PotterCast 121: Jingle Spells Transcript

News Talk (0:00 - 11:56)

Melissa Anelli (MA): Okay, it is the middle of October. It's almost pumpkin time. But first, it is time for PotterCast Number 121.

John Noe (JN): Aw. I want pumpkins for PotterCast.

Sue Upton (SU): (applauds) Yay!

MA: I do want pumpkins ,too. Welcome, I'm Melissa. I'm here with John and Sue. As usual, we're here for another week of Harry Potter stuff. (laughs) Before we do anything, we have to hear from our lovely friends at the Borders.

Borders Ad:

JN: Today's PotterCast is brought to you by Borders. Haven't read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows yet? Don't worry, Borders is here to help. Pick up your copy of this summer's smash hit soon. You won't be able to hide from those spoilers forever. You can count on Borders to have it in stock and ready to take home tonight, along with the audio book version. Even if you've read the book, the Harry Potter fun doesn't have to end yet. Visit bordersmedia.com or click on the Borders banner at the top of the PotterCast page to find out more.

MA: Hey guys. (SU: Ooh.) (JN: Hey.) It's October.

JN: What's that mean?

SU: I know.

MA: If you haven't read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by now...

JN: Yeah. (MA: Just saying.) And you've managed to download a podcast about Harry Potter, (MA: Just saying.) (SU laughs) you are backwards as, as, as very backwards person. (MA and SU laugh)

MA: Anyway, PotterCast, this week, features. We got, oh god, it's such a packed show so we need to keep this real, real short up here guys. (JN: Yes.) We have a Canon Conundrums is back. (JN: Yay!) We were never taking it away, (SU: Yay!) we just had some recording issues. We have a Phoenix Files, we have a Bit by Bit, we have a Scribby 5. It's just a wild, giant show so we got to go right into the news. Sue, what's going on?

SU: Oh, do-do-do-doo! Filming has now begun in Scotland for the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince film, (MA: Meaning there's Hagrid's hut?) including- well we don't know. (MA laughs) But no, they have started on the Hogwarts Express though, (MA: Okay.) little train scenes.

JN: Cool, I read that article too. (SU: Oh, very nice.) I actually read news this time.

SU: Good! This is always good! But you know what's interesting? That not only did they film scenes at the Hogwarts Express, but they've been filming at- I can't, I'm not even going to try say this, (MA: A Lock, right?) a Lochs. A Loch, a loch. (MA: A lake basically.) (JN: It's pretty.) Ugh, Loch, lake. I'm sorry people of Scotland, I apologize. I don't know how to say the name.

JN: They don't have the Internet out there yet.

MA: John! (laughs)

SU: But it's an airborne film unit and camera aboard a fish farm boat have been shooting computer-enhanced sequences above and on the Lock.

JN: I'm curious to how they are calling them computer enhanced sequences when, unless some technology is alluding me, that they are out on the day shooting with a camera, they didn't bring their computers with them.

MA: Yeah it sounds like they are shooting things that will eventually be computer enhanced. (JN laughs)

JN: What a funny thing to add in too. (MA: Yeah.) Just think, everything in that darn movie is computer enhanced. (SU: It's true.) (SU laughs) There's not a single frame that's not computer enhanced. But, whatever.

MA: I Know.

SU: But it's just, sorry, I don't know if it's for the scenes for the cave or what, but it's just nice to know that it's actually- that those highlands of Scotland are absolutely gorgeous. And they are in the same area and they are keeping the same continuity. And it's just beautiful and I just can't wait.

MA: Do you know why I can't for number six to come out? Because, then we are going to get fan films to Michael Jackson's "Thriller". (JN: Oh god.) The Inferi. (SU laughs) I can't wait! I want to see that fan film, just keep it in the back of your head for next year guys.

JN: What did he call it? The Army of the Dead or something? (MA: Army of the Dead.) Oh my god.

SU: Army of the Dead baby, you know it.

JN: Are they going to be green and run through all of the Orcs and it's going to be like, "Why didn't you get here an hour earlier? We all would not have all died."

SU: Well if Dumbledore shows up with the sword of Gryffindor then we'll know that Peter Jackson's been in the area.

JN: Dumbledore and his giant wooden flashlight that's so powerful. (SU and MA laugh)

SU: That he borrowed from Moody. Bam!

JN: Yeah, more or less.

MA: That he bangs on the floor and all the Inferi die.

JN: Here comes the Lord of the Rings fan's emails.

MA: All right guys, we have to get going through this. I'm sorry to...

