Trailer Reaction and Terminus

The staff has been spread out since the release of the Half-Blood Prince teaser trailer reaction, and, as such, we have been unable to record our collective reactions. I'll be in Chicago for Terminus this week; I'll be at the airport at 5 in the morning tomorrow. Once in Chicago I'll attempt to record an mini-OwlCast, along with video interviews with conference attendees.

Until then, you guys can watch my youtube reaction to the trailer below:

Cheryl Klein and Tamora Pierce to Speak at Terminus

Terminus 2008 has announced their keynote lunch speakers for the Potter symposium that will be held in Chicago this summer. Harry Potter continuity Cheryl Klein and fantasy author Tamora Pierce will speak at the keynote events.

Cheryl Klein, who worked on the past three Potter books, will speak on Friday, August 8th in a speech entitled “Potter Past: Lessons from the Harry Potter Series." Fantasy writer Tamora Pierce will talk on “Potter Future: The Changng Face of Fantasy Literature,” on Sunday, August 10.

For those who have already registered, you can edit your registration to add on these extra events, which will require additional cost.

Accio 2008 Releases Programming Scedule

Accio 2008, the Harry Potter symposium at Magdalen College in Oxford, England from July 25 – 27, 2008, has released their full programming schedule for this summer's Potter event.

For further information about Accio 2008 and registration, click here.

Matt Lewis: DH to be Split

Matt Lewis, better known as Neville Longbottom, was in attendance at Collectormania in the UK this weekend. According to the Snitchseeker, Matt and his brother Anthony (Torchwood), made numerous comments about Matt made several comments about Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

He discussed Neville's dramatic moment with Nagini and the sword at the end of the book: “Oh yeah. It’ll be really cool but I’m going to have to have lots of training. We did with Order of the Phoenix and using the wands but this one is going to be much more extensive.” (His brother joked, ”There’d have to be for anyone to trust him with a sword.”)

But of particular interest, Matt said that Deathly Hallows would indeed be split into two parts. While Warner Brothers HASN'T officially confirmed this, I think it's a safe bet to say Matt's split the beans.

We'll update when WB sends official word of the split and director choice.

Jim Dale to Speak at Portus 2008

Jim Dale, narrator of the US Harry Potter audiobooks, will be a speaker at the upcoming Portus 2008 symposium that will be held in Dallas, Texas this summer. HPEF has announced that Mr. Dale will will give a special presentation on Saturday July 12, followed by a question and answer section, with autograph opportunities later that day. This marks the first time that an individual so involved with the series has attended a fan event. For more information on Portus 2008, click here.