Beira’s Place – J. K. Rowling’s Latest Project

December 14, 2022 by 2 Comments

On Monday 12th December J. K. Rowling announced the launch of a new project : Beira’s Place, which provides support, advocacy and information for women survivors of sexual violence aged 16 and over in Edinburgh and the Lothians. The launch occurred precisely at 09:00 GMT with a simultaneous tweet from the new twitter account @beirasplace and a re-tweet from Rowling.

In addition to Rowling’s personal charity Volante, Lumos, and the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Clinic, we have her latest project: Beira’s Place. Find out more after the jump:

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Filed Under: Nick Jeffery

Pillar Post Updates

October 30, 2022 by 6 Comments

The Hogwarts Professor has now amassed 2,774 posts (and counting) and regularly achieves more than 2,000 unique visits per day. There are scholarly articles of literary analysis both from our own eminent faculty and guest posts from leading lights among our close readers. This vast trove of material is a valuable resource for students of J. K. Rowling’s work and artistry (such as myself), but it can be frustrating to quickly find that article you know you read – but can’t remember the title. It is fun of course, to find that one new sweet at the bottom of the bag you thought you’d finished. My aim is to better signpost where those sweets might be hiding. Join me after the jump to find out more:

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Filed Under: Beatrice Groves, Nick Jeffery, Pillar Posts

Harry Potter Still Magic – Bloomsbury Reports

October 28, 2022 by 1 Comment

The publisher for Harry Potter in the UK, Bloomsbury Publishing Plc, reports a 35% increase in sales for the series in it’s interim financial report for 2022.

Sales of Harry Potter titles were strong, up 35%. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was the 2nd bestselling children’s book of the year to date on UK Nielsen Bookscan, on the 25th anniversary of its first publication, showing the enduring appeal of this classic series

BLOOMSBURY PUBLISHING PLC
Unaudited Interim Results for the six months ended 31 August 2022

In the last full year report for 2022 Harry Potter sales grew by 5% compared with a growth of 2% in other Children’s titles. How important the books are for Bloomsbury can be judged by the 2021 report which shows seven of their top ten best selling titles come from the series. Two of these, including the top spot are for complete boxed sets. Given that this report contains the year that Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was given away free to the world as we struggled with Covid lockdown, it is amazing to think that sales increased 7% that year too.

While idly checking out the company’s financial report, I thought it would be fun to check out the first mention of J.K. Rowling’s works in the 1997 report:

… the Smarties prize [was awarded] for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by Joanne Rowling. …

… The second in the children’s Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, will also be published later this year.

BLOOMSBURY PUBLISHING PLC
Results for the twelve months ended 31 December 1997

And compare it with the report for 2007, when Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was published:

2007 saw the publication of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the final title in the Harry Potter series. With 2,652,656 copies sold out of UK bookshops on the first day of release, the book exceeded all expectations. With all seven books in the series now published, the books are available in a range of box sets and formats. The series will remain a children’s classic for years to come.

Revenue in Children’s increased 261.4% to £98.92m (2006, £27.37m). Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, published in July 2007, was the main contributor to the increase. Gross profit for Children’s for 2007 increased 198.9% to £39.60m (2006, £13.25m) with the contribution to administrative expenses up 219.6% to £30.01m (2006, £9.39m).

BLOOMSBURY PUBLISHING PLC
Results for the twelve months ended 31 December 2007

While the kind of performance shown in the 2007 report may belong to publishing folklore, Harry Potter is still a force in publishing, and growing stronger every year.

Filed Under: Nick Jeffery, Shared Text

J. K. Rowling and Ngaio Marsh

October 23, 2022 by 3 Comments

We know from Rowling’s interviews with fellow authors Val McDermid and J. J. Marsh that she both loves and re-reads Ngaio Marsh among the ‘big four’ of crime authors:

Val McDermid: How did that love affair with crime start for you?

JKR: Probably…I know I was reading Christies when I was quite young. All of the Big Four – Marsh, Allingham, Christie and Sayers – I’ve read and loved….

Val McDermid Interviews Robert Galbraith at Harrosgate Festival

J. J. Marsh: Are there any books you re-read?

JKR: Lots and lots.  When I’m working, I find it incredibly difficult to read new books (although when I’m between my own novels, I devour other people’s).  So if I’m writing, I re-read.  I’ve re-read all of Jane Austen so often I can actually visualize the type on the page; I love Colette, Katherine Mansfield, Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, E. F. Benson and P. G. Wodehouse, all of whom are always beside my bed.  I read a lot of diaries and biographies, too; Chips Channon’s also a fixture on the bedside bookshelves, as is the afore-mentioned Secrets of the Flesh, and everything by Frances Donaldson is eminently re-readable.

J. J. Marsh — J. K. Rowling Interview, August 2013

This post attempts to argue that we have some non-textual evidence to suggest that to Rowling, Ngaio Marsh is a special case, certainly among crime authors. Join me after the jump to find out more!

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Filed Under: Hog Pro Notes, Nick Jeffery

Jim Kay to Pass On Illustration Baton

October 10, 2022 by 8 Comments

Jim Kay the Kate Greenaway Medal winning illustrator of the Harry Potter series is to step down after the publication of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix on 11th October. This latest edition will see Jim Kay joined by guest artist Neil Packer, winner of the Bologna Ragazzi Award 2021.

“When I received a phone call back in 2013 with an offer of an illustration job, I could never have anticipated the impact it would have upon my life. I am extremely lucky to have been involved in a franchise that has meant so much to so many people across the world. After 10 years of working with Bloomsbury, it is with great sadness that I have to step down from illustrating Harry Potter. I have been struggling with mental health illness for some time, and it would be wrong to try and continue when I can no longer give the fans and the series the full commitment and energy it deserves. 

“What comforts me is the knowledge that Bloomsbury will continue working with and supporting other artists to make the remaining books both beautiful and inspiring for a new generation of young readers. I would never have travelled this far through Harry’s journey without the constant support and patience of Bloomsbury and J K Rowling. I must thank them both for giving me 10 years of happy scribbling, and for the opportunity to meet so many Potter fans from all walks of life. We’ve all found inspiration between the pages of Jo’s books; for myself, it’s that intangible moment between reading words and creating pictures that I enjoyed, and shall miss, so much.”

Jim Kay The Bookseller 07 October 2022

Our friends at The Rowling Library are collecting supportive messages to send as a gift to Jim, which you can contribute to here. The illustrated editions have given fans of the series a valuable visual cue, unconnected to the films. I can imagine they are a much loved possession for new readers, sumptuously illustrated as they are, and it is to be hoped that any new illustrators continue in Jim’s tradition.

Filed Under: Nick Jeffery, Potter Fandom