Fans turn to social media to mark the 20th birthday of the Harry Potter series

    By
    Miranda Wadham
    -
    harry potter

    The famous wizarding world of Harry Potter turned 20 on Monday, with many fans taking to social media to mark the event.

    The first book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, was published for the first time 20 years ago today, on the 26th June 1997. Initially just 500 copies of the book were published – some of which now sell for around £30,000. Since then, of course, the series has taken the world by storm, with the books being translated into 68 languages and selling over 400 million copies.

    Its author JK Rowling famously wrote the book in cafes in her home town of Edinburgh, whilst bringing up a young child on income support. Harry Potter was rejected by several publishers when Rowling initially sent out the manuscript, even when it was sent under her male pseudonym, Robert Galbraith. Over the past twenty years, however, things have changed a bit; in 2016 the Sunday Times Rich List estimated Rowling to be worth around £600 million, making her the 197th richest person in the UK.

    Of course, social media did what it does best and rose to the occasion to mark the momentous day. If you write the words ‘Harry Potter’ or any of the four houses – Slytherin, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw – on Facebook as either a status update or a comment, a little wand will appear and the words will change colour.

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    Twitter has unveiled its own special emoji for the 20th anniversary, featuring Harry’s trademark glasses and lightning-shaped scar.