New Hagrid Attraction Coming to Universal Orlando

A new attraction at Universal Orlando has been a mystery to fans since construction walls first appeared around Wizarding World of Harry Potter Hogsmeade. After much speculation, the rumors about its theme, name and grand opening have finally confirmed!

Hold tight, Potterheads! Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure will open June 13, 2019 at Islands of Adventure.

Set in the Forbidden Forest and inspired by the beloved Hogwarts's groundskeeper Hagrid, Universal Orlando briefly describes the attraction in their press release: "For the first time ever, join Hagrid as you fly far beyond the grounds of Hogwarts castle on a thrilling roller coaster ride that plunges into the paths of some of the wizarding world’s rarest magical creatures."

Since early 2018, anticipation has been building about the possibility of a new Hagrid inspired attraction coming to Islands of Adventure in Orlando, FL. Details first started to come to together about the ride's queue as well as one of the first posters featuring a mischievous Cornish pixie.

While more details about the new coaster are expected to be released next month, the latest promotional image above showcases fans finally being able to take a ride in Hagrid's motorbike. And there are plenty magical creatures and objects fans might see and run into in the Forbidden Forest including centaurs, thestrals, Cornish pixies, Aragog, and Weasley's enchanted Ford Anglia.

Currently, fans can enjoy two magical lands at Universal Orlando and Islands of Adventure. Wizarding World of Harry Potter Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley feature immersive attractions, restaurants, and shopping. At Potter Talk, I look forward to joining Hagrid this summer. Stay tuned for any new developments about Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure!

Which magical creatures would you love to come across during Hagrid's new ride?

What Are Your Favorite Uncommon Harry Potter Ships?

The Harry Potter fandom presents a small conundrum for me: I'm not an avid shipper of any one couple. This is one of the cardinal rules of fangirling in general: ship or don't ship, there is no try.

When it comes to the wizarding world, I love every ship - what both the books and movies provided. I don't know if that makes me a little less of a hardcore fangirl, but sometimes I feel like it is: I'm not exclusive to ships and like to think of the What Ifs and love a little outside of common canon. There are a few Ships I Just Can't Help But Ship, that don't adhere to the relationships set up throughout the books by author J.K. Rowling. Are there any relationships that you can't help but love? Feel free to let me know in the comments!

Warner Bros Studio Tour London Expanding With Gringotts Bank

The wizarding world keeps getting bigger every day. By wizarding world, I mean the legendary Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter is added a major new addition to the ultimate experience for Potterheads.

Since 2012, the Warner Bros Studio Tour has been the interactive home for fans, inviting Hogwarts students to walk the grounds from Privet Drive to Hogwarts and the Forbidden Forest and see thousands of costumes and props up close and personal.

From learning about wizarding money before his first year at Hogwarts to the golden trio escaping on a Ukrainian Ironbelly dragon after confiscating one of Voldemort's horcruxes, Gringotts Bank has been one of many influential landmarks within the Harry Potter series. This Spring, fans can unlock the magic with an immersive tour of Gringotts Bank.

Here is a full description of the exciting new experience:

Lined by towering marble pillars, the grand banking hall will be decorated with three magnificent crystal chandeliers and finished with real brass leaf. Inkwells, quills, ledgers and piles of Galleons, Sickles and Knuts will complete the goblin tellers’ desks as seen on screen. The Prop-making Department, led by Pierre Bohanna, created over 210,000 coins for the final two films alone.

Gringotts Wizarding Bank is famously run by goblins. Walking through the imposing marble columns, visitors will discover the costumes and prosthetics belonging to Bogrod, Griphook and many other goblin bankers. Each prosthetic mask took weeks to create, with every hair individually inserted and veins painstakingly painted by hand. It took four hours to transform actor Warwick Davis into Griphook in the films which included him wearing black contact lenses and dentures with extremely sharp teeth to complete the goblin look.

Once through the banking hall of Gringotts, visitors will enter the depths of the Lestrange Vault used to store the treasures of Bellatrix Lestrange including the Sword of Gryffindor and Helga Hufflepuff’s Cup, one of Voldemort’s many Horcruxes. During filming 38,000 pieces of rubberised treasure were created the for the Lestrange vault including 7,014 Hufflepuff Cups. Here, visitors can try out a unique photo opportunity allowing them to step inside the Lestrange vault and surround themselves with treasure.

Fans can now book tickets in advance as well as enter to attend the opening ceremony. Check out the official website here for more details.

10 of the Biggest Harry Potter Events From 2018

Another year of magic has come and gone. As we continue to celebrate the Harry Potter series and experience J.K. Rowling's universe reach new heights, 2018 was full of exciting events for both the original series and its spin-offs. From the Cursed Child expanding its reach to Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald revealing controversial revelations, let's rewind our time turner and take a look at some of the exciting Harry Potter events that rocked our world. What were your favorite Harry Potter moments from 2018? Feel free to share in the comments below!

This post contains spoilers for Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.

Holiday Traditions That Could Be Easier With A Little Magic

The Christmas season is always so busy for us Muggles. From buying presents to decorating the tree and cooking a great big holiday feast, there's so many things to do over the holidays. But what if we had a little magic to help us out and make our festivities the best they can be. Here are some traditions we wish we had to use magic and make Christmas a little easier.

Making Presents

Molly Weasley is beloved throughout the series because of her motherly touch to everything she did with her kids and husband. She was famous within the tight-knit wizarding family between the Weasleys and Potters for her handmade sweaters. If you love to make your presents, it sure would be nice to be able to use magic to put the finishing touches on your DIY projects.

Decorating the Tree

In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, there's a brief moment of Professor Flitwick using his wand to decorate the massive Christmas tree in The Great Hall. For anyone who has had to organize the branches of plastic trees, or tended to real ones, decorating your tree can be a tricky task, especially for placing things as high as possible. We could definitely use a little swish and flick with decorating Christmas trees.

Throwing Awesome Parties

When all of the witches and wizards walk into The Great Hall for the Yule Ball, it has been completely transformed into a winter wonderland. It's wonderful to be able to Pinterest our favorite ideas for our dream parties, but wouldn't it be amazing to be able to change your house or office inside and out with ice sculptures that don't melt, fake snow, and dazzling centerpieces?

Hanging Lights Outside

Christmas light wars is a popular Muggle pasttime, where families compete to dress up their houses with thousands, sometimes millions of lights, and all kinds of lawn decorations. Could you imagine the type of lightshows that could be created if you could string up hundreds of lights at once? Or if Hogwarts had been light up for the holiday season? That's something I'd love to see.

Playing in the Snow

Christmas isn't the same without a little snow to play in. Outside of Prisoner of Azkaban, one of the most surprising things we never read about in the Harry Potter series is any of the characters making bewitched snowmen/women, snowangels, or having epic snowball fights. I know for one if I had a magic wand in a tow, I would love to be outside making as many epic magical decorations as possible.