World Book Day (in the UK and Ireland)

March 8, 2022 by Leave a Comment

 

World Book Day (as observed in the UK and Ireland) is an oddity, like the World Series, in that the event is clearly not world wide. The aim of the Day is to foster a love of reading within children and raise money for Book Aid International. The most visible effect of this local-world event, outside the UK, to J. K. Rowling fans are the endless photographs on social media of tiny witches, wizards, house elves, and now Ickabogs and Pigs. To find more about the history and impact of this annual event within Britain, join me after the jump. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Nick Jeffery, Twitter

All J. K. Rowling’s Twitter Headers

March 7, 2022 by 5 Comments

During the weekend I was talking with our friends, the hosts of the Strike Ellacott Podcast, and Beatrice Groves about the valuable hints that J. K. Rowling’s twitter headers can give us about what she is working on. It was clear that we did not have a single repository of her twitter headers, nor a reliable indication of when they were current.

The Wayback Machine is an internet archive that stores webpages, and allows researchers to see the page as it was when the archive was captured. Using this tool I have captured what I believe is a complete set of all the Rowling twitter headers.

I consider this a work in progress- there are lots of missing dates in the archive, so the dates are the date of the first captured page. If you spot any errors or omissions, please let me know in the comments down below, and I will correct.

I would also like to build links to articles discussing and analysing the more interesting headers, again please let me know in the comments.

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Filed Under: Nick Jeffery, Potter Fandom, Twitter

Rowling’s Norfolk Twitter Header Photo – Three Notes about Possible Meaning

March 4, 2022 by 6 Comments

 

Three Quick Notes:

(1) So What? Two days ago I shared my thoughts about the latest Fantastic Beasts movie trailer and yesterday it was exegesis of the Secrets of Dumbledore ensemble poster. Today I’ll attempt a deep dive into the new Rowling Twitter page header — and I think readers deserve some explanation of why I’m devoting so much time to what are in essence advertisements and place-holders.

With respect to the trailer and movie poster, I confess to pretending without evidence that The Presence had something to do with their composition, which is in the end pretty far-fetched, not to say “silly.” Writing up the notes for each, though, allowed me the opening I wanted to talk about the Beasts franchise as another psychomachia allegory and to post links to Lana Whited’s ‘Here There Be Dragons (and Phoenixes)‘ posts. Mission accomplished.

Rowling herself, however, tweeted five years ago that the pictures she uses as her Twitter headers reflect her current thinking. Or did she? [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cormoran Strike, Fantastic Beasts, Twitter

Fantastic Beasts: A Natural History

February 16, 2022 by Leave a Comment

Filed Under: Fantastic Beasts, Twitter

Cormoran Strike Fan Feeds on Twitter

February 15, 2022 by 2 Comments

I have to assume, though I always neglect the evidence this is true while I write posts, that most of HogwartsProfessor readers are attached cerebrally to their ‘smart’ phones and learn about and even read the long pieces here on those phones. We have almost zero social media following, alas, because I refuse to engage in Facebook, Twitter, etc., lest I wind up in a Twelve Step Program for those addicted to such things (my wife, who has a sober personality and no temptation to the virtual life to be had online, makes the @HogwartsProf twitter entries).

Having said that, even I am aware that much of the Strike fandom breathes in and out on various twitter platforms and threads. If you are really into the teevee adaptations, which do have the advantage of being made by a production company owned by The Presence (can you say ‘Total Control’?), news about ‘C. B. Strike’ can be had through a variety of channels. For your convenience in searching and following, I collect samples below from the Strike tent in the wide campsite of Twitter-dom.

I start with the ones that are the most book oriented because that is where Serious Strikers here live and breathe and continue with all the others I could find in a morning’s search. Please add those I have missed via the comment boxes and include your thoughts on the subject as well. Enjoy!

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Filed Under: Cormoran Strike, Twitter