The Harry Potter global phenomenon - do you class it as a part of your life?

28.2k · February 24, 2020

Harry Potter has since became such an a global phenomenon that it’s hard to see the full scope what it accomplished over the years. J.K. Rowling was an unknown single mom when she first got the idea for her story while stuck on a train; the small UK children’s press that ultimately took a chance on it undoubtedly couldn’t have predicted that it would have a measurable effect on everything it touched. Now one of the biggest forces in pop culture, it changed the way that businesses published books for kids.

It’s remarkable that Harry Potter was rejected from no less than nine different publishers in the UK (all of whom rue the day, to be sure). Little finally got the manuscript into the hands of an agent at Bloomsbury, and they bought the rights for something like 2,000 pounds.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was released in the UK on June 30, 1997. The books were around for a long time before Harry Potter. But JK Rowling turned book consumption, especially for children, into something close to addiction. You want proof? The UK release of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban in 1999 was timed at 3.45pm to prevent children in England and Wales from skipping school to get their copy. The later books got HUGE but it didn't stop kids devouring them. Grown-ups got hooked too, with the books being released in adult-friendly covers. The book releases themselves became headline news: when the fourth book Goblet of Fire came out in 2000, booksellers around the world got together to coordinate the first ever global midnight launch.

I'll admit, I was a later comer to the Harry Potter series. Believe it or not, it wasn't till I saw promo advertising for Harry Potter and The Prisoner Of Azkaban at my first job. Now, don't get me wrong I had seen Harry Potter and The Philosophers Stone Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets when they came out on DVD! (Not Bluray). But I didn't like the movies, I didn't 'get it'. So after looking through the promo advertising it looked far more interesting, plus the fact that Hermione (Emma Watson) was my age, she looked pretty. I bought the DVD, took it home that evening, setup the DVD and TV, sat down and watched it.... I LOVED IT! From that day forth I've been hooked. Despite your own preferences, is widely known as the best film in the series. (Just saying)

I was a part of the generation that truly grew up with harry potter...

The characters were around my age and I just loved the magical world, I was hooked! I remember making friends over the years and sharing stories, theories and bickered countless hours over how the screenwriters left out seemingly crucial scenes from the books, or how the actors playing the three leads just weren’t cutting it, or how impossible it is to ever recreate on the screen the universe that we’ve designed in our heads over all the years of reading the series.

In the early 2000's Harry Potter was alive and breeding on the Internet, thanks to fan sites such as ' the-leaky-cauldron ', ' mugglenet ' & of course the famous veritaserum.com - forums. Potter Web masters Emerson Spartz of Leaky Cauldron and Melissa Anelli of Mugglenet agree that between 2000 and 2003 the Potter galaxy exploded again, from publishing phenomenon to cultural phenomenon.

So when someone says that Harry Potter changed the world, it’s not exactly an exaggeration. I'm sure I speak for many who believe that Harry Potter is simply a part of their lives.

Thoughts?

Do you think this sort of phenomenon will ever happen again in our lifetimes?

1.6k · March 6, 2020

Who is that hiding under the invisibility cloak? Harry... Is that you? No?
Well, you must be a Muggle... And, you've found our magical community!