Muggles around the world celebrate the return of Harry Potter

A Harry Potter fan, dressed as the young wizard, poses for a photograph after picking up a copy of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on the day of its launch in Bangalore, India Sunday. (Manjunath Kiran/AFP/Getty Images)

Midnight launch parties were held around the world to celebrate the eighth instalment of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter saga, called Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.

Stacks of the new Harry Potter tale were piled high at a midnight launch party in central London early Sunday. Many book stores remained open overnight so fans could get their hands on copies as soon as they were released.

(Daniel Leal-Olivas/AFP/Getty Images)

Fans of all ages

Two longtime fans hold on to their copies of the book in London, England. While the latest release ushers in an entirely new generation of Potter fans, many people have been reading the stories for the last 20 years. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the first novel in the series, was released in June 1997.

(Rob Stothard/Getty Images)

The latest story comes in the form of a script for a five-hour, two-part play that's being held at London's Palace Theatre. In the story, Harry Potter is an overworked employee of the Ministry of Magic, as well as a husband and father of three children.

(Rob Stothard/Getty Images)

Meanwhile in Canada ...

Neesha Hussain-Shamsy got her first Harry Potter book in 1999. She remembers the launch party for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban being in the middle of the day. Since then, she's attended every midnight launch party for the series, including one in Toronto Sunday morning.

(Neesha Hussain-Shamsy)

An estimated 12,000 people of all ages attended an extended Harry Potter party in Winnipeg, complete with music, food, and the fictional game of Quidditch.

Costume play

Eva Engel, 10, reacts after being sorted into the Gryffindor house at an event Saturday in Durham, N.C.

(Kaitlin McKeown/Associated Press)

Fans line up, many in costume, to get their copy of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, parts one and two, at a bookstore in London, England Sunday.

(Neil Hall/Reuters)

Happy Birthday J.K. Rowling

A cosplayer dressed as Ginny Weasley is shown outside a book store in Bangkok, Thailand holding a sign celebrating the latest launch, which also falls on the birthdays of both Harry Potter and J.K. Rowling. Rowling's books have sold more than 450 million copies since 1997 and have been adapted into eight films.

(Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP/Getty Images)

Keep a lid on the magic

While it's easy to spill the story's secrets with the official release of the book and play, Rowling implored her fans to "keep the secrets" via a video message and a social media hashtag — a bid to prevent spoilers.

(Rob Stothard/Getty Images)

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Muggles around the world celebrate the return of Harry Potter

Game of Thrones to end after season 8, spinoff remains possible

HBO has confirmed what Game of Thrones fans never wanted to hear: The fantasy-thriller phenomenon will be coming to an end after its eighth season.

Recently HBO renewed the series — adapted from George R.R. Martin's novels — for a shortened seventh season consisting of seven episodes.

The eighth season will bring the saga to a close. The number of episodes for that last cycle has not been determined, HBO programming chief Casey Bloys said Saturday at the Television Critics Association's summer conference in Los Angeles. "We'll take as many as the (producers) will give us," he said.

After that, a spinoff remains a possibility.

"We're open to it, the (producers) aren't opposed to it, but there's no concrete plans right now," Bloys said.

GOT won't be back with its seventh season until next summer, missing the deadline for the 2017 Emmy competition, which it routinely dominates. Last year, the series scored a dozen Emmys.

"It's always better to win more Emmys," Bloys said. "But the main goal is to do the best show possible for our subscribers and fans."

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JK Rowling hopes Harry Potter stage play goes global

London is under Harry Potter's spell once more — and J.K. Rowling hopes the rest of the world will eventually follow.

The stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child had its gala opening Saturday in London's West End and is already the theatre event of the year.

If the boy wizard's creator has her way, that will only be the beginning.

"I'd like as many Potter fans to see it as possible," Rowling said on the red carpet outside the Palace Theatre, as fans cheered and poked camera phones over crowd barriers in hopes of getting a picture.

There's already talk of a Broadway run, and Rowling said: "I'd like it to go wider than that."

Co-producer Sonia Friedman said she had big hopes for the show, which has been more than two years in the making and is slated to run in London at least until December 2017.

A view of the Palace Theatre in central London which is showing Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. ( Joel Ryan/The Associated Press)

"Hopefully many countries at some point will get to see it," Friedman said. "But it's a big piece of theatre, it's a big endeavour. You can't just turn this around overnight."

