The day has now arrived - June 26, 2017 marks the exact 20th anniversary of the publishing date for
Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, and the official day celebrating J.K. Rowling as a published author.
The U.K. will be celebrating the anniversary in earnest - at bookstores, libraries, through social media, and so much more - make sure to use the #HarryPotter20 hashtag throughout the day for special surprises.
First off to celebrate, it was announced that a Potter family history would be added to the final published copy of
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child this July, and Rowling already
released that biography through Pottermore.
Of particular note are the names of Harry's numerous ancestors, including his grandparents, and the relative from whom Harry got his name, presumably.
Quote:
Henry Potter (Harry to his intimates), who was a direct descendant of Hardwin and Iolanthe, and served on the Wizengamot from 1913 - 1921. Henry caused a minor stir when he publicly condemned then Minister for Magic, Archer Evermonde, who had forbidden the magical community to help Muggles waging the First World War. His outspokenness on the behalf of the Muggle community was also a strong contributing factor in the family’s exclusion from the ‘Sacred Twenty-Eight’.
This Henry Potter, nicknamed Harry, was revealed by J.K. Rowling to be Harry Potter's paternal great-grandfather. Henry was father to Fleamont Potter, who in turn was the elderly father of the first James Potter. James married Lily Evans, and of course they gave birth to their first and only child, Harry, in July 1980.
Make sure to pick up or order a Hogwarts-House themed copy (or few) of the 20th anniversary issue of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone now.