Almost every one of us students grew up hearing a story about a land where young wizards and witches gather to attend a school in a castle. That story is none other than Harry Potter.

Since the first book was released in September 1998, British author J.K. Rowling has invited children and adults alike into a fantasy world filled with strange-tasting jelly beans, chocolate frogs and crazy train rides – a world of magic at every turn.
The incredible success of the book was followed by the even more successful movie franchise. The first film was released in 2001 and since then, according to Box Office History, the epic saga’s films combined have an international gross of over $5.5 billion!

Last week, part one of the final Harry Potter movies, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, made its way to theaters. Anyone who is a Harry Potter fan has been waiting years to witness the epic finale of this amazing adventure.

We have all watched Harry, Hermione and Ron grow up before our eyes. We have witnessed horrible deaths, heartbreaks, incredible friendships and even a few Quidditch matches.

The opening night for a long awaited movie often has a build up that stretches anywhere from a couple of months to a year, and this installment proved to be no different. Tickets went on sale for the midnight showing about a month prior to the release date and according to Fandango, over 2,200 midnight viewings were sold out prior to the release.

For the midnight shows, people dressed up as their favourite characters and stood in lengthy lines to try and obtain a good seat. Some costumes included Harry, Ron, Hermione, Snape, Voldemort and even a cleverly costumed Golden Snitch.

As Harry Potter fans get older it has become more popular to have a Harry Potter themed party. I have heard of many people doing this and they often consist of a marathon of all of the movies, dressing up as a favourite characters, book discussions and even Harry Potter themed foods. Cauldron Cakes, Licorice Wands and the infamous Butterbeer are some of the items that can be found on the menu. Sounds like my kind of party!

So, start practicing your English accents and spells, double check that your owl has delivered your movie ticket, find your way to Platform 9 ¾’s, find your friends and enter the world of Harry Potter. Let the magic begin.