The two-part play has been in previews at the theatre for almost eight weeks, but few details of the plot have leaked (though those seeking spoilers online will find them).

People leaving the show are handed buttons urging them to #keepthesecrets — and most have complied.

Director John Tiffany said spilling the play's secrets was "like unwrapping children's Christmas presents for them in November, in front of their eyes. And why would anyone want to do that?"

Rowling said fans have "been amazing, they've been incredible."

"It is the most extraordinary fandom, so I'm kind of not surprised, because they didn't want to spoil it for each other," she said. "But I am so happy we got here without ruining everything."

The script of the play is being published Sunday, with a global print run in the millions, so future audiences will have more opportunities to know the plot in advance if they choose.

Without entering spoiler territory, it's safe to say that the play has much to make fans rejoice. This is both an eighth instalment in the Potter saga worthy of Rowling's seven novels, and a stage spectacle to delight even the uninitiated.

Writer J.K. Rowling talks to media about Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, based on an original new story by Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne. (Joel Ryan/The Associated Press)

The script — written by Jack Thorne from a story by Rowling, Thorne and Tiffany — picks up 19 years after the end of the final novel, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Harry — the orphaned boy whose destiny was to save the wizarding world — is now an overworked civil servant at the Ministry of Magic, feeling the approach of middle age. His younger son, Albus Severus, is a reluctant pupil at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, struggling with the burden of his family's fame.

Fans who know the saga inside out are likely to appreciate the teeming detail of the play, which runs for five hours over two parts. It captures Rowling's richly textured magical world, with its byzantine mythology, complex history and array of fantastical creatures.

The plot is a rollicking adventure in which Albus' attempt to right a wrong goes awry. But it also has adult things to say about loss and grief, and about the complexities of friendship and family love.

The cast is anchored by the adult trio of Jamie Parker as Harry, Noma Dumezweni as Hermione Granger and Paul Thornley as Ron Weasley, and there are touching performances from Sam Clemmett as Albus and Anthony Boyle as Scorpius Malfoy, son of Harry's childhood enemy Draco Malfoy.

The actors draw both laughter and tears from audience members. But it's the work of the production crew that elicits gasps, with illusions that appear simultaneously simple and inexplicable.

Characters levitate, transform and disappear, in magic that feels hand-crafted rather than high-tech, although a great deal of technical expertise has gone into it.

Buoyed by the work of movement director Steven Hoggett and composer Imogen Heap, the show captures the warm spirit of the world Rowling has created — one that has moved from page to screen to stage with its magic intact.

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Jennifer Aniston's essay inspires actresses to address sexist standards

When one of Hollywood's most objectified women talks about tabloid culture, people listen. But while actresses are cheering Jennifer Aniston's recent essay connecting the media's obsession with her looks to the overall objectification of women, most are resigned that reality will be slow to catch up with the conversation.

"Entrenched ways take a while to change," said Marisa Tomei, "but having the conversations and opening it up, objecting to it or seeing different points of view about it is really helpful."

Marisa Tomei, seen here in February at an awards ceremonyin Santa Monica, Calif., commended Aniston for opening up the gender conversation but said change will be slow. (Jordan Strauss/Invision/The Associated Press)

"I applaud Jennifer," said actress Allison Janney. "I hate that she had to do it, but I think she just had enough."

Aniston wrote in her Huffington Post essay earlier this month that constant tabloid speculation over whether she's pregnant contributes to sexist cultural standards that equate a woman's worth with her appearance and maternal status.

"We use celebrity 'news' to perpetuate this dehumanizing view of females," Aniston wrote.

"More scrutiny has always been leveled at women, no matter the context," said Ella Ceron, digital entertainment editor for Teen Vogue magazine. "Women are held to different standards than men, and are taught from a young age to value their looks and their grooming and their weight very seriously."

While tabloids have long seen women through an appearance-focused lens, other recent press coverage unduly aimed at actresses' looks has inspired vocal criticism online.

A June article in Variety in which its film critic maligns Renee Zellweger's face based on her appearance in a trailer for Bridget Jones's Baby inspired an impassioned response from actress Rose McGowan, who called the piece "vile, damaging, stupid and cruel." Variety has declined comment.

Actress Renee Zellweger attends an event in 2014 in Beverly Hills, Calif. The actress has been scrutinized for her changing looks. ( Jason Merritt/Getty Images for ELLE)

Zellweger's face was the subject of such widespread scrutiny and speculation in 2014 that the actress released a statement suggesting that she looks different because she had gotten older during her time away from the entertainment industry.

