The origins of the Harry Potter series are a fairy-tale story, in which the writer JK Rowling was made redundant in her job and started penning books. These books, the Harry Potter series, centre on the life of a young wizard Harry Potter who is born to ‘muggles’ (non-wizards) after his parents die at the hands of an evil wizard.
As the story unfolds, Harry leaves the muggle world to take his rightful place at Hogwartz, the wizard training school. Here he becomes firm friends with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. The series chronicles the growth of the three in the wizardry world, with Harry being ever-famous due to his lightening bold scar obtained when he blocked the evil wizard Lord Voldemorton the night of his parent’s death.
The films are classified as Fantasy and written for a child audience, though adults around the world have also gained entertainment from the series. They are set in Britain, and star British actors Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter), Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) and Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley).
There are seven movies within the series, The Philosopher’s Stone (1997), The Chamber of Secrets (1998), The Prisoner of Azkaban (1999), The Goblet of Fire (2000), The Order of the Phoenix (2003), The Half-Blood Prince (2005), The Deathly Hallows (2007).
The film series has evolved past the original books and screen movies to become a play, audiobooks and games with an extensive merchandise range. In Watford in the United Kingdom, tourists can visit the film studios and take tours of the film set.
JK Rowling is the world’s first billionaire author and many love her ‘rags to riches’ story. She has been named the most influential woman in Britain and is estimated to be worth around 600 million pounds.
The books have won many awards and more than 400 million copies have been sold. JK Rowling was afforded the role of Producer on the final films which have been developed by the Warner Brothers studio, and retains tight control over the Harry Potter brand.
The Harry Potter series will delight viewers of all ages to head over to the free-to-watch website fusionmovies.to.to get started on these epic movies.