Name: Adam Morris
Committee Position(s): IT Officer
Year: Third year
Hogwarts House: Gryffindor
The secret key we get to the staffroom at Hogwarts. I mean, nothing. There are no privileges we get. I'm not even allowed in Hogwarts. You're not going to publish this, are you?
What would you buy off the sweets trolley on the Hogwarts Express?
Some of those Pumpkin Pasty mini grenades, obviously.
Top tip for Freshers?
If you're reading this in Freshers' Week: stop reading it! Go leave your room and make friends! You never know when you'll meet the person that turns out to be your best friend, but it's easier to meet people during Freshers' Week because everyone else is also looking to make friends.
If you could save just one of the characters who died in the Battle of Hogwarts, which would it be?
The wall that was tragically destroyed in an explosion that also killed that Weasley kid.
What’s your favourite song at the moment?
“Come On Then” by Lily Allen.
Do you have a (clean) HP fanfic recommendation for our Freshers?
Yes, I'm going to unashamedly promote my own fanfics (e.g. https://www.ouhpsoc.org/news/fanfic-fridays-edition-5), which are completely clean and family friendly (except all the cruel and unusual murders, which is most of it).
Do you think Snape is a redeemable character?
Nope.
Name: Dahria Kuyser
Committee Position(s): Quibbler Editor
Year: 2nd
Hogwarts House: Ravenclaw
Way too many for a med student to reasonably be involved in, that’s for sure… I’m also on the committee of Oxford WhoSoc, which unfortunately for me also runs on a Thursday evening, though I’m always pushing to bring the two societies together for joint events. Besides that, I dabble in my college’s choir and badminton society. Naturally, I’m also a MedSoc member, though I’m mostly in it for the merch and food… which I guess may sum up some of my key reasons for belonging to any society hrmm.
What Hogwarts subject do you wish you could do?
All of them, naturally, but something like transfiguration or charms seems the best bet so that I can actually use my wand! I’d want the class to have a practical day-to-day application, which doesn’t apply so much to most of the other classes.
What pet would you have at Hogwarts and why?
100% a cat. Owls may be useful for sending letters, but cats are adorable, warm, strokable…
Hogwarts, Beauxbatons or Durmstrang?
Beauxbatons, but only for the novelty of getting to use my A level French. I don’t think we really get to hear enough about these schools in the books, and the films just don’t do them justice. I also often wonder what the rest of Europe does. Do they home-school, do they have to teach their children French/Bulgarian, are there even more schools of witchcraft and wizardry? And furthermore, why don’t they teach any modern foreign languages at Hogwarts? How else are they supposed to learn them? Anyhow, I digress – obviously I love Hogwarts, but I’d be very curious to see how magic is taught elsewhere.
Do you have a Harry Potter character who is your role model?
I think I’ve pretty much tried to embody Hermione ever since I read the books & watched the movies as a child. She’s clever, and she owns it. She’s also kind and generous, and soon learns to moderate her book time with friend time, but also makes friends who respect that sometimes she just wants to be reading. I think she’s just an excellent role model and is probably a large part of the reason why I’m here writing and curating this today!
Assuming Harry Potter’s your favourite franchise, what’s your second favourite book/TV/film franchise?
Doctor Who is obviously going to be near the top of the list (as are far too many other things) but another show/book that I’m pretty obsessed with at the moment is Good Omens by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett. It’s about an angel and a demon trying to stop the apocalypse, and as you might expect from these two brilliant authors, it is absolutely brilliant & ridiculously funny in an incredibly British way. Well worth a read and a watch of the recent TV show, which is on Amazon Prime. The BBC radio drama of it that was released a few is also pretty good.