Vanity Fair readers from Los Angeles to Australia blasted the magazine's July cover story that opens by describing Suicide Squad star Margot Robbie as "sexy and composed even while naked."

Writer Roxane Gay and Portlandia creator Carrie Brownstein were among those decrying the article as sexist on social media. Vanity Fair did not respond to a request for comment.

"We've been subjected to this for years, and now with the influx of social media, we have spaces to discuss and vent our frustration," Ceron said. "What's more, people are finally listening to us."

Other actresses have been speaking out against sexist beauty standards for years. Barbra Streisand says it's "backward" for our culture to consider actresses in their 40s as somehow "too old."

Singer Barbra Streisand, seen here at the 2016 Tony Awards, says it's "backwards" to see female actresses over the age of 40 as "too old." (Lucas Jackson/Reuters)

"It's not a European way of looking at, like, movie stars who look like real people," Streisand said. "They have flaws, you know."

Jamie Lee Curtis recalled a magazine photo shoot more than 15 years ago where she insisted on being photographed before the hair and makeup wizards worked their magic.

"It was my way of making my statement back in the day," Curtis said. "And now Jennifer's written what she wrote ... It's an important conversation."

Filmmaker and activist Jennifer Siebel Newsom, who studies gender representation in media, has been working to shift attention from actresses' appearances to their accomplishments through the Representation Project's #AskHerMore campaign.

Director Jennifer Siebel Newsom, posing at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, says change has to come from all sides and everyone, not just women. (Danny Moloshok/The Associated Press)

Created in 2014, the effort encourages red carpet reporters to interview actresses about more than their outfits. Reese Witherspoon and Shonda Rhimes are supporters.

Change has to come from all genders and sides, Newsom said.

"It's too much for one person to take on her own," she said. "So while I applaud these individual actresses writing pieces and speaking out, we have to come together and say enough is enough."

Being beautiful might be considered part of any celebrity's job, male or female. So is it fair for an entertainer to use her image to promote her work on an album or magazine cover, then balk at media scrutiny of her appearance?

"The thing is, a man can be attractive without it being his entire selling point," said Ceron of Teen Vogue.

Actress Abigail Breslin says consumers have a significant role to play. Tabloids may have influenced popular perceptions of women's looks, but readers don't have to remain complicit.

"It just takes people not buying it anymore — not buying magazines that are circling imperfections on the cover," Breslin said. "It's become culturally normal to be like, 'Oh my God, look at this actress, she has bad calves.' That's not normal."

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Court order narrows down Prince's potential heirs in estate fight

A Minnesota judge overseeing Prince's estate narrowed down the wide pool of potential heirs for the late superstar's fortune on Friday, ruling out nearly 30 claimants while ordering genetic testing for six purported family members.

Carver County Judge Kevin Eide's order requires genetic testing for Prince's sister, Tyka Nelson, plus three half-siblings: Sharon Nelson, Norrine Nelson and John Nelson. Ken Abdo, the lawyer for the three half-siblings declined to comment. Tyka Nelson's attorney did not immediately return a voicemail.

Tyka Nelson, Prince's sister, has been ordered by a judge to take a genetic test in the battle over Prince's estate. (Jim Mone/The Associated Press)

Eide also ordered testing for Brianna Nelson, who has claimed to be Prince's niece, and possible grand-niece Victoria Nelson. The pair has claimed Briana Nelson's father was Prince's half-brother. Their lawyer, Andrew Stoltman, declined to comment.

It's unclear why the judge did not order testing for Omar Baker or Alfred Jackson, two men who were listed as half-brothers in the original petition for the court to name a special administrator to the estate, but Eide's order includes a note that the court "is not aware of any objection or dispute" that all six siblings or half-siblings are legitimate heirs.

Jackson's lawyer, Justin Bruntjen, declined to comment. An attorney for Baker could not be immediately reached.

Prince died April 21 of a drug overdose. The process of determining his heirs and parceling out his estate has fallen to the courts because he had no known children and left no will. A DNA test has already ruled out a Colorado prison inmate who claimed to be Prince's son.

Among those excluded from potential heirship in Eide's order are five unidentified people with shaky claims that Prince was their biological father. For example, one woman who said she was adopted claimed Prince was her father because "based upon the general description of the lifestyle of her biological parents, her fascination with the Decedent and physical similarities." 

