It can’t get more meta than this: Daniel Radcliffe is recording a video of himself reading the first chapter of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. And other stars are joining in on the fun, too!
The first book in the mega-successful Harry Potter book franchise has a total of 17 chapters, and each chapter will be read by a different star, and then released to the Internet every week.
All videos of the chapter readings will be made available to Potterheads, as well as casual and newbie fans, through Harry Potter at Home, which is hosted by the Wizarding World website.
For those who don’t mind listening to the audio version only, they should know that Spotify will be streaming the audio-only readings exclusively.
We could all use a little magic right now. ✨
Enter the @WizardingWorld and listen along as Daniel Radcliffe and friends read Harry Potter. Chapter one is out now on Spotify. #HarryPotterAtHome pic.twitter.com/NEhhdQeDtb
— Spotify (@Spotify) May 5, 2020
Harry Potter himself and a plethora of stars
Radcliffe’s reading of the first chapter is already posted online, with the Wizarding World breaking the news through its official Twitter page.
Surprise! We've got a treat for you…From today, amazing friends of the Wizarding World are going to take turns reading Harry Potter book one.
And to start us off with Chapter 1, we think you’ll agree we have the perfect narrator…⚡️ #HarryPotterAtHome
https://t.co/w9K77akbou pic.twitter.com/Q03PmjeD5d— Wizarding World (@wizardingworld) May 5, 2020
As mentioned earlier, the star who played the Boy Who Lived is not the only celebrity being tapped by the franchise for the streamable chapter readings.
As noted by a news post on the Wizarding World website, the next few chapters will feature the participation of Stephen Fry—who did the audiobook voice reading before, Dakota Fanning, David Beckham, Noma Dumezweni—Hermione Granger in the original Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Broadway production, Claudia Kim—Nagini from Fantastic Beasts!, and even Newt Scamander himself—Eddie Redmayne.
It goes without saying that fans who grew up loving the Harry Potter books now have something to look forward to every week, despite being stuck at home. The same goes for those who haven’t read the books yet (tsk, Muggles). Even the author herself couldn’t help but tweet about it.
Some very lovely people have done a wonderful thing. #HarryPotterAtHome https://t.co/fnstkYdPnj
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) May 5, 2020
Bringing magic to homes everywhere
It’s times like these when everybody could all use some excitement, comfort, and a bit of magic—as delivered by stars—while sheltering at home amid a global health crisis.
Harry Potter At Home is not only a gift to Potterheads everywhere, but also something that parents can use to keep their kids from being bored or from spending too much time in front of that computer, smartphone, or tablet.
According to the Wizarding World, Harry Potter At Home will not only bring streamable chapter readings of Harry Potter, but also serve as a hub that offers puzzles, quizzes, engaging videos, and features, courtesy of Bloomsbury and Scholastic—the companies that published the Harry Potter books in the United Kingdom and the United States, respectively, as well as Warner Bros (film partner) and Audible (audiobook partner).
Image 1 and Image 2 courtesy of Wizarding World