Hosted by Audible

LSO St Luke’s , London, March 15 2018

Fans of the magical world created by JK Rowling gathered in the atrium of St Luke’s LSO, London to hear a world first 3D sound presentation of material from upcoming Audible release ‘Quidditch Through the Ages, read by Andrew Lincoln. Wannabe Hogwarts student and possible squib Greg D Smith reports.

Set against the gorgeous backdrop of the LSO St Luke’s , appropriately decorated, this was a particularly special presentation by Audible, with a full ‘surround sound’ setup of speakers literally from floor to ceiling to ensure the maximum delivery of an immersive audio experience for the assembled audience.

Before the presentation itself, we had brief words from Mike Richards and Jennie McCann, on behalf of Pottermore, the original publishers of the paperback version of this book, who have helped to flesh out the various corners of the Harry Potter world for some time. Sue Wicks of Comic Relief spoke to encourage all present to sign up for the Harry Potter Sport Relief app as part of the upcoming fundraising efforts, intimating that of the four houses, Slytherin was desperately under-represented among the 27,000 people signed up so far. Finally there was Scott Moir of Lumos, the charity founded by J K Rowling to end ‘institutionalisation’ of children worldwide by 2050, ensuring all children get to live in loving families. Their work is funded by profits from sales of books like this one, meaning that 100% of all donations to the charity go straight to the people who need it.

These introductions over, the lights dimmed and the performance began. First we had a sample chapter of the book itself, concerning the origin of the Golden Snitch. Fair to say that Lincoln isn’t just treating this as an audiobook, and goes full on with special voices for the characters covered. The writing style is instantly recognisable as Rowling, as are the characters themselves, and the tale of how this small golden flying ball came to be an integral part of the sport is a genuinely diverting one. If this is representative of the entire audiobook, then on that basis alone it would be well worth the purchase.

Then we had a sample from the ‘bonus material’ of the book – commentary on the 2014 Quidditch World Cup Final between Brazil and Bulgaria, courtesy of Ginny Potter and Rita Skeeter. This was where the 3D audio element really came into its own, with the sounds of whooshing broomsticks, roaring crowds and thudding impacts enveloping the room as backdrop to the interplay between the two commentators. The contrast of Ginny’s professional play-by-play calls of the match with Skeeter’s acidic, desperate-for-scandal observations of the personalities within the crowd is hilarious, and leads to a predictable, but no less welcome conclusion.

Presentation over, there was plenty of time for complimentary drinks and food as we wandered around the venue taking in the great effort which had clearly gone into the decoration of the place. From a giant display charting the history of the game to various pictures, props and a giant mural, there was a feeling of the boat having really been pushed out. With every one of these premieres, it feels like Audible really raises the game, and this was no exception.

Quidditch Through the Ages is available to download now at audible.co.uk/quidditch and pottermore.com/shop