Alfred Jackson, centre, leaves the Carver County courthouse in a June photo in Chaska, Minn. Jackson is listed as a half-brother of Prince and has not been required to take a genetic test. (Jim Mone/The Associated Press)

Barring any others who could come forward claiming ties, Eide's order drastically limits who may benefit from Prince's fortunes — an estimated $300 million or more — or gain control of his legacy.

The four Prince siblings or half-siblings ordered to undergo genetic testing all claim John L. Nelson as their father.

Susan Link, head of estate planning for Minneapolis-based Maslon, said the judge may have ordered them tested because of the claimants who said John L. Nelson wasn't actually Prince's father — even though he threw out those claims.

The two that don't need to be tested — Baker and Jackson — claim relation to Prince through a common mother, Mattie Shaw, but different fathers.

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Music festivals marred by sexual assaults and violence

Music festival organizers may have the best intentions, but when thousands of strangers show up to party, how they act is largely out of their control.

This festival season has been marred by many examples and allegations of sexual assault and violence. A man was stabbed earlier this month in a camping area at the Pemberton Music Festival in B.C. A 20-year-old was arrested for sexual assault last weekend at Wayhome, a mega festival in Oro-Medonte, Ont., near Barrie. 

There have also been Facebook posts, alleging instances of sexual assault at music festivals in Yellowknife and Ottawa. The Ottawa post, which included photos of the alleged attacker, has since been removed after Facebook users helped identify a suspect.

A 20-year-old was arrested for sexual assault last weekend at Wayhome, a mega festival in Oro-Medonte, Ont., near Barrie. It's one of the instances of sexual assault and violence at festivals across the country this summer. (Rick Clifford/Canadian Press via AP Images)

Kari Sampsel, medical director for the sexual assault and partner abuse program at the Ottawa Hospital, said she sees a spike in patients after big music festivals. She put out a paper last year that suggested more than a quarter of sexual assault patients at Ottawa Hospital's Civic campus had attended a mass event. The figures in the report were from 2013.

"It's a perfect setup to prey on people ... the festival organizers themselves don't necessarily want this out there because it's going to make people afraid to come to their events or weary," she told CBC News.

"It's a safety concern like any other safety concern for any kind of big event, so if people are slipping on the stairs and hitting their heads ... they have a responsibility to take care of that in the same way as someone who gets sexually assaulted."

Curbing assaults

The results of Sampsel's research led to the creation of Project Soundcheck, a program aimed at curbing sexual assaults and violence at festivals. The program, led by Kira-Lynn Ferderber, trains volunteers at many festivals in Ottawa by focusing on bystander intervention. Similar groups have popped up in Toronto and Vancouver.

"The reason people are surprised is because women don't come forward with their stories of being victims of sexual violence because it's a huge consequence," Ferderber said. "Sexual assault is the fault of the person who commits sexual assault. Period. But too many festivals are pretending that they don't know this exists and they do."

Ian Campeau, a member of Canadian electronic music group A Tribe Called Red, posted this after performing at Folk on the Rocks in Yellowknife earlier this month.

Festival organizers said they were aware of sexual assault allegations, but it's not clear if this was the same one.

Ferderber has trained volunteers at some of Ottawa's biggest music festivals, including Bluesfest. She said some festivals have been hesitant to talk about assaults and violence for fear of scaring festivalgoers.

"It's becoming more damaging not to talk about it than to be the festival that talks about it," she said, noting how some attendees end up posting their own incidents online, including photos and names of alleged attackers.

"People share when these kinds of experiences happen and people notice when festivals take them seriously."

Ramping up security

There are other types of violence to worry about too — shootings, stabbings, fights. Wayhome had three layers of security to try and prevent weapons and other banned items from getting into the festival: cars were searched upon pulling in, people were patted down when they entered the actual festival and police and security roamed inside the grounds.

Ryan Howe, Wayhome's producer, oversaw the process.

"I think as far as security goes at festivals, it's actually got stronger and the presence of security has increased year over year. It's not as relaxed as 10-15 years ago," he told CBC News. "Arenas and amphitheatres and open air festivals have been ramping up both police and security presence, especially over the last few years."

