UPDATED: Bloomsbury Marks 20th Anniversary of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”

by · July 8, 2019

Today, July 8, 2019, marks a special anniversary: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban was published 20 years ago in the United Kingdom. The British publisher of the Harry Potter series, Bloomsbury, has already announced some of its celebrations to commemorate the special occasion, but that’s not all!

Today, Bloomsbury and Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter are asking Harry Potter fans around the world to contribute to a Patronus mosaic through Instagram and Twitter. Using the hashtag #ExpectoPatronum20, fans can share their happiest memories. Those posts will then be printed as tiles on a mosaic of Harry Potter casting his Patronus, with art drawn by illustrator Jim Kay.

All fans need do is post a photo that encompasses their best Harry Potter happy memory. It could be when they first bought the book, [when they] got married, [when they] had their first child, or even when they first dressed up as their favourite character. All fans have to do is simply post a photo (publicly, please) on Instagram or Twitter with the hashtag #ExpectoPatronum20, and your image might just be printed as one of the tiles in the huge mosaic. That mosaic will be displayed at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London on the big anniversary day.

Plus, as we previously reported, Bloomsbury is holding an auction of Patronus artwork on eBay to support BookTrust.

Prospective purchasers will be able to bid for the pieces online at BookTrust’s [‘]eBay for Charity[‘] page, which will be live at 6 pm BST on Monday 8th July and the postcards will be displayed during that week at Waterstones Piccadilly.

If a stag isn’t your style, don’t worry; multiple characters’ Patronuses have been represented.

The postcards include original renditions of key character’s [sic] [P]atronus[es] (Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Professore [sic] Dumbledore and Professor Snape) as well as a menagerie of other brilliant beasties.

The auction will run for ten days, and bids are open globally. The hashtag for that campaign is #PatronusOnAPostcard. To view the listings, you can visit BookTrust’s “eBay for Charity” page here.

Will you be celebrating Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban with Bloomsbury?

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UPDATE (July 9):

Thanks to Bloomsbury, you can check out some of the postcard artwork included in the auction in the gallery below.

 

Aardvark – Sophy HennAardvark – Sophy Henn
Badger – Mini GreyBadger – Mini Grey
Black and White Cat – Joe Todd-StantonBlack and White Cat – Joe Todd-Stanton
Black Bear – Steve AntonyBlack Bear – Steve Antony
Capuchin Monkey – Tom PercivalCapuchin Monkey – Tom Percival
Cheetah – Rob BiddulphCheetah – Rob Biddulph
Chestnut Mare – Eduardo Lima (MinaLima)Chestnut Mare – Eduardo Lima (MinaLima)
Doe – Levi PinfoldDoe – Levi Pinfold
Dragon – Sarah McIntyreDragon – Sarah McIntyre
Elephant – Nadia ShireenElephant – Nadia Shireen
Fox – Rachel SuzanneFox – Rachel Suzanne
Hedgehog – Neal LaytonHedgehog – Neal Layton
Husky – James MayhewHusky – James Mayhew
Jack Russell – Chris RiddellJack Russell – Chris Riddell
King Cobra – Dapo AdeolaKing Cobra – Dapo Adeola
Lion – Ken Wilson-MaxLion – Ken Wilson-Max
Mole – Steven LentonMole – Steven Lenton
Osprey – Miraphora Mina (MinaLima)Osprey – Miraphora Mina (MinaLima)
Otter – Emily GravettOtter – Emily Gravett
Peacock – Catherine RaynerPeacock – Catherine Rayner
Phoenix – Jonny DuddlePhoenix – Jonny Duddle
Polar Bear – Yasmeen IsmailPolar Bear – Yasmeen Ismail
Rhinoceros – Jim FieldRhinoceros – Jim Field
Stag reverse – Jim KayStag reverse – Jim Kay
Stag – Jim KayStag – Jim Kay
Tiger – Alex T SmithTiger – Alex T Smith
Wolf – Liz PichonWolf – Liz Pichon

 

Which postcard is your favorite?

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UPDATE (July 23):

We have learned some fun new facts about the Patronus postcards that were auctioned off earlier this month! Eduardo Lima and Miraphora Mina of MinaLima both drew the Patronuses that they were given by Pottermore. Lima’s Patronus is a chestnut mare, while Mina’s is an osprey.

Other significant Patronus designs included those drawn by the Bloomsbury Harry Potter artists (Jim Kay, Jonny Duddle, Emily Gravett, Levi Pinfold, and Chris Riddell), which represent the Patronuses of some of the characters in the series. A stag, as illustrated by Kay, is Harry Potter’s Patronus. Duddle’s illustration of a phoenix represents Albus Dumbledore’s Patronus. Gravett illustrated an otter, which is Hermione Granger’s Patronus. Pinfold illustrated a doe, which is Severus Snape’s Patronus, and Riddell illustrated a Jack Russell terrier, Ron Weasley’s Patronus.