Ring In The New Year with FreeForm's Final Harry Potter Weekend

The grand tradition of Harry Potter Weekends is sadly coming to an end. For the past several years, FreeForm has celebrated the wizarding world phenonemon with weekend-long marathons, airing all eight movies over the course of three (or more) days. For those who might not know, it's a magical tradition fans have looked forward to as the channel regularly gave shout-outs to characters like Hermione Granger and Neville Longbottom, or added an extra bewitching spell to the holiday season. Earlier this year it was confirmed that the movies would eventually transition to new channels in 2018, thus bringing the epic Harry Potter Weekends to an end.

Luckily, FreeForm is not letting 2017 go without a bang so big it would make the fireworks-experts Weasley twins jealous. Starting Thursday, December 28th, Harry Potter fans can ring in the new year with one last marathon of good versus evil.
If you're looking to tune into the last marathon, FreeForm has its full schedule available. So, enjoy a butterbeer and grab that special Potterhead in your life to make some more memories for your pensieve. Here is a copy below:

Thursday, December 28th

3:00 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE
6:30 PM MOVIE NIGHT WITH KARLIE KLOSS - Movie Night With Karlie Kloss Karlie and friends watch the film ``Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.''

Friday, December 29th

12:00 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE
3:30 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS
7:30 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN

Saturday, December 30th

9:00 AM HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE
12:40 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
3:50 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE
7:30 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1
11:00 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2

Sunday, December 31st

7:00 AM HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE
10:40 AM HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
1:50 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE
5:30 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 1
9:00 PM HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART 2

The Future of Harry Potter Weekends

There's still a glimmer of hope to hold onto, Potterheads! Immediately in 2018, Harry Potter Weekends might just be opening at the close. HBO struck a deal with Warner Bros and will host its first every marathon on New Years Day, running all eight Harry Potter movies and Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them uncut and commercial free. Afterwards, the films will be available on their network and streaming devices. Also, starting summer 2018, NBC Universal's new deal signifies that new marathons might be available in the future on channels like USA or SyFy.

And, if you really want to test your survival skills as a Potterhead, check out my tips on how to have a Harry Potter marathon in one day!

Are you going to be tuning in for the final showdown? What were your favorite memories of Harry Potter Weekends? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!

ABC Family Airing 2 Day Harry Potter Marathon

It wouldn't be a magical summer without ABC Family running its annual Harry Potter marathon. Finally, this weekend there will be two days full of wizards taking over. Sit back, relax, and have some butterbeer!

Friday, July 11th
7: 30pm Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Saturday, July 12th
7:00 am   Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
10:30 am Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
2:30 pm   Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
5: 30 pm  Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
9:00 pm   Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Sunday, July 13th
7:00 am   Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
10:30 am Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
1:30 pm   Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
5: 00 pm  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
9:00 pm   Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2

How to Take the 24 Hour Harry Potter Movie Marathon Challenge

One of the most popular ways to visit Hogwarts is to re-read J.K. Rowling's books. While PotterTalk.net loves nothing more than to dive deep into wizarding world on the page, another joy of being a Potterhead is the adaptation that came to life by Warner Bros Studios.

Back in the day when the initial movies were released, it was easy to fit three or four movies into one day. Even now, we can catch the Harry Potter films airing on television with marathons on SYFY and USA. If you've ever participated in one at the theaters, or at home, we all know that the movies offer a magical way to return to our favorite series.

With all eight films now officially released into theaters and on dvd/streaming, I wondered if it was possible to survive a 24-hour Harry Potter movie marathon challenge. Could you survive watching the whole franchise in one day? I did the math to find out.

All Eight Harry Potter Movies

To figure out if a 24 hour marathon was possible, I broke down each movie from beginning to end by running the standard theatrical version dvds.

Please note: I did not take the times from Google as results vary from theatrical to extended versions.

Sorcerer's Stone =	152 minutes =	2 hours 32 minutes
Chamber of Secrets =	161 minutes =	2 hours 41 minutes
Prisoner of Azkaban =	142 minutes =	2 hours 22 minutes
Goblet of Fire =	157 minutes =	2 hours 37 minutes
Order of the Phoenix =	139 minutes =	2 hours 18 minutes
Half Blood Prince =	153 minutes =	2 hours 33 minutes
Deathly Hallows pt 1 =	146 minutes =	2 hours 26 minutes
Deathly Hallows pt 2 =	130 minutes =	2 hours 10 minutes

19 hrs and 40 minutes gives us a total of: 1180 minutes

There are 1440 minutes in one day, so can it be done? Mathematically, YES! 

Harry Potter Marathon Rules

What time could you start? 4:00 AM
What time could you end? 11: 40 PM

It would be a long day but ultimately a magical experience for you (and your friends!). 

For the marathon to be worthy of a true Potterhead's dedication, the rules would include minimal breaks in-between movies and no-fast forwarding through your least favorite scenes.

Is there any way to save time? You can shave off an extra 1 hour and 30 minutes. Almost every movie's end credits are 8 to 14 minutes long. So you could cut to the next movie early or use the credits as time to stretch, refill snacks, take a breather or restroom break.

Extended dvd versions possible? No. The extended dvds include deleted scenes that prolong the theatrical versions. The extra scenes run the risk of breaching the 24 hour time limit.

When can you take a break? You can refill on snacks/drinks/take a restroom break as the movies play as well as taking breaks in between each movie but they must be limited. Make sure your break doesn't last longer than the end credits.

Fantastic Beasts Marathon 

Can you include the Fantastic Beasts series into the marathon? Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them is 2 hrs and 13 minutes long. You'll barely squeeze the first film in if you start earlier than 4AM.

If you continue to add the Fantastic Beasts sequels such as Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, a one-day Harry Potter marathon will eventually turn into a two-day marathon.

The marathon and timing truly depend on keeping track of how you use your breaks, starting each movie without skipping your least favorite scenes, and having as much fun as possible! Good luck or should I say, brew some Felix Felicis!

Could you survive the Harry Potter One Day Movie Marathon?