Architect of the Wizarding World and Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling continues to blow away fan boys everywhere.
This time the esteemed author’s revealed the history and houses of one of America’s most famous centres of magical learning, Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The full story can be read here but here’s the break down which was released to fill in some of the backstory for the upcoming Magical Beasts and Where To Find Them.
The school was founded by a young Irish girl called Isolt who fled her native Ireland for America to escape the clutches of Gormlaith Gaunt her aunt, stealing her wand as she left.
Upon arriving in America the girl met up with James Steward, a muggle who saw her using magic,
Despite initially distrusting James, and planning on wiping his mind, the two fell in love adopting two young orphaned boys, Chadwick and Webster, who demonstrated magical powers.
As her boys grew Islot told them stories of her home and Hogwarts. Wanting a place for them to learn magic, Isolt set up Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for magical children naming it after her childhood home in Ireland.
Ilvermorny runs in a very similar fashion to Hogwarts and the school was popular attracting kids from far and wide.
Unfortunately Gormlaith eventually discovered where her niece had gone and set out to take revenge on her, but was defeated by the combined efforts of Islot and her school.
Isolt realising her wand belonged to Salazar Slytherin and contained the foul magic of a basilisk horn buried it and it soon grew into a snakewood tree which provided powerful healing magics.
Incidentally the fact that they’re Gaunts, and owned Salazar Slytherin’s wand, means that both Gormlaith and Isolt are related, distantly, to Voldemort.
Nowadays the Horned Serpent, the panther Wampus, the Thunderbird and the Pukwudgie represent the houses of Ilvermorny, and you can find out where you belong at Pottermore!
More of a concept than a journalist, Tom Percival was forged in the bowels of Salford University from which he emerged grasping a Masters in journalism.
Since then his rise has been described by himself as ‘meteoric’ rising to the esteemed rank of Social Editor at UNILAD as well as working at the BBC, Manchester Evening News, and ITV.
He credits his success to three core techniques, name repetition, personality mirroring, and never breaking off a handshake.