Are you a Harry Potter fanatic? Did you wait for your letter to Hogwarts on your 11th birthday and wished you could learn all about “Defence Against the dark Arts” and play quidditch? Well, as Ciara Giles Doran explains, you can if you join the UCD Harry Potter Society
Each year starts off with the Sorting Hat Ceremony in the Great Hall (… also known as room 1.47 in Ag. Science). Every new member must take the “Pottermore” quiz online (as designed by Ms. J.K. Rowling herself), and let the sorting hat decide – are you to be a courageous Gryffindor, or a “wise old Ravenclaw”? Or perhaps you’re more of a cunning Slytherin or a loyal Hufflepuff? Either way, you must thread with caution, as for the next year you will earn and lose House Points depending on how well you and your House performs in society events!
Grab your broom, say “UP!” and join Madam Hooch on the quidditch pitch! With fortnightly practice and great house rivalry, the U.C.D. quidditch team is never a bad way to spend a few hours on a Thursday afternoon. Although our quidditch pitch might not be quite as elaborate as the real deal, you still get to know just how hard a bludger can be, and exactly how to dodge a bewitched broomstick! Be prepared to fight for your house, but also for your university! The annual Intervarsity Triwizard Tournament took place in D.C.U. this year, with teams of four fighting for U.C.D. victory. Although gillyweed might have been some help for U.C.D. this year, it was a great tournament with plenty of Harry Potter shenanigans.
But it’s not all sports and competition! About once a month, the society organises great (and often heated) discussions about the more controversial and intriguing parts of the Harry Potter series, such as the character of Severus Snape and the various amazing animals that populate the wizarding world. Let’s not forget the collaboration with the Literary and History Society and the legendary debate that ensued – “This House Wishes Dumbledore Had Come Out”. The society also runs regular movie screenings in the U.C.D. cinema, Dumbledore’s Army Meetings, book club nights and coffee mornings with butterbeer (sometimes!) and Umbridge’s teacups. What more could you ask for?
Last Christmas, 30 lucky members got to go to the Warner Brother Studios and explore behind the scenes of the Harry Potter films. With authentic sets, original costumes and a treasure trove of countless intricate artefacts from the series, this was simply the holiday of a lifetime for any Harry Potter fan!
Last but not least, no year would be complete with the annual Yule Ball! I joined my fellow fanatics on the Knight Bus to Clontarf Castle where a night of magic and mystery ensued! Although the food may not compare to the Hallowe’en feast, and Viktor Krum did not make an appearance, it was an unforgettable night of dance and pure Harry Potter fun. All in all, I am so glad I made the decision to join the Harry Potter Society last September, and look forward to another great year!
