Birmingham named ‘Slytherin capital of UK’ in Harry Potter research

Ahead of the Harry Potter reunion special this week, new research has revealed which city is the UK capital of each Hogwarts house.

The research includes sales data on the number of Hogwarts house specific Harry Potter products that were bought in each town or city from the online retailer Lost Universe - which specialises in film and TV merchandise.

And according to the retailer, the data shows that Birmingham is ‘more Slytherin than anywhere else.’

Doncaster is the capital of Gryffindor, while Southampton is the Ravenclaw capital of the UK, and Southampton has the most Hufflepuffs.

Harry Potter himself, played by Daniel Radcliffe, best friend Ron Weasley, played by Rupert Grint, and brainiac Hermione Grainger, played by Emma Watson, are all placed into Gryffindor, with the house’s values including ‘courage, bravery, nerve, and chivalry’.

Slytherin is seen as the darker house in the series.

Lord Voldemort, known as the Heir of Slytherin, is the main antagonist in the series, and the ‘Sorting Hat’, which appears in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, says that Slytherins will do anything to get their way - although it is also known as the house of ‘cunning, ambition and determination’.

What else does the research show

Liverpool belongs in Gryffindor house, Edinburgh is Slytherin, and London is divided across the city.

According to a YouGov report, 57% of Harry Potter fans said they would want to be in Gryffindor and just 8% would ask the sorting hat to put them in Slytherin.

The data from Lost Universe suggest this is far from the case though.

According to the retailer’s sales data, 40% of UK cities and towns should be placed in Gryffindor, a ‘house for the brave, daring and courageous’, with almost a third (32%) being put in Slytherin.

One in five (19%) of the UK are in Hufflepuff, a house recognised for ‘loyalty, kindness and honesty’, while 9% possess the ‘intelligence, wisdom and creativity’ of a Ravenclaw.

When is the Return to Hogwarts TV special on in the UK ?

A brand new special celebrating 20 years of the boy wizard is coming out that will reunite the cast and crew of the iconic franchise.

They are set to reunite for the first time for HBO’s Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts special.

The special will tell the story of the behind the scenes of making the franchise, with brand new in-depth interviews with the cast and crew.

The programme is set to honour the making of the films, as well as the famous Harry Potter studio tour in London, which is where the special will take place.

The original Harry Potter trio are all involved in the special -Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, and Emma Watson, and it’s been confirmed that Return to Hogwarts will stream exclusively on Sky, and will be available to watch on NowTV from the morning of Saturday 1 January 2022.

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