Orange Film Of The Year nominee January 31, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

They are among the top ten movies of 2001 which form the shortlist for the award.

The winner, voted for by the public, will be announced at the Orange British Academy Film Awards next month.

The full list is:

• American Pie 2
• Bridget Jones's Diary
• Cats And Dogs
• Hannibal
• Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone
• Jurassic Park 3
• Lord Of The Rings
• Moulin Rouge
• Shrek
• The Mummy Returns

You can vote by going to [ http://www.orange.co.uk/sponsorship ], in Orange shops or by using Orange bill inserts.

Last year's winner was Gladiator.

The Orange British Academy Film Awards take place on February 24, and will be broadcast live on BBC1.

Possible Potter spoof January 24, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

The author of a Harry Potter spoof says he's had interest from Hollywood. Michael Gerber's book is called Barry Trotter And The Unauthorised Parody.

It features a 22-year-old Barry who is too lazy to leave his wizarding school.

In the book Barry tries to stop a film being made about his life.

But in real life Gerber tells www.yaledailynews.com he's had interest from Hollywood about turning his book into a film.

"I'm broke," Gerber admitted. "A movie could transform my life."

Book 5 release uncertain January 24, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

JK Rowling's publisher has denied reports that a new Harry Potter book will be published in July. Bloomsbury says no date has been set as Rowling still hasn't finished working on it.

But it admits it would like Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix to be published in the summer.

"We are not going to set a publication date for the fifth book until the book has been finished," the company says on www.bloomsburymagazine.com.

"In a perfect world the date would be July 2002, but we will wait until the book is written before making a decision. We will let you know more information as soon as we can."

Best Make-Up Oscar Nominee January 24, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

Harry Potter and Lord Of The Rings are among the shortlisted films for the Best Make-Up Oscar. Other films on the list include AI, A Beautiful Mind, Hannibal, Planet Of The Apes and Moulin Rouge.

Members of the Academy will vote on February 9 to decide if any of the seven will make it onto a final shortlist.

If two or three productions receive the required votes they will become the nominated films in the Best Make-Up category.

If only one film receives the required votes it will be recommended to the Academy Board of Governors for a Special Achievement Award.

But if no film achieves the required votes, no Oscar will be awarded.

Book sales soar past £1 billion January 20, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

The popularity of Harry Potter helped book sales break the £1 billion barrier last year.

Cookery books by Jamie Oliver and Delia Smith also played a part in boosting book sales.

Almost £980 million of books were sold in stores in 2001, with internet sales taking the total past £1 billion.

Book Seller magazine editor Joel Rickett told Booktrack: "This £1 billion figure means people who read are buying more books than normal and, perhaps more vital, many are buying books for the first time.

Retired jockey HP stand-in January 20, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

A 48-year-old former jockey is to act as a stand-in for Harry Potter. Richard Fox has landed the role in the second film to be based on JK Rowling's books.

The retired flat jockey will stand in for 12-year-old Daniel Radcliffe off-camera.

He won't appear in the film but will help lighting and camera angles to be checked before filming takes place.

Warner Brothers had advertised for 5ft 1in men in the Racing Post.

Richard told the Mail On Sunday: "I'm thrilled to be involved in the film. I can no longer race or ride through injury and illness and this is a great opportunity."

He rode nearly 900 winners in his 30-year career.

A Warners Brothers spokesman said: "We thought we might get a good response from Racing Post readers for obvious reasons."

Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets is currently being filmed in the UK.

Radcliffe film's newest child star January 16, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

Producers of a new supernatural film want Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe to play a leading role, according to reports.

Sam features a teenager possessed with amazing telekinetic powers, giving him the ability to move and destroy objects.

Judy Davis is tipped to play his mother, with Steve Buscemi as a cult leader who tries to kidnap him.

The film is being produced by Mike Downey and Sam Taylor, from a script by Steve Attridge.

An insider told Ananova: "Casting directors and producers are falling over themselves to get Daniel's name on the dotted line.

"He is the hottest child star since Macaulay Culkin arrived on the scene."

Radcliffe is currently filming the sequel to the first Harry Potter movie.

Jason Isaacs set to join movie cast January 16, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

Jason Isaacs

Jason Isaacs is in talks to play Lucius Malfoy in the new Harry Potter film. Malfoy is the father of Harry's sworn enemy Draco and is first seen in Harry Potter And The Chamber Of Secrets. Isaacs has appeared in a number of films including the forthcoming Black Hawk Down. According to www.variety.com, Isaacs would also play Malfoy in the film version of Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire.

Quidditch Lane draws Potter fans January 15, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

A street called Quidditch Lane is proving a major draw for Harry Potter fans. Families in the quiet street in Cambourne, Cambridgeshire, have given their houses names inspired by the novels.

Julie Bignell, who lives at The Quaffle, told The Sun the children think it's marvellous.

