Voldermort’s downfall was a long time coming. Despite his efforts to ensure his longevity, Voldemort’s overall approach to life almost guarunteed his defeat. By ignoring the signifcance of some very important “deeper magics,” Voldemort opened up a proverbial chink in his armor that ultimately led to his demise. In Chapter 35, King’s Cross, an etherieal Dumbledore sums it up nicely:

That which Voldemort does not value, he takes no trouble to comprehend.  Of house elves and children’s tales, of love, loyalty and innoncence, Voldemort knows and understands nothing.  NOTHING.  That they all have a power beyond his own, a power beyond the reach of any magic, is a truth he has never grasped.

In this week’s episode, we take a deeper look at the general and specific causes of Voldemort’s downfall, paying particular attention to Dumbledore’s assessment.

In the news:

• Daniel Radcliffe’s December Boys jump the gun and premiere on September 14.
• Equus may come to Broadway. In other news, the Kentucky Derby has been cancelled.
• Dumbledore makes Wizard of the Month on JKRowling.com. It’s about time he was recognized for all his hard work.
• Order of the Phoenix second most profitable Potter film. But still the worst book.
• Scholastic announces 40 schools of very lucky children. I think I can still pass as a sixth grader if I shave really close.

You can listen to the podcast with the player below, or download it directly as an mp3.

*Deathly Hallows Spoilers Included*

It’s been less than a week since the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, yet most of us have now read the book more than once; inevitably, bits and pieces need to be re-read to make sense of them. In addition to re-reading, the comments on our last post were extremely amazing, and really helped make sense of the book. This week, we look back through the comments and pull out a few topics to discuss further: a possible relationship between Harry and Voldemort? Examples of Voldemort’s spells not working, references to Nazis, the fittingness of Snape’s death. What was the purpose of the epilogue? And what did we need the Deathly Hallows for anyhow? Of course, there’s more questions that need to be discussed (who discovered magic later in life? Where did Harry’s parents get all that money from?), but they’ll have to wait until next time.

Thanks so much for all the great comments, keep them coming, we couldn’t do the show without them!

In the News:

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is breaking sales records.
• JK Rowling on the Today show: Announces Encyclopedia of characters and talks about DH.
• Naomi Watts, Joseph Fiennes, and Stuart Townsend not necessarily in the Half Blood Prince movie.

Make sure to listen to our interview on The James Madison Show from Friday, July 20. The interview can be found a the website if you click the podcast button. Special thanks to James and Frank for having us on.

Don’t forget to order your HPProgs t-shirts! Contact us if you’re interested in a red, white or black limited edition t-shirt.

Join in on the HPProgs Thank-You Book to JK Rowling!

You can listen to the podcast with the player below, or download it directly as an mp3.

House Elves were made to serve…or were they? This week’s podcast uncovers the complex philosophical conundrums disguised as bug-eyed, self-flagellating little green monsters.

In the News:

• If you work in a library, don’t even think about abusing your Deathly Hallows rights.
• The Scholastic Knight Bus: Coming to a library near you?
• Darn, I misplaced my invisibility cloak AGAIN!
• The Hogwarts Express’s vandalism has been avenged!

If you’re interested, the book mentioned in this week’s podcast is The Pig That Wants to Be Eaten: 100 Experiments for the Armchair Philosopher.

If you speak any kind of English other than American, don’t forget to enter our So You Think OUR Accents are Rubbish? contest.

You can listen to the podcast using the player below, or you can download it directly as an mp3.