Newsround has an exclusive story about JKR giving a reading for 4,000 very, very, very, very, very lucky HP fans. Schools can apply to have their pupils take part at the Bloomsbury Web site through May 16. The reading will take place on June 26 in London’s majestic Royal Albert Hall; Stephen Fry will also …read more!

Sounds a bit redundant when we’ve got the counter up there, but as Muggle Pride wrote in to tell us, we’re at the 50-day-mark. I don’t know about you guys, but I’m about to lose it. As the Chipmunks might say, “We can hardly stand the wait, please Ju-une don’t be late…”

From website Press of Atlantic City comes this article on the fake copies of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix currently circulating around the internet. (Note: Spoiler warning.)

Hi all, we’ve got some news from Nimbus: The deadline for fandom sponsorship has been extended through June 15. Ari Rapkin of Industrial Light and Magic has been announced as July 19’s featured luncheon speaker. Rapkin’s resume includes such movies as Jurassic Park III, Star Wars: Epsiode II and, of course, Harry Potter; her speech …read more!

Thanks Donna and Carrie for this link to a CNN piece comparing the burning of HP books to the burning of books that took place under Nazi rule.

And The New York Times‘ Science section highlights dragons in an article that notes how scholars drawing on primitive art, fossilized bones and ancient legends are struggling to explain how cultures that had no contact with one another constructed mythical creatures so remarkably similar. And in an interesting bit of synergy with the Harry Potter …read more!

Thanks to everyone who let us know about a new game from Electronic Arts entitled “Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup.” More information is available in this press release from Hoover’s Online.

Thanks to iHarryPotter.net, you can see scans of the Book Magazine article in its entirety, and I can stop feeling guilty about it lying about the house unscanned. 🙂 It should be noted that while there’s no new information about canon in the article, it’s a very nice summation of everything that’s been said by …read more!

Jason Isaacs, who’s playing the dual role of Mr Darling and Captain Hook in the upcoming PJ Hogan production, speaks a bit about films, childhood, and the unctuousness of Lucius Malfoy here. No snake-headed canes in sight, unfortunately.

Reader Emily sent us this article from The Electronic Herald [UK] on how souvenir hunters have spirited away some of the prop polystyrene pumpkins and plaster rocks from the Harry Potter film set.