Empire State Building will shine in Hogwarts colors for Harry Potter’s 25th anniversary

To mark the 25^th anniversary of the first Harry Potter book in the U.S., New York’s iconic landmark will be illuminated in the Hogwarts House colors – Gryffindor red, Slytherin green, Hufflepuff yellow, and Ravenclaw blue – at sunset on Sept. 27, 2023.

It’s hard to believe it’s been 25 years since Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone took the U.S. by storm, followed with equal enthusiasm by the six additional titles in the bestselling book series of all time.

In addition to the colorful light display, Scholastic is celebrating the magical milestone with a pop-up cart on the Empire State Building’s 86th Floor Observation Deck featuring free copies of the 25^th-anniversary edition of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and bottled Butterbeer (courtesy of Harry Potter New York) for guests who purchase tickets to the 86th floor Observatory from 2-5 p.m. EST on Sept. 27, 2023 (while supplies last).

Witches, wizards, and muggles are encouraged to dress up in their best Hogwarts House attire and tag photos with #HarryPotter25 for the chance to be featured on the Empire State Building, Scholastic, and Wizarding World social channels.

Viewers outside New York City can watch the Hogwarts House light display via the Empire State Building live cam.

Tickets for the 86^th-floor Observatory start at $44 for adults, $38 for children ages 6-12, and $42 for seniors aged 62+ and military members with ID. Kids under 6 are free. Reservations are required. Click here for information about the Empire State Building and tickets.

25 Harry Potter Facts for the 25^th Anniversary

1. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was published in the U.S. in September 1998, initially printing 50,000 copies.
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (book 7 in the series) was published on July 21, 2007, with an initial print run of 12 million copies. The book sold 8.3 million copies in the first 24 hours and 11.5 million copies in the first ten days, breaking all industry records.
3. Harry Potter is the bestselling book series of all time, with over 600 million copies sold worldwide.
4. Before the title of book 1 in the series was changed to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in the U.S. (it was published as Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in the U.K.), one of the suggested titles was “Harry Potter and the School of Magic.”
5. In U.S. editions of the Harry Potter books, the handwriting for several characters was created by select Scholastic employees and an occasional celebrity (actress Rosie O’Donnell provided Mrs. Weasley’s handwriting).
6. Because each new Harry Potter book was so highly anticipated (and to ensure all readers would have access to the story at the same time), Harry Potter manuscripts were kept under lock and key at Scholastic headquarters in New York City (and in some cases hand-carried from the UK to the U.S.)
7. The popularity of the Harry Potter books led The New York Times Book Review to print a separate children’s bestseller list. Harry Potter still remains on the New York Times series bestseller list.
8. In order for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to be published in braille simultaneously with the print edition, Scholastic sent the manuscript for early to the National Braille Press, which covered their office windows and employed an armed guard to keep the manuscript secure for the July 20, 2007, publication.
9. In 2007, Scholastic announced all copies of the U.S. edition of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows would be printed on paper that contains a minimum of 30% post-consumer waste (PCW) fiber. This historic commitment was the largest purchase of Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper to print a single book title.
10. Because of the strict on-sale date for Harry Potter titles, bookstores organized midnight parties, starting with the publication of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Scholastic subsequently supplied midnight party event kits with thousands of lightning bolt tattoos to all bookstores hosting events.
11. J.K. Rowling first had the idea of a boy wizard who went to wizarding school in 1990 while sitting on a delayed train from Manchester to London. It took her five years to write the first book in the series. Rowling has said “The Mirror of Erised” is her favorite chapter in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone and one of her favorites from the entire series.
12. Mary GrandPré, the illustrator of the original Harry Potter hardcover novels in the U.S., almost turned down the opportunity to illustrate Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone because her schedule was too busy.
13. It was GrandPré’s idea to incorporate the lightning bolt into the “P” in Potter, resulting in one of the most iconic logos in the world.
14. In 2001, two Harry Potter companion books were published, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Quidditch Through the Ages, with all royalties donated to Comic Relief and Lumos, an international children’s charity founded by J.K. Rowling that works to transform care systems around the world. These “facsimile editions” of some of the most popular books in the wizarding world include forewords by Albus Dumbledore.
15. A third companion book was published in 2008: The Tales of Beedle the Bard, a collection of five classic tales from the wizarding world. The book first appeared in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which included “The Tale of the Three Brothers.” All royalties from Beedle the Bard are donated to Lumos.
16. For the launch of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Scholastic purchased a double-decker bus from the UK and transformed it into a triple-decker bus to represent the Knight Bus, then toured it around to libraries nationwide.
17. Kazu Kibuishi (creator of the bestselling Amulet graphic novel series) was commissioned to create new covers for the 15th anniversary of Harry Potter in the US. When all seven books are lined up on a shelf, the spines create a tableau image of Hogwarts Castle. Kibuishi’s slipcase artwork for the complete series box set features a snowy scene in Hogsmeade, including Honeydukes, Zonko’s, and many beloved characters.
18. Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator and #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Invention of Hugo Cabret (adapted into the film “Hugo”) illustrated the covers and boxed set for the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter in the U.S. Selznick a Hufflepuff and his favorite Harry Potter character is Dobby.
19. Harry Potter’s story as a grown-up was continued in a stage play, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” which is performed on Broadway and other locations worldwide. The playscript was published at midnight on July 31, 2016, just hours after the play’s premiere at the Palace Theatre in London. Booksellers brought back midnight parties for the release, and thousands of parties were held across the U.S.
20. For the 25th anniversary of the U.S. publication of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Headcase Design was asked to “refresh” Mary GrandPré’s iconic original covers for the Harry Potter series. New decorative elements were custom-designed for each book cover – a hedge maze border for Goblet of Fire, for example – and stamped in gold foil.
21. As part of its year-long celebration in Fall 2023, Scholastic is publishing The Official Harry Potter Cookbook on Sept. 5, 2023, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, designed and illustrated by MinaLima on Oct. 3, 2023, and The Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac on Oct. 10, 2023.
22. Libraries have played an integral part in sharing the magic of reading Harry Potter. To commemorate the 25th anniversary, Scholastic has created Harry Potter reading kits to be distributed to public libraries across the U.S. Readers can also access free downloadable activities and discussion guides on Scholastic’s Harry Potter website.
23. In the years since Harry Potter was first whisked from King’s Cross Station onto Platform 9 ¾, eight blockbuster films based on the original books have grossed almost $7.7 billion at the box office.
24. The franchise includes “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” – the multi-award-winning stage-play; three Fantastic Beasts films; state-of-the-art video and mobile games; live entertainment (including four theme park lands at Universal Studios Orlando, Hollywood, Osaka, and Beijing with a new one planned to open in Abu Dhabi); the flagship Harry Potter New York City store, Warner Bros. Studio Tours in Hollywood, London, and Tokyo; and a new TV series on MAX.
25.  If all the Harry Potter books ever sold were placed end to end, they would go around the equator over 16 times.