In the week’s episode, we continue our discussion of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and the central theme of truth and knowledge, specifically how the book presents the theme in context of Hogwarts, education, careers and experiential vs. learned/taught knowledge. It’s even more exciting that I can describe.

We look forward to hearing from you. You can leave comments here on the blog or send in your voicemails to 206-337-0357 in the US or 07092899490 in the UK. Please make sure to keep the message as close to one minute as possible and try to speak loudly and clearly.

This podcast is brought to you by Audible.com. Download a free audiobook of your choice today at http://audiblepodcast.com/hp.

And, the news:

• Radcliffe, Leung nominated for Best Kiss. BORING.
• Lavender Brown interviewed. Not the real Lavender Brown, mind you.
• Aerial footage of the Potter movie set at Leavesden Studios. This is very cool.
• J.K. Rowling won a trial. Not the trial we’re all interested in, but a trial nonetheless.

Also, check out Pensieve Memories, a new Harry Potter forum.

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

Last week we discussed love, and focused on the distinctly maternal focus taken by J.K. Rowling.  This week, we examine the father figures in Harry’s life.  From his actual, albeit ephermeral father James, to surrogates in Lupin, Sirius and even, to some extent Snape, we take a look at Harry’s bevy or male role models, how they shaped his character and how they contributed to his being what appears to be, for all that we can tell, a good father to his children as well.

Make sure to vote for HPProgs for Best Podcast in the 2007 Weblog Awards!  We’re hanging tough in 4th place!  Thanks to everyone who’s voted!

There’s news this week, but we’re on the road, so we can’t provide links.  Suffice it to say, Penny, at least, will be traveling to New York when Equus comes to town.

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

Without question, Severus Snape is one of the most intriguing characters in J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world. In the beginning, he was simply a mean teacher, and obstacle for Harry; but by the end of the series, Snape became a paradigm of sacrifice for love and courage, to the point that Harry names his son after his once-despised teacher. In this episode, we take a closer look at Snape, now that we have the complete picture of his tale.

For an insightful and prescient examination of Snape’s character, check out Orson Scott Card’s essay Who is Snape? (If you haven’t already, read Orson Scott Card’s book Ender’s Game. You’ll thank me later.)

In the news:

• First British National Movie Awards nominations go to Potter cast.
• Tom Felton likes carp.
• J.K. Rowling is not writing a crime novel.

Check out our new Harry Potter t-shirt design; we call it “Always.” It looks good on most light colored tees (ignore the white background around the image; that will be removed when the shirt is printed).

Get it in white or in a vast array of colors (we prefer green).

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.

October 31, Halloween, has special significance in the Wizarding World; not only does it mark the anniversary of Nearly Headless Nick’s nearly-beheading, it’s also the date that Lord Voldemort attacked the Potter’s in Godric’s Hollow. In memory, we’ve got a special All Hallow’s Eve edition of HPProgs discussing just what went down on that fateful night. There’s a lot we don’t know, which, of course, calls for some prognosticating.

For some background info on Godric’s Hollow, check out the HP Lexicon’s page on Godric’s Hollow, as well as this timeline of the events leading up to October 31, 1981.

A roundup of the news:

• JKRowling.com: New Title for Book 7?
• 60 Minutes: An old interview with JKR with lots of good info.
• The Leaky Cauldron: Movie 5 cut to under 3 hours.

Don’t forget to add HPProgs as your MySpace friend!

Listen to the podcast using the player below, or download it directly as an mp3.