Whether it is the disarming Expelliarmus or the dreaded Avada Kedavra, spells are at the very heart of all of the Harry Potter books, making them a perfect focus for the second Harry Potter Book Night.

With an updated event kit themed around spells and lots more exciting elements yet to be announced, once again fans of all ages will have the chance to celebrate J.K. Rowling’s wonderful novels – and pass the magic on to young readers who haven’t yet discovered these unforgettable books.

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Next year’s event promises to be even bigger and better as international publishers join in the celebrations to bring Harry Potter Book Night 2016 to fans all over the world, making it a truly global event.

So, make a date in your diary as Harry Potter Book Night returns for a second year on Thursday February 4th 2016.

Sign up at www.harrypotterbooknight.com to make sure you’re one of the first to hear all the latest Harry Potter Book Night news. If you’ve already registered, you will carry on receiving our exclusive news bulletins.

And remember to share your ideas and plans for Harry Potter Book Night on Twitter and Facebook using #HarryPotterBookNight

As we’ve posted a few times over the past months, Bloomsbury released a deluxe illustrated edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone with art by Jim Kay.  The book was officially released in the UK yesterday and is available for £150 at Bloomsbury’s website. It appears that the book can be shipped worldwide, which is good news for fans in the US and other countries who would have to wait until March 2016 when it will be available at other stores.

The deluxe illustrated edition of J.K. Rowling’s timeless classic will feature an exclusive pull-out double gatefold of Diagon Alley; intricate foiled line art by Jim Kay on a real cloth cover and slipcase; gilt edges on premium grade paper; head and tail bands and two ribbon markers. It is the ultimate must-have edition for any fan, collector or bibliophile. This edition will be sold exclusively from the Bloomsbury.com website until March 2016 when it will be made available to retail outlets.

This special edition is an utterly enchanting feast of a book and something to treasure for a lifetime. Brimming with rich detail and humour, Jim Kay’s dazzling depiction of the wizarding world and much loved characters will captivate fans and new readers alike. In oil, pastel, pencil, watercolour, pixels and a myriad of other techniques, Jim Kay has created over 115 astonishing illustrations.

The news just keeps on coming this week! EW has just released character descriptions for the main cast of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. These descriptions come with some higher resolution photos of the supporting cast, which can be seen in the gallery!

Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scramander
An eccentric globe-hopping English “magizoologist” wizard who’s far more comfortable around beasts and creatures than he is around other people. Comes to New York on a quest with his case full of magical habitats containing rare and endangered species.

Katherine Waterston as Porpentina “Tina” Goldstein
An ambitious worker at the Magical Congress of the United States of America (aka MACUSA, the U.S. version of the Ministry of Magic) who meets Newt. Tina is relegated to an office well below her abilities after she stood up for the wrong person. She longs to fight for what’s right.

Alison Sudol as Queenie Goldstein
Tina’s younger sister and roommate, a big-hearted free-spirit “legilimens” who can read minds.

Dan Fogler as Jacob Kowalski
An optimistic No-Maj (aka Muggle) factory worker/aspiring baker who gets introduced to the wizarding world when he meets Newt. Fun fact: He’s the Harry Potter franchise’s first Muggle main character.

Colin Farrell as Graves
A powerful auror and the right-hand man of the American wizarding world’s president.

Samantha Morton as Mary Lou
The narrow-minded leader of the fanatical Second Salemers, a group looking to expose and destroy wizards and witches.

Ezra Miller as Credence
Perhaps the cast’s most mysterious character. He’s Mary Lou’s troubled adopted son.

Eccentric magizoologist Newt Scamander (Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne) comes to New York (for a reason we won’t disclose) with his trusty weathered case. This case is one of those way-way-way-bigger-on-the-inside magical devices, and within are expansive habitats for a collection of rare and endangered magical creatures from Newt’s travels around globe. He discovers the American wizarding community is fearfully hiding from Muggles (who are called “No-Maj” in the States) and the threat of public exposure is an even graver concern than in the UK (remember the Salem witch trials?). Fantastic Beasts is the story of what happens when this uniquely skilled English wizard travels to wiz-phobic America and a variety of his creatures, some quite dangerous … get out of their case.

In addition to the photo of Newt Scamander featured on the cover of Entertainment Weekly, EW has released some more behind the scenes photos from the set of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them! You can view all the photos in our gallery!

In the cover image, we got a first look at Scamander, his pivotal briefcase in hand, standing inside the entrance of the majestic art deco-influenced Magical Congress of the United States of America (or MACUSA), which is the American version of the Ministry of Magic that’s housed inside the Woolworth Building in the film.

These new photos show Katherine Waterston as Porpentina “Tina” Goldstein, Eddie Redmayne as Newt Scamander, Alison Sudol and Queenie Goldstein, and Dan Fogler as Jacob Kowalski in various locations.

Entertainment Weekly have released a preview of their next issue which includes the first ever look at Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them starring Eddie Redmayne. Good Morning America also revealed an inner page of the issue (Thanks to fbawtftfilms on Twitter.) You can see both photos in the gallery! In their little teaser for the feature EW says:

Beasts stars Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything) as world-famous magizoologist Newt Scamander, who embarks on an adventure in 1926 New York. In our cover image, you get a first look at Scamander, his pivotal briefcase in hand, standing inside the entrance of the majestic art deco-influenced Magical Congress of the United States of America (or MACUSA), which is the American version of the Ministry of Magic that’s housed inside the Woolworth Building in the film. Coming along for the ride are Katherine Waterston (Steve Jobs), Colin Farrell (True Detective) and Samantha Morton (Minority Report).

So what’s this movie actually about? What are the characters? How will Fantastic Beasts differ from the Potter films? What creatures can we expect? And what are American wizards like, anyway? We’ll have all that, interviews with the cast and producers, plus first photos from the set, and more.

Pick up the new issue of Entertainment Weekly, on newsstands Friday, or buy it here. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them will be released on November 18th 2016.