SU: Okay. Congratulations are in order to Miss J.K. Rowling for her- she's the new recipient of a special recognition award from the Pride of Britain Award, and Miss Emma Watson presented them- this award to Jo and for all of Jo's charity works.

JN: That video was too dang cute. (MA: It is.) (SU: It was. Jo was...) I almost had a tear in my manly eyes.

SU: You know, wasn't it sweet, though? I mean, (MA: Yeah.) here's this girl that awarded the Pride of Britain awards comes up there, then here comes Jo and Emma was- And Jo was just beside- I think she was genuinely moved (MA: Mm-hm.) by the stories of these people.

JN: I don't know you guys. Did you see her hair? (MA: Whose?) (SU: Jo?) No. I am kidding. Everybody is (SU: Jo's hair?) like, (in a high pitched voice) "Emma's hair is so blonde. Oh my God. (MA laughs) Hermione doesn't need to have that blonde hair."

SU: Oh.

MA: Yeah. She's not Hermione. She's Emma.

JN: Emma doesn't start filming until December guys. So, just chill out.

MA: Either way, I have to say though, without being hopefully tabloidly about it, Emma's clothing choices are so wonderful right now. (SU: Yes.) She- Not only this beautiful dress that she wore, but at the last awards show we saw her at she was in this very chic thing with the nice heels. She's turning into a real fashion plate, which is nice. It's nice to see them grow up and look nice, you know?

JN: Surely she can afford it.

SU: You know, yeah.

MA: The irony there is that she probably gets it for free.

JN: That too. She's a Chanel model now, isn't she?

MA: I think so.

SU: Yes and I am sure she has advisers from there, but this outfit that she wore to the Pride of Britain awards wasn't a Chanel outfit, but it was beautiful gown. (MA: Yes.) They are both in black and Jo, I thought, looked equally chic (JN: Yeah.) and beautiful.

JN: Dan Radcliffe was going to be a clothing model but he turned them down.

MA: All right. (SU laughs) So, there's some news about Jo and some family additions, huh? I am just trying to get us right through this guys.

SU: Yes. I know. She has a new member of the family everyone: (JN: The puppy dog.) Sapphire, a puppy dog. (cheers)

MA: You know who else has a greyhound?

SU: Yes, it's not just a regular puppy dog. It's one from the greyhound rescue.

MA: Somebody from our Leaky family has a greyhound. (JN: Santa's Little Helper.) Our friend Lisa Q. (SU: Yes.) from Accio Quote.

JN: I remember that. That was a greyhound?

MA: Arrow. That was a greyhound.

JN: Arrow. Yeah. (SU: Yeah.) They're cool dogs.

MA: He's in our PotterCast video blog on PotterCast.com.

JN: Is Arrow in there? Did she make an appearance?

MA: Arrow's in there.

SU: Yes!

JN: Sweet.

MA: Blog number seven.

JN: I don't watch our blogs.

MA: Let's get right through it. We've only got a couple of more minutes left.

SU: (laughs) Okay. This is really a kind of cool thing Warner Brothers is doing. You know when the Order of the Phoenix DVD comes out? This is important. When you buy the DVD its going to come down with two versions of the film that are available for download. So you can put them on your computer and put one on your portable media player, your iPod or whatever.

JN: That is crazy. (SU: I was kind of shocked by that.) That's such a big deal. (MA: That's a huge deal.) People are buzzing about that in the tech community even who aren't Harry Potter fans. That's a big move for a movie as big as Harry Potter, too.

SU: I think they are the first studio to do it. (JN: Yeah, they are.) (MA: Yeah.) I just- considering that there is a month discrepancy between or time- the UK gets it a month before we do.

JN: Yeah, I wonder what version they are going to have that through.

MA: I still guarantee that's going to change because Argentina is going to get it in October. It's going to change, you know?

SU: Yeah. I hope so.

JN: Talk about a hundred typos.

MA: If it's not. I don't care. What?

JN: There must have been a hundred typos that caused this debacle.

MA: It's not even that. It's not even that the US should get it first. It's not about that. You are talking about the biggest market for these movies in the world. (SU: Exactly.) All that's going to happen by leaving that separate is it's going to hit the digital networks much sooner and cut right into sales because people are going to be downloading it, you know. (JN: Yeah.) They should get it to the US before anywhere else, I think.

SU: I just want to make one more last bit of news, which is funny. I want to hear John's particular reaction to the Ron Weasley (JN: Oh God!) talking action figure. (JN: How perfect?) (laughs)

MA: What does he say?

JN: Why can't we have these for every movie?

