PotterCast 135: Let Them Eat Cake Transcript

News Talk (0:00 - 8:24)

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Melissa Anelli (MA): Welcome, welcome, it is PotterCast 135, and we're here again. Your PotterCast trio, all three of us, finally.

Sue Upton (SU): Yay!

JN: Yay!

MA: One of us sick, one of us tired. (SU: Yeah.) We're recovering, recovering from a crazy week. But we have lots of fun stuff for you this week, (JN: Mm-hm) including news from a sponsor!

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MA: Audible.com is back and no, we know, we know, you cannot get the Harry Potter books at Audible.com. (SU: Yes.) If you wanna download the Harry Potter books in audio format, you need to do that on iTunes. So, there.

SU: Yeah.

JN: Are they still on iTunes?

MA: Yes. They are still on iTunes. I think. Are they? They're still on iTunes, aren't they?

SU: What? Yeah, but (MA: Yeah.) Book Seven is not on. And for the million people that have e-mailed asking us, no we do not know why Book Seven is not on iTunes. Yes, we have e-mailed, I have e-mailed three times and I've gotten no response. So, sorry, don't know.

MA: It'll be there eventually.

SU: I'm sure it will. I keep hoping for that special, deluxe Harry Potter iPod. A new one. New version with all the movies and the books.

JN: What happened to the old one?

MA: Just- they stopped selling it after a while, (SU: Yeah.) when the iPod changed, (SU: Yeah.) because who wants an old iPod, even if it's got a Harry Potter crest on it? (SU: Yeah.) Kind of old, from their perspective anyway. (JN: Hm.) All right, what's going on in the news this week, the Sues?

SU: Well, you know John Noe? This is kind of cool. Ms. Jo Rowling is going to be speaking at the Harvard graduation commencement ceremony on June 5th, 2008. So she is going to talk in a graduation after all. It's not Hogwarts graduation, you know, but there you go.

JN: Oh yeah! I wonder if she'll talk about her students' graduation in her book.

SU: I don't know.

MA: Yeah, I'm curious, because she's gotten honorary degrees before but never with a big speech. Now, she's like a keynote speaker for- (SU: Yeah.) that's great. It's fantastic.

SU: It is because Harvard is renowned here in the United States for those that are listening elsewhere. They are renowned for having some of the quite leading figures speak. (JN: Yeah.) Last year Bill Gates and Bill Clinton and then- now we have Jo. (laughs)

MA: Those who will be there, we trust that you or your family will have video cameras, (SU: Yeah.) audio tapes, (SU: Yeah.) anything else you can to get this historic moment recorded for the fans.

SU: Yeah. Usually they do put that up later online, but they don't give out the tickets. They are not available to the public. (MA: Right.) It's usually like the people who are graduating get like four student tickets or something.

MA: Yeah. There's like fights. If you have an extra one and you feel like giving it to us (SU: Yeah.) you are more (SU laughs) than welcome.

JN: I am sure we have all kinds of- (MA: We could get to Boston.) all kinds of upcoming Harvard graduates listening to PotterCast. (SU laughs) No doubt.

MA: Yeah. Why not? (JN: Sure.) I'm sure there is at least a couple of you in there. Harvard. "Hahvid."

JN: Bound to be. Odds are.

SU: But I thought it was really cool that here's Jo speaking and John had talked- we- you talked about this. It's kind of cool. (MA: No. It's great.) (JN: Very neat.) Yeah, it is. I know that you all are recovering from your last weekend. (MA sighs) (laughs) Y'all had that great interview talking about Deathly Hallows, but now the rumors are kind of back. We have a little bit more about that. (JN: Okay.) Because Warner Brothers kind of said through Empire Magazine that there's no decision made. Yet, we heard just a new interview from Timothy Spall, who plays Peter Pettigrew, and he is confirming that he is going to back for Half-Blood Prince and for Deathly Hallows. And this is his line, and this is really confusing. So, I want to read this so we can talk about this. "I am also at the one at the end. I have a very big scene in that. I think they might be shooting two of them back to back. Hard to know, though, what with this writer's strike and all."