Other houses are called The Golden Snitch and Muggles, the name for non-wizards.

Another resident told the paper: "We've had lots of kids coming and looking."

The council says the lane was actually named after a dry ditch, called a Quidditch.

Potter and Lord Of The Rings nominated for top award January 13, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

Harry Potter and Lord Of The Rings are both nominated for the Producers Guild of America's Best Film award.

The two fantasy films are among a list of five nominees for the award.

The other contenders are Shrek, Moulin Rouge and Russell Crowe's new film A Beautiful Mind.

The PGA Awards are a good indication of what is likely to be nominated for the Oscars.

The winner of their award has gone on to win the best-picture Oscar nine out of 12 times, including last year with Gladiator.

Harry Potter in running for Oscar January 13, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

Harry Potter and The Fellowship Of The Ring are in the running for this year's Achievement in Visual Effects Oscar.

Eight films are being considered for the award. The others are AI, Black Hawk Down, Cats And Dogs, The Fast And The Furious, Jurassic Park 3 and Pearl Harbor.

Three films will go on to a shortlist for Oscar consideration.

They will be announced along with all the other nominees on February 12.

New Fan Art and Fiction added January 11, 2002 [ Site related ]

Yes, it's true! The HPL has two new pics in its currently pitiful, but growing [ fan art ] section. I put up one of my own and Lik Way Chan also sent in one. In addition to that we have a new [ fan fic ] by Leora. It's a fun short story called Dudley gets a letter.

HP Movie reaches $800 million January 8, 2002 [ Yahoo! News ] reports:

The Harry Potter movie passed $800 million worldwide over the weekend and set a record for Warner Bros. Pictures in North America, said studio officials.

The family fantasy, known as ``Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'' in the United States, has pulled in $300.6 million in North America since its Nov. 16 release, boosted by weekend sales of $6.1 million -- good enough for No. 9. The studio's previous record was $251 million for 1989's ``Batman.''

The film is known as ``Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' in most international markets, where it has surpassed $500 million, said WB spokeswoman Barbara Brogliatti. Warner Bros. is also a unit of AOL Time Warner. A studio official had earlier estimated the film's foreign tally at $400 million.

Wizard's Dictionary Updated January 6, 2002 [ Harry Potter Land ]

I updated the [ Wizard's Dictionary ]. There are a few new definitions and I changed around the fonts and stuff.... Yay me!

New HPL Quidditch January 6, 2002 [ Harry Potter Land ]

Join today! We need to put together a team to compete against Jenella's [ Harry Potter Mania ] You can sign up for the game by filling in the below information.

Name

Email (required)

Position (chaser, seeker, beater, no keeper)

I will hide different balls on certain pages of this site, and when you find one, you score against the other team. There will be instructions when you find each ball. You will score 10 points if you find a quaffle and you can take away 10 points if you find a bludger. Ad of course, the capture of the snitch earns 150 points, and ends the game. Oh, and any position can find any ball. The positions are just for fun. I'll make another post when the game officially starts, and I'll show you what each ball looks like.

I'm in the process of thinking of our team name--- if you have any suggestions, please [ email ] me.

HP Lookalike Competition January 5, 2002 [ ananova ] reports:

A chain of opticians is holding a Harry Potter look-alike competition for children amid claims the schoolboy wizard has made wearing glasses "cool". With the huge popularity of J K Rowling's four books and the number one film, more and more children are happy to wear glasses like their young hero, according to one store boss.

The young wizard is known by children around the world for his trademark round lenses and Harry has now become a role model for short-sighted youngsters.

The Specsavers chain is running a lookalike competition to celebrate the playground popularity that glasses now enjoy.

New! HPL newsletter January 5, 2002 [ Harry Potter Land ]

Hey everyone! I decided it was just about time to make a newsletter. It will have some of the most important news, funny quotes, and updates on what's new at Harry Potter Land. You can sign up at the right side... yeah, the part under newsletter.

CoS PC Game in the works January 4, 2002 [ The HPN reports: ]

It seems Harry Potter has managed to top everything now, including games sales. However, there's still the other films to think about - and with those, will come the computer games!

Under the watchful eye of J.K.Rowling, Warner Bros. and EA executives, the Australian game designers are busy creating completely new adventures and characters for two new games that shall be released this coming November in conjuction with the 2nd Harry Potter movie, The Chamber of Secrets.

Harry Potter Haters misinformed January 4, 2002 [ Chicago Sun Times editorial: ]

Jack Brock is the pastor of the Christ Community Church in Alamogordo, N.M., and he is a genius and an idiot. A genius because we're even talking about him.

An idiot because he has no idea what he's talking about.

Until a couple of weeks ago, few people outside Brock's church and immediate community had ever heard of the guy--but that all changed when Brock delivered a sermon titled "Baby Jesus or Harry Potter?"

Bingo! With the possible exception of Britney and Justin, can there be a more attention-getting pair of names?