SU: (laughs) He says, "Stupefy!" (MA laughs)

JN: And he's like, "I think we are going to start some kind of wizard army." And then he's like, the bit about, "Ah. I let her win. Yeah. It's only polite." (SU: Yeah.) Whatever it was. "And big families. And afraid of spiders. And (MA: He likes sweets.) (SU laughs) I like a lot of sweets." (MA laughs) Aw. I love me some Rupe.

SU: He didn't say, "Your hands all sweaty!"

MA: I can't! Your hands all sweaty!

JN: I can't! (SU laughs) Anyway...

SU: But I mean, and now we got a new Hermione Granger one. She only says four. Ron says six things, but the Hermione figure only says- but I mean, it's just so- (JN: Uh.) the quotes that they chose for her are even worse (JN: What's that?) and I was just like you know- (MA: Harry!) it's like, "Is he really out there? We've got to be able to defend ourselves and if Umbridge refuses to teach us how, we need someone who will!" I was like what is that...

MA: That's all one quote?

SU: That's one quote!

JN: "Not you, Harry!"

MA: Thanks John. (laughs) All right, all right. (SU laughs) Well, we have...

SU: No, that's someone else! (laughs)

MA: We have one more bit of news this week which is a bit (SU: Yes.) of our own and look, we're actually gonna sorta make time. (JN: Yay!) Our own news is that we have just started early this year- for the first time ever we're on a good time schedule- (JN: Ooh.) our annual Get A Clue charity drive is now open! (JN: Yeah!) We actually closed (SU: Ooh.) last years which- this years which was (SU: Yes.) the Get A Clue Around Book Seven which raised close to 4,000 dollars for Book Aid International which we're very excited about. (JN: Yes.) (SU: Bravo!) This year we asked the wizard rock bands to donate a song each. Fourteen bands created a whole new song for us each, they donated it to Leaky, Frak illustrated the work, we had a professional sound mixer mix the CD, and it is being produced as Jingle Spells, a wizard rock compilation holiday CD. It's now available for pre-order. You can only get it through December 10th. You can only order it through December tenth because we're making a limited amount (JN: Yes.) and we can't be shipping these out forever. I'm literally going to have thirty boxes of CDs in my apartment (SU laughs) for a while. So.

JN: And if we don't sell them, we're going to burn the rest. (MA: No.) In a big bonfire. (SU: No.)

MA: No. But it's really- it's fifteen dollars which includes shipping if you're in the U.S. It's a little extra for international. And I'm telling you, it is some of the best (JN: Oh God.) Christmas music. Not just wizard rock music, some of the best Christmas music that I've ever had on my iPod.

JN: And this is no smoke being blowing here fellows and ladies. This is from somebody who is not as obsessed as some other fans out there of the wizard rock. I swear (laughs) this is the most wizard rock I have ever listened to ever. I mean, I love Christmas. I love Christmas songs so, if there is anyone out there who loves Christmas songs and has even a passing interest in Harry Potter, this is a CD for them this Christmas cause it won me over after like two songs, so...

SU: Right. And you can be able to hear previews of this, right, Melissa? (MA: Yes.) We'll have previews...

MA: We'll have previews up on- there will be a link on the top of PotterCast.com where you can go to our order page which has our previews. There's a thirty second preview of every song. We'll be playing previews on PotterCast from now (JN: Yes.) until eternity. (laughs) And (JN: (laughs) Yeah.) it's really- it's just so much- there's funny songs. There's warm, Christmas-y songs. There's slow songs. (SU: Mm-hm.) There's fast songs. The Whomping Willow song will kill you with laughter. (SU laughs) (SU: Yes.) It's really- I'm just completely stunned by what these amazing people donated for this album. (JN: Yeah.) And if all goes well, we're going to raise huge amounts of money thanks to it. So, yeah. (JN: Awesome.) Too exciting!

JN: It'll make for a very happy Book Aid.

MA: And a lot of good (SU: Yes!) Christmas gifts. Anybody you know who likes Harry Potter, dude, it's the best gift. And it's cheap! Fifteen, including shipping. (JN: That...) That's really cheap for an album.

JN: Well, you don't have to take our words for it. We're going to be playing clips here at the end of this episode and (SU: Mm-hm.) like you said, you can listen to thirty second clips already now on the Wizrocklopedia and soon to be on Leaky and other places and it will be awesome!

SU: (applauds) Yay! Rocks!

MA: All right, well let's go do the rest of the show, please now.

JN: All right. Let's kick it over to the Bit-by-Bit!