MA: Well, they- hm.

JN: Here's the funny thing about how that's worded, though (SU: Yeah.) is that he said, "Two of them." (SU: Yeah.) And not, "Both of them." (SU: Right.) Which would kind of make it sound like there's (MA: Three more.) one other one floating around there somewhere that's not included in the two of them. (SU: Mm-hm.) So, I don't know. That is kind of odd.

SU: It was just an odd thing because he's talking about yeah he's back and he's going to be shooting his scenes, presumedly for "Spinner's End" here soon and he's talking about Deathly Hallows being back for that and he has this big thing at Malfoy manor and all that stuff, but...

MA: Are they going to be shooting two of them back to back. If it were seven they probably would be shooting them back to back. (SU: Yeah.) And, then the writer's strike really only effects seven because the script for six is written. (SU: Yeah.) So, the writer's strike only comes with the plan when you're talking about Book Seven.

SU: Right.

JN: And why would they shoot Six and Seven back to back (MA: No, they wouldn't.) when there needs to be the age progression there like there has been for every other movie.

MA: No, they'll be seventeen by the time Half-Blood Prince is finished.

SU: Right, I mean, we haven't been confirmed yet but I thought they weren't even going to begin on Deathly Hallows until February of next year or something. (MA: Something like that. Yeah.) So, when I saw that I was like, "Whoa." We don't really know what that means but it could mean more- So, if the cast is kind of thinking it's a two part film- I don't know.

MA: Could be. Could be. (SU: I don't know.) Well, the other big piece of news this week came from the lawsuit between The Harry Potter Lexicon and J.K. Rowling and Warner Brothers and you can read all about that on our website. There was 1,100 pages of stuff filed from the J.K. Rowling and Warner Brothers side. Most of it needed to be read. (MA and SU laugh) So, it summarized- it's all available to read publicly but we have summaries up available on the site because it's a lot for anybody to read. Basic arguments- you know what, go read the documents because there's a lot of basic arguments.

SU: Well, it was a thousand pages right, Melissa? You plowed- (MA: Yeah.) we should say Melissa, our diligent- plowed through all of that. And that's a lot of legal ease. There's a lot of testimony and a lot of emails and attachments and just phewee.

MA: A lot of emails. A lot of emails and a lot of new information and a lot of interesting information. So, if you are at all wondering how this will affect things, yes there are a couple of statements that seem to say that a win for the publisher RDR Books would mean a more stringent view by copyright holders. Not just Jo. Every author, every copyright holder. Could change fandom fundamentally and that seemed to be reinforced a couple of times throughout. We'll hear from the RDR Books side of it on February 5th. then they have until February 15th, I think, to file a reply. That's to the J.K. Rowling side. And then it will go to court on February 28th. All right, well then, that's that update. (SU: Yes.) You will hear more from that if you keep checking out LeakyNews.com and I think we've got a great show coming up. We have a great interview that John and Sue did with the guys from Ace of Cakes. Thank you everybody who's been emailing us (SU: Yes.) letting us know that the guys who did the massive Hogwarts cake at the premiere party of Order of the Phoenix were going to be on a show called Ace of Cakes. We got in touch with them and there's a great interview with the baker of that cake. Lots and lots of fun. So, I think you'll really enjoy it. (SU laughs) So, stick around.

JN: Yeah, it was very fun.

SU: And John Noe did attack. He ate the astronomy tower. I'm just saying.

JN: Shut up, Sue. (SU laughs) Don't tell anybody. (SU and MA laugh) Will get me in trouble with this guy.

SU: Yeah. (SU and MA laugh) It was awesome. It was really cool and I- it was just fun. One quick thing before we go. Congratulations go to Stuart Craig who's getting the lifetime achievement award from the Art Director's Guild because I think that's really cool (JN: Excellent.) and I think he pwns.

MA: Yes. His work has been fantastic. Stuart Craig. (SU: Stuart Craig.) All righty, people. We'll see you later.

SU: Yay. Go eat some cake.