Return to Transcripts main page

Live From...

'Harry Potter' to Debut in London in 4 Hours

Aired June 20, 2003 - 15:29   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: If you think Hogwarts is a new disease like mad cow or monkeypox, well, bear with us. For the next four minutes or so, we're all about Harry. The new Harry Potter book officially goes on sale just hours from now. Eight and a half hours in eastern U.S., three and a half in London, where we find our CNN's own wizard of the airwaves, Richard Quest -- Richard.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello. Good afternoon to you, Kyra. Good evening from London, where we are now under four hours away from the launch of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix." And already several hundred people are out gathering here at one of London's top bookstores, Waterstones (ph), right in the center, because this is the biggest publishing phenomenon of the year. In fact, more than that, Kyra. It's the biggest publishing phenomenon in history. Thirteen million copies of this book are going to have been distributed from around the world.

Now, why are people so mad about Harry? Why are they wild about Harry? Let's go talk to some of the people who are actually here and find out.

Hello. Sorry, can I just come and join you for a minute? Hello. Now, you've been here for about four hours, and you've got about another four hours to go. Why are you here?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because we need this book. We need it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We need to read Harry Potter. We need to find out what happens to Harry.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We need to find out what happens to his friends, we need to find out what happens to the whole world...

QUEST: Hang on. Hang on. You can buy this book tomorrow.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. We can't. It would be too late.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It would be too late.

QUEST: Why?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've spent three years... (CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It ended three years ago. And it's been so for three years, and we have to get it back as soon as possible.

QUEST: OK. A major character is supposed to die in this book.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know.

QUEST: Who is it going to be?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hagrid.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hagrid.

QUEST: Why do you say Hagrid?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, because giants only live for about 30 years anyway. He's a half giant, and he's, like, 65 or something.

QUEST: All right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And he's going into peril, which means...

(CROSSTALK)

QUEST: These are the people that really know their Harry Potter stuff, Kyra. These are the people that are the experts. Yet you've got to have your wanting (ph) trees and your various monsters, these are the experts that will really put it all into perspective. So in just a few hours from now, we will know, although I won't tell you because I don't want to spoil the surprise, we will know who dies. We will know Harry Potter, supposedly an angry Harry Potter. He's a teenager now. And we all know what teenagers are like.

PHILLIPS: Yes, I know. I wonder what you were like as a teenager. Why don't you spill the beans on that one, Richard Quest.

QUEST: I think we'll leave that one between me and my mother.

PHILLIPS: I'm calling mom. Hey, Richard, I'm curious. You pointed out the Hillary Clinton advertisements across the street.

QUEST: Yes.

PHILLIPS: I'm just curious, are those young ladies there going to read that book?

QUEST: I suspect they would rather have their teeth removed without anesthetic than plow through the 500 pages of Hillary Clinton's book. But just I mentioned to you an hour ago, Mrs. Clinton is somewhere over yonder. There's only one little poster of Hillary's "Living History."

And if you want to talk about real history, the publishing history that comes with Harry Potter, this is it. It's Harry Potter, "The Order of the Phoenix," and it's just going to be released in London in about four hours from now.

PHILLIPS: All right. You got your copy, Richard?

QUEST: No, I haven't. They won't give us one. They've promised me a copy. But here's one interesting bit, though, Kyra, the price of the book has actually been discounted. And you would have thought, you know, with it being a phenomenon, and it would be sky high. But no, because so many sales have taken place on Amazon.com at a discount, they're actually cutting the price. So it's a bargain, less galleons for your Potter.

PHILLIPS: Richard Quest, you are a piece of work. Our wizard of the airwaves. Thank you so much.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired June 20, 2003 - 15:29   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: If you think Hogwarts is a new disease like mad cow or monkeypox, well, bear with us. For the next four minutes or so, we're all about Harry. The new Harry Potter book officially goes on sale just hours from now. Eight and a half hours in eastern U.S., three and a half in London, where we find our CNN's own wizard of the airwaves, Richard Quest -- Richard.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello. Good afternoon to you, Kyra. Good evening from London, where we are now under four hours away from the launch of "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix." And already several hundred people are out gathering here at one of London's top bookstores, Waterstones (ph), right in the center, because this is the biggest publishing phenomenon of the year. In fact, more than that, Kyra. It's the biggest publishing phenomenon in history. Thirteen million copies of this book are going to have been distributed from around the world.

Now, why are people so mad about Harry? Why are they wild about Harry? Let's go talk to some of the people who are actually here and find out.

Hello. Sorry, can I just come and join you for a minute? Hello. Now, you've been here for about four hours, and you've got about another four hours to go. Why are you here?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Because we need this book. We need it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We need to read Harry Potter. We need to find out what happens to Harry.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We need to find out what happens to his friends, we need to find out what happens to the whole world...

QUEST: Hang on. Hang on. You can buy this book tomorrow.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. We can't. It would be too late.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It would be too late.

QUEST: Why?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We've spent three years... (CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It ended three years ago. And it's been so for three years, and we have to get it back as soon as possible.

QUEST: OK. A major character is supposed to die in this book.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know.

QUEST: Who is it going to be?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hagrid.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hagrid.

QUEST: Why do you say Hagrid?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, because giants only live for about 30 years anyway. He's a half giant, and he's, like, 65 or something.

QUEST: All right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And he's going into peril, which means...

(CROSSTALK)

QUEST: These are the people that really know their Harry Potter stuff, Kyra. These are the people that are the experts. Yet you've got to have your wanting (ph) trees and your various monsters, these are the experts that will really put it all into perspective. So in just a few hours from now, we will know, although I won't tell you because I don't want to spoil the surprise, we will know who dies. We will know Harry Potter, supposedly an angry Harry Potter. He's a teenager now. And we all know what teenagers are like.

PHILLIPS: Yes, I know. I wonder what you were like as a teenager. Why don't you spill the beans on that one, Richard Quest.

QUEST: I think we'll leave that one between me and my mother.

PHILLIPS: I'm calling mom. Hey, Richard, I'm curious. You pointed out the Hillary Clinton advertisements across the street.

QUEST: Yes.

PHILLIPS: I'm just curious, are those young ladies there going to read that book?

QUEST: I suspect they would rather have their teeth removed without anesthetic than plow through the 500 pages of Hillary Clinton's book. But just I mentioned to you an hour ago, Mrs. Clinton is somewhere over yonder. There's only one little poster of Hillary's "Living History."

And if you want to talk about real history, the publishing history that comes with Harry Potter, this is it. It's Harry Potter, "The Order of the Phoenix," and it's just going to be released in London in about four hours from now.

PHILLIPS: All right. You got your copy, Richard?

QUEST: No, I haven't. They won't give us one. They've promised me a copy. But here's one interesting bit, though, Kyra, the price of the book has actually been discounted. And you would have thought, you know, with it being a phenomenon, and it would be sky high. But no, because so many sales have taken place on Amazon.com at a discount, they're actually cutting the price. So it's a bargain, less galleons for your Potter.

PHILLIPS: Richard Quest, you are a piece of work. Our wizard of the airwaves. Thank you so much.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com