To celebrate the newly refreshed Harry Potter Book Day, Bloomsbury has created a headline event hosted by Evanna Lynch, who played Luna Lovegood in the film series. Evanna will present a thrilling virtual event to spark the creative imagination of children (and adults!) on Harry Potter Book Day, Thursday 12th October 2023; introducing a whole new generation of young readers to J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series.

Together with partners Twinkl and the Education team at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter, Bloomsbury has filmed a special broadcast for schools to show during (or after) the school day on Harry Potter Book Day (it will remain available beyond 12th October to give schools as much flexibility as possible in planning their school week). It will give teachers a fun and interactive way to share the magic of the wizarding world with the children in their class as part of their Harry Potter Book Day celebrations. The 40-minute film will be accessible for all children, regardless of their awareness and knowledge of the Harry Potter stories. It will be available via YouTube and Twinkl’s website.

The online event, and supporting resources provided by Twinkl, will be made freely available in advance of HPBD, to help all teachers, tutors, home educators and parents make the event as magical as possible. The event has been designed for children aged 7–11 and will be available for any English-language-speaking school globally.

More information will be shared on bloomsbury.com/harrypotterbookday and, to be kept up to date and receive a link to the lesson, teachers can sign up to the Harry Potter newsletter here: bloomsbury.com/uk/newsletters/harry-potter-newsletter

Helen Fulson, Twinkl Chief Product Officer adds, ‘We’re absolutely delighted to be part of this truly unique learning experience, using the magic of Harry Potter to inspire the next generation of writers, illustrators and creative thinkers. As a global educational publisher, we’re always striving to support educators in providing new and exciting ways to help spark creativity in their children, and a live lesson filmed from within Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry does exactly that. We’re pleased to announce that Twinkl will also be providing free follow-on learning materials for the live lesson that will be specifically suited to the needs of age-relevant classrooms all over the world, including all of the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.’

Twinkl’s existing collection of free Harry Potter activities and resources can be found here: twinkl.co.uk/harrypotter

In the first part of the event, Evanna will guide viewers around various magical settings, including the iconic Great Hall and Diagon Alley, using an extract from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone to lead a creative writing story-starter activity encouraging children to write and refine their own descriptive text about an imagined magical place.

Evanna will then join Jonny Duddle, Harry Potter illustrator, for a Hogwarts castle draw-along, before viewers are invited to join in with a spell-casting session led by Paul Harris, wand choreographer. Paul and Evanna will show children how to get active and have fun together, while casting well-known spells. Evanna Lynch says, ‘I fell in love with the Harry Potter books when I was 8, and my appreciation for the magical world and its complex, wonderful characters has only deepened as I’ve grown older, and revisited them again and again. It would be impossible to quantify the impact these books have had on my life, but suffice to say they made me a lifelong reader and a writer, and that the characters continue to inspire me as an adult. As the daughter of two teachers, I love the idea of schools spreading the magic of these books to a new generation of children. I’m delighted to present this special lesson and hope it inspires them to pick up a pen, a book – or even a wand.’

The theme for this year’s Harry Potter Book Day is MAGICAL PLACES – encompassing a host of enchanting locations from platform nine and three-quarters to The Burrow, Hogsmeade to the Ministry of Magic. Whether you are a bookshop, library, school or a Harry Potter fan who wants to celebrate at home, there’s a whole wizarding world to explore.

This year, Harry Potter Book Day will be celebrated alongside the huge global publication of The Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac; a unique, illustrated exploration of the wizarding world that will appeal to young fans setting out on their first journey to Hogwarts, whilst playfully layering secrets and rich detail for expert readers to discover. Publication will be supported by a massive global campaign, with high-impact advertising, a dynamic social campaign, creative and interactive point of sale for bookshops and libraries, and Harry Potter Book Day events to engage superfans, children, families and gifters around the world.

Siân Robertson, Harry Potter Brand Manager, says, ‘We are so excited to be able to offer this content to schools as part of the Harry Potter Book Day celebrations. We know how busy teachers are and wanted to make it as easy as possible for them to celebrate the day with their classes. By providing a fully formed piece of activity, in conjunction with Twinkl and the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter, we hope that children and teachers up and down the country will engage with J.K. Rowling’s stories in a new and exciting way, and be inspired to put pen to paper and use their imaginations to create their own magical places.’

Scroll down for a selection of Harry Potter books including paperbacks, hardbacks, illustrated editons and companions.

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