It's not often we take this much of Leaky's space and time to celebrate a birthday, but this one is special. Today marks The Leaky Cauldron's 10th anniversary on the Internet.
We appeared online on July 4, 2000: just four days before the release of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the book. Before the big bestseller split, before the first midnight party. Not many people remember Leaky in its infancy: it was a blue page with orange text, and was testing out a new Web software called Blogger.
Over the years, Leaky has morphed into an international, sprawling database of all things Harry Potter, a "wonderfully well designed mine of accurate information," as noted by J.K. Rowling in her Fan Site Award.
In that time - to name a few of the amazing things that have happened since - Leaky has given tens of thousands of dollars to charity; it has won a Webby; opened the door for Harry Potter fans to report on the films by becoming the first and at the time only site to visit the junket and sets; it has been reported on three book releases and eight film premieres; it has printed more than 10,000 news articles; it has performed live podcasts in front of tens of thousands of people; it has thrown an epic conference, and it has been given the honor of interviewing J.K. Rowling twice, the most recent being Ms. Rowling's only podcast interview to date. And so, so, much more.
All of that is great. We're immeasurably grateful and proud. But none of it would have been possible without the hundreds of people who have worked here over the years, and the millions who have used the site. It has truly been a joint adventure for us, and we hope for you, too. Nothing would be possible here were it not for the fantastic group of sharp, funny, intelligent staff and users on this site; it would have been nothing without your input and interaction.
And we are celebrating with that in mind.
Over the next week, Leaky will release three things that celebrate you, the user, and allow you to more fully experience and enjoy Harry Potter through our site. One of them has been coming for a long time: registration will open for LeakyCon, our second Conference of Awesome(™), to take place in Orlando, Florida, next July, the weekend of the release of the last film in the Harry Potter series. (If you missed the first one, watch this video.)
The other two, we'll wait to show you when they are ready.
So… thank you. Thank you for a grand experience, and a grand adventure. Thank you for being here for a decade, or for getting here now. Thank you for all the memories; please use the thread below to relive them, or to just celebrate each other.
Thank you for ten years of Potter. Here's to the next chapter!
<3 <3 <3 <3 Oh Gosh guys, 10 years, I can’t say how proud I am to be here, in one (maybe the most) awesomest HP fansite ever! I hav’ent been here very long but every minute on here took away five minutes of stress. You all rock, the staff, the fonder, Melissa the Webmistress, and all the users. Leaky (w)rocks on so many levels1 I’m so happy and proud for my #1: fansite, search engine, news spot, magazine, craft place, gallerie, and homepage!
I found Leaky almost at its beginning, right after I’d discovered the books. I was 44 at the time (!) and “checking out” these “controversial” books my son’s 2nd grade teacher was reading them. I was hooked. . . Now, I’m 54 (!!!!! – not possible!!) and Leaky has nurtured my love and devotion of these books for almost a decade. My sons grew up with Harry, and so did I. So did my own mother – who is now 82 . . . We are all now breathlessly waiting Deathly Hallows. . . It has been wonderful to see the HP community grow up too – who could have imagined the work of the HP Alliance 10 years ago?
One gift Leaky has given me is not an obvious one – it made me keep up with technology! I had to learn what a blog was, then a podcast, how to download audio and video files, how to participate in a live chat. I had to get an iPod so I could listen more easily, and eventually when my laptop died, an Apple computer so it would be seamless. I learned what Facebook was and got an account – though I confess I held the line at Twitter. . . not for me . . . :-)
So thanks, Leaky, for the great times. Love to Sue – we still miss you!
I found Leaky almost at its beginning, right after I’d discovered the books. I was 44 at the time (!) and “checking out” these “controversial” books my son’s 2nd grade teacher was reading them. I was hooked. . . Now, I’m 54 (!!!!! – not possible!!) and Leaky has nurtured my love and devotion of these books for almost a decade. My sons grew up with Harry, and so did I. So did my own mother – who is now 82 . . . We are all now breathlessly waiting Deathly Hallows. . . It has been wonderful to see the HP community grow up too – who could have imagined the work of the HP Alliance 10 years ago?
One gift Leaky has given me is not an obvious one – it made me keep up with technology! I had to learn what a blog was, then a podcast, how to download audio and video files, how to participate in a live chat. I had to get an iPod so I could listen more easily, and eventually when my laptop died, an Apple computer so it would be seamless. I learned what Facebook was and got an account – though I confess I held the line at Twitter. . . not for me . . . :-)
So thanks, Leaky, for the great times. Love to Sue – we still miss you!
Wow! Happy Anniversary Leaky! I’m a little sad to say that I can’t remember how long ago I found you or what was happening in our little world when I did. But, what I do know for certain is that, I am a bigger HP fan because of you than I would be if I had never found you. Having a place to keep me up to date with all the latest news, excitement and being able to discuss and think about the books in ways I couldn’t have without you, have all contributed to the love I have for this series. I feel like we should be the ones celebrating you and thanking you for everything you have done for us. Thank you for helping me be the very proud Harry Potter fangirl that I am today!
They were standing on the edge of a huge chessboard, behind the black chessmen, which were all taller than they were and carved from what looked like black stone. Facing them, way across the chamber, were the white pieces. Harry, Ron and Hermione shivered
Happy Birthday Leaky