allow the finished model to attach to a combination of the previously released modular sets on either side, preferably to one with two levels.

As the build progresses, we get some sideways-facing stud bricks where separate portraits will be placed later, and a few portrait stickers placed on large panel bricks. We also get a floor tiled in dark gray stones and a turntable base which will provide the primary play function of the rotating staircase.

Once we finish the second level, with more studs not on top bricks and more stickered panels, we get an interesting little detail along the tops of the two walls. This portion of the build ends with arched panels with stickers that fit into 2 of the four archways. The rest of the portrait stickers attach to 2×3 tiles and pointed tiles.

The final detail is the staircase, built on top of an octagon plate using 1×4 tiles with railing to cover up the gaps in the structural stair element. The handrails are appropriately ornate and attached via clips at the bottom. They lean against a slope at the base. With the use of a plate instead of a 4×4 round brick, the staircase spins freely on the base.

The Minifigs

The set includes one Minifig, Hermione, and she includes a pair of connected wands and a black skirt element. She has front and back printing for her torso as well as her legs which are printed on all sides with a gray band to represent her socks. Her head has two expressions, her knowing smirk, and a slightly nervous expression for when she is about to get the results from her recent exam.

The finished model

The finished model is great and full of details. The rotating staircase is a fun feature and the set can be added to any of the other Harry Potter modular sets released in the last few years. My son let me borrow a few of his for this review.

There were a few minor issues I had but these in no way detract from my overall opinion of the set. My first issue is with the turntable base, since it swings freely instead of clicking into place as it is rotating, it is easily jostled, which combined with my second issue means that any Minifig placed on the staircase is likely to take a tumble since the use of the tile with rail for the risers means that there is no way to arrach Minifigs to the steps. The second is easily fixable if you don’t mind gaps in the stairs by switching the parts with an assortment of plates and tiles. The first issue could be solved by swapping the plate for a 4×4 round brick but would require a significant change in the design.

Conclusions and recommendations

Despite a few design flaws stated earlier, I think this is a pretty neat set and would make a great addition to any Hogwarts scene. The amount of stickers means you could get a few and build your very own larger grand staircase if you were so inclined, and I know a few LEGO Harry Potter fans who might do just that. LEGO Harry Potter 40577: Hogwarts Grand Staircase comes with 223 pieces and will be available from July 15th – July 31st with a qualifying purchase of $130 / €130 / £130 On Harry Potter™

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.