Outside Canada, there have been several security lapses at music events — dozens of assaults and rapes were reported at festivals in Sweden, former The Voice contestant Christina Grimmie was shot dead during a meet and greet session in Orlando and 89 people were killed during a deadly attack on the Bataclan concert hall in Paris in November.

Ian Campeau, a member of the music group A Tribe Called Red (pictured) said he was 'angry and heartbroken' when he heard his friend had been sexually assaulted during the group's performance at Folk on the Rocks in Yellowknife. (Falling Tree Photography)

Chris Kerr, president of the Alberta chapter of the Event Safety Alliance Canada, said that lessons can be learned from the incidents.

"Obviously it's not something that we enjoy reading about, but it is the current reality of a lot of the markets that shows play in these days," Kerr said.

He admits even with all the planning, many events are unpredictable. So security and festival organizers have to anticipate.

"I think we're on the right track ... I'd like to see the trends of increased security continue without it becoming oppressive ... It's a very delicate balancing act without squashing that excitement and that kind of magic that comes with this business that we work in."

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Quebec chanteuse Lucille Dumont dies at 97

Lucille Dumont, a pioneering Quebec singer and member of the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, has died. She was 97. 

Dumont was known in Quebec as the "Grande Dame de la chanson" — the Grand Dame of Quebec song — and rose to fame singing in French in the 1940s and 1950s. 

Among her best known songs are Insensiblement and Le ciel se marie avec la mer. She reached thousands across the province with televised performances in the early years of Radio-Canada. 

Born in Montreal in 1919, Dumont was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2006, alongside Leonard Cohen and Anne Murray.

She was made an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1999 and an Officer of the National Order of Quebec in 2001.

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Conservatives disappointed Bradley Cooper is a Democrat

Bradley Cooper's appearance at the Democratic National Convention has irked some conservative fans of the actor's portrayal of Navy SEAL Chris Kyle in 2014's American Sniper.

Cooper was spotted by TV cameras Wednesday night seated at the convention in Philadelphia alongside his Russian model girlfriend, Irina Shayk.

Some Twitter users say they plan to boycott Cooper's future films over his presence at the convention.

I have a list of celebrities that support Socialism I refuse to spend another $ on. Add this one. Boycott them all. http://pic.twitter.com/uOFMkxSvRY

— @NatShupe

Bradley Cooper at DNC?! Guess I've seen my last Bradley Cooper movie. Ewww Ick

— @theRealExTex

Others commented that they thought his experience playing Kyle would have rubbed off on him.

The complaints have been mocked by others who say Cooper was simply acting a role when playing Kyle and conservatives shouldn't be surprised.

GOP upset that Bradley Cooper was at the DNC supporting. He's an ACTOR, being in American Sniper does not automatically mean you're a Repub.

— @BMolinaWSU

Some are mad Bradley Cooper went to DNC after portraying Chris Kyle. I get it, I'm still furious Johnny Depp doesn't travel via pirate ship.

— @PatsHoppedUp

Bradley Cooper at DNC
GOP: "Chris Kyle? You traitor!"

Anthony Hopkins at a buffet
GOP: "Does he really eat people?" http://pic.twitter.com/0q8bv3CFOQ

— @CraigRozniecki

Many pointed out that Cooper has played many other characters besides Chris Kyle.

Clearly Bradley Cooper can't be a republican. He's a raccoon. And everyone knows all raccoons are Dems. #DNCinPHL http://pic.twitter.com/a6jnz9zbwy

— @PerturbedPoppa

Bradley Cooper is not really
A raccoon
Chris Kyle
Limitless
A cop
On steroids
A rock star
Hungover
Face
Mentally unstable
An author
Chef

— @POD_Payton

Several Twitter users added that the cries of boycott appeared hypocritical, given conservatives' claims of liberal oversensitivity.

Republicans: those liberals get offended so easily
Republicans: BRADLEY COOPER-MY CHRIS KYLE-AT THE DNC?!?BOYCOTT!! http://pic.twitter.com/wmkhWQ6owD

— @methlab4_qt

When black people boycott something we're problematic & overreacting yet white people boycotting Bradley Cooper for attending DNC is fine ok

— @bamitsmaiya

Cooper earned an Oscar nomination for American Sniper, which became a blockbuster thanks in part to an enthusiastic reception among conservative moviegoers, many of whom now appear disappointed by his Democratic leanings. 

Cooper was born and raised in the Philadelphia area. Meanwhile, a statue of Kyle went up Friday in his hometown of Odessa, Texas.

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