Read the whole article [ here ].

-BY RICHARD ROEPER SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

Harry Potter parody published January 4, 2002 [ Ananova reports: ]

This actually sounds funny. I plan on buying it!

A Chicago writer has published a parody of the Harry Potter books. But Michael Gerber is afraid that Warner Bros. will miss the humour and threaten legal action.

In his defence, he says Barry Trotter and the Unauthorized Parody is his way of honouring JK Rowling's creation rather than undermining it. Gerber told The Chicago Tribune: "I'm a fan of the books. The point of this book isn't to smack the original. The main point is: The books were great, but, even if you're a fan of it, you get sick of seeing it everywhere.

"I was on contract with St. Martin's to do a book, and my editor suggested I do a parody of Harry Potter.

"But their corporate higher-ups felt there wasn't much money in antagonizing Warner Bros. because Warner Bros. is very litigious."

As a result, Gerber has ended up publishing the novel himself.

The plot focuses on Barry's attempt to block the completion of a movie based on 'Barry Trotter and the Philosopher's Scone'. Unlike JK Rowling's schoolboy wizard, Barry Trotter smokes, burps and prodigiously wastes money.

He also dallies with Muddle groupies who camp outside the 'Hogwash' School for Wizards and treat him like a rock star.

Quidditch made reality January 3, 2002 [ Ananova reports: ]

Harry Potter's favourite game Quidditch has become a real-life sport in Russia. A Russian newspaper has teamed up with a Moscow children's club to transfer it to an ordinary playing field.

Instead of flying around in the air, Russian Quidditch players use "human broomsticks." They carry the Quidditch players around on their shoulders for five minutes at a time, reports www.thetimes.co.uk. The golden snitch has been re-created with pieces of string and eggcups.

Fans prepare for Potter marathon January 3, 2002 [ Ananova reports: ]

Fans of Harry Potter are to take part in a non-stop 50-hour reading marathon to raise money for charity.

Volunteers will be taking turns to read aloud all four of JK Rowling's best-selling novels, one after the other.

The event takes place in Otley, West Yorkshire, next week.

Former teacher Sue Robins, 49, from Otley, had a mastectomy 14 years ago and decided to organise the event to raise cash for a breast cancer charity.

The mother of three says she has already been approached by dozens of youngsters and adults offering to take part in the event starting at 9am on January 11.

School children as young as nine will be joined by local residents and Otley Mayor Councillor Phil Coyne in a marquee to be set up outside the Bowling Green pub.

"Most of the daytime slots are covered but we are struggling to fill the night-time slots between midnight and 5am," Mrs Robins added. "I do have co-ordinators to cover those slots but they could be reading to themselves!"

Other members of the community have offered their support, with two local bookshops donating copies of the Harry Potter books and Otley builders Houldsworth providing the backdrop for the marquee.

Mrs Robins says the idea stemmed from her experience at college 30 years ago when she took part in an Enid Blyton reading marathon.

"I've not heard of anyone else doing it with Harry Potter. It took Stephen Fry 50 hours and 25 minutes to read them on the tapes but I don't really know how long it will take us. People will be encouraged to dress up so it should be really good fun."

HP tops US 2001 box office January 3, 2002 [ Ananova reports: ]

The first Harry Potter movie was the top earning film in the US in 2001. The film took £198 million, despite having only been released late in November. Shrek was second in the list after taking £185 million, followed by Monsters Inc with £163 million.

Jackie Chan proved his box office worth, as Rush Hour 2 took fourth place in the list with £156 million, while action adventure sequel The Mummy Returns completed the top five , earning £140 million.

J.K Rowling is Married January 3, 2002 [ Harry Potter Land ]

LONDON (Reuters) - The multi-millionaire author of the best-selling Harry Potter (news - web sites) novels has married her doctor partner in a private ceremony, Britain's tabloid News of the World reported on Sunday. JK Rowling, 36, married Neil Murray, 30, at the couple's holiday home, Killiechassie House in Aberfeldy in Perthshire, Scotland.

``JK Rowling married privately on the 26th of December in their house in Perthshire. Immediate family attended the wedding,'' Rowling's agent told the News of the World.

Rowling was previously married to Portuguese journalist Jorge Arantes by whom she has a daughter, Jessica, aged eight. Murray was also previously married, according to the paper.

The four Harry Potter books published so far, about an orphaned boy who discovers he is a wizard, have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide, topping both adult and children's bestseller lists.

The first in the series, ``Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone,'' has been made into a film which broke box office records when it opened in November.

Rowling has promised a further three novels about the boy wizard to take him to the end of his time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Happy New Year! January 1, 2002 [ Harry Potter Land ]

Wow! It's already 2002! I had no idea it was new year's actually. hehe. Well anyway, You can expect a busy year from HPL, with the new design, things are just getting better and better.

And don't forget to look at the december news.... It's still pretty new!

[ See old news: november | december ]