Eager Harry Potter fans snap up Cursed Child at midnight

It was a busy bank-holiday Saturday night and the bars along Dawson street were bustling and festive but the biggest and most magical party was taking place in Hodges Figges bookstore.

Over a thousand Harry Potter fans had gathered at the bookstore for the midnight release of the latest Harry Potter instalment, the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

Brandishing broomsticks and wands, wizard capes and costumes, Harry Potter fans young and old gathered in excitement to find out what had happened next to their favourite characters. Despite an almost ten year gap since the last Harry Potter offering from JK Rowling, the popularity of the massive literary franchise hasn’t dimmed, judging by the large crowds.

“I got a bit of a shock when I opened the door,” said Tom Hoban, a staff member at Hodges Figges, adding that the queue was going around the corner to Nassau Street. “It’s absolutely madness, we have had to open up the other floors.”

The shop opened at 10pm and there was a party atmosphere as fans waited patiently for the clock to strike midnight. There were games of quidditch, the sport popular at Harry Potter’s school Hogwarts, owl races, quizzes, face painting and live music. As the queue in the shop started to get longer, there was a sense of camaraderie among the original Harry Potter readers who are now in their twenties and younger fans, a testament to the wide appeal of the Harry Potter series

The launch of the play had been shrouded in secrecy and even bookshop staff didn’t get a sneak preview. “We weren’t even allowed to look at the book when it arrived in, it was in these wrapped parcels and booksellers were instructed they couldn’t open the packages,” said Mr Hoban.

Sarah Manning and her brother Paul made sure they had the coveted top spot in the line by the cash desk to buy the very first copy. “My Mum used to wake me up at midnight to come in and get the books when they went on sale,” said Ms Manning. “I was the perfect age, I was a year younger than them, than Harry when the books came out. I grew up with it,” she said.

Olive Kelleher (10) and her friend Jana Gleeson (9) were barely born when the last Harry Potter book was released but “love” the books and have read them all. “I can’t wait to read it,” said Olive who was dressed up as her favourite character Hermoine Granger while Jana came as Ginny Weasley.

It was a family affair and Olive’s parents Joe and Patricia came dressed as Hogwarts teacher Gilderoy Lockhart and baddie Bellatrix Lestrange. “The kids have read all of them,” said Patricia. “They love every aspect of them, it is an excellent way to engage them in reading.” “They are waiting for their Hogwarts acceptance letters,” said Joe.

As midnight approached the shop hit capacity and the doors had to be closed. The line to buy the books wound around the entire ground floor and up the stairs to the first floor. Staff stood ready at the tills in preparation for a flurry of sales. A live band started the count down with ten seconds to go and when they got to one a red curtain was pulled to reveal a stack of books and a big cheer went up from the crowd.

Grace Fitzgerald was one of the first out of the shop, clutching her copy of the book tightly to her chest, a big grin on her face. “She’s read all the books, it’s brilliant,” said her mother, Margaret Nolan. “We were third in the queue, she is very excited,” she added.

Shane Kirkwood and a group of friends were taking photos of each other with the books outside the shop. “Harry Potter is a huge part of my life,” he said, adding that he has even named his son after one of the characters. “There is a story and something to take from it for everybody, if you are a bullied kid or you don’t fit in, it lets everyone be something.”

Despite being a multi-billion profit making business, it seems Harry Potter hasn’t lost its magic. It creates “something happy” said Mr Kirkwood, pointing to the smiling faces coming out of the shop. “I can’t wait to read it.”