Fantastic Beasts Audiobook Press Release

As you guys know, I don't often put press releases up on the blog. It's for a mix of reasons. Main reason is it doesn't appeal to me. And I want to put stuff on here that excites me in one form or another.

Now, as you guys know, I am a bit of a Harry Potter nerd (though I have met Melinda Salisbury and she's a bigger Potterhead than me!) so hearing this excites me greatly. Plus, with me going through a audiobook binge at the moment, this news comes at the perfect time! So, POTTER!!!

EDDIE REDMAYNE TO NARRATE J.K. ROWLING’S ESSENTIAL COMPANION TO HARRY POTTER STORIES,FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM

REDMAYNE’S NARRATION NOW AVAILABLE FOR EXCLUSIVE PREORDER AT AUDIBLE.CO.UK

-- EMBARGOED UNTIL 15:00 GMT FRIDAY 27^TH JANUARY 2017 --

London, 27^th January 2017 – Audible, Inc., the world’s largest seller and producer of downloadable audiobooks and other spoken-word content, today announced that the Hogwarts library book Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, written by J.K. Rowling as Magizoologist Newt Scamander and narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Eddie Redmayne, is available for the first time as a digital audio book, and can be preordered now.  Featuring six new beasts, a new foreword by Newt Scamander, and elaborate sound design, the recording will be released by Pottermore on 14^th March 2017. For an exclusive pre-order of the audiobook, visit audible.co.uk/fantasticbeasts.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them has been an approved textbook at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry since its publication. Newt Scamander’s masterpiece is an indispensable introduction to the magical beasts of the wizarding world. Some of the beasts will be familiar to readers of the Harry Potter books – the Hippogriff, the Basilisk, the Hungarian Horntail. Others will surprise even the most ardent amateur Magizoologist.

This essential companion to the Harry Potter stories has been revised by J.K. Rowling, bringing the original classic up to date with new content that reflects the exciting developments in her Wizarding World, with the release of the movie event of 2016,Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, which was inspired by the original edition of the book.

“Before I was cast in the film, David Yates told me about Newt and this textbook. I found it so funny and so enchanting and really wittily written. But it wasn’t until I started reading it out loud for the audiobook that I realized how tricky and poetic J.K. Rowling’s use of sounds and language can be. There are some really great tongue twister words in here! Occasionally, I had to stop recording just because I was incapable of saying the words without either laughing or getting my tongue in a muddle. I enjoyed the challenge and hope listeners can sense that in my narration.” said Redmayne, who starred as Newt Scamander inFantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them the 2016 film inspired by the original edition of this Hogwarts library book.

“We are thrilled to offer Audible listeners the opportunity to enjoy a brilliant performance of yet another essential component of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World. Both Eddie’s narration and the highly detailed sound design really let you immerse yourself in this richly imagined universe.” said Laurence Howell, Director of Content at Audible UK. “Ever since we first made the Harry Potter series available on Audible in 2015, they have been consistently among the highest rated, most downloaded, and most listened to audiobooks in our store.”

Pottermore will make a proportion of the proceeds from this audiobook available to Comic Relief and J.K. Rowling's own international charity Lumos, charities which help some of the world's most vulnerable children and young people, to help them have a better life.

Pottermore, the digital entertainment, news and e-commerce company from J.K. Rowling, is the publisher of the Harry Potter digital audiobooks. The Pottermore Shop, the company’s digital retail arm, will continue to sell the Harry Potter digital audiobooks.  

Audible, the world’s largest seller and producer of downloadable audiobooks and other spoken-word content, invented and commercialized the first digital audio player in 1997, and has since been at the forefront of the explosively growing audiobook download segment. Audible members downloaded an average of more than 17 books over the course of the year.

Note to Editors

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a Hogwarts Library book, which is distinct from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay, which was released in eBook and print format in 2016.  While both were written by J.K. Rowling, the Original Screenplay is the authentic screenplay of the feature film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,published to coincide with the movie release in November 2016. The new edition of the Hogwarts Library book first appeared as the title of one of Harry Potter’s school books within the Harry Potter novels.  It was published by Bloomsbury Children’s Books, Scholastic and Pottermore along with Quidditch Through The Ages in March 2001 in aid of Comic Relief.  The new edition features a new foreword and content by J.K. Rowling.