This summer the must see movie at the cinema is without doubt the final instalment in the highly successful Harry Potter series of movies, The Deathly Hallows Part II. This highly anticipated movie sees the boy wizard all grown up, and entering into the final battles with the forces of evil, led by the sinister Lord Voldemort.

Although the books written by JK Rowling were originally pitched at children, they soon became popular with readers of all ages and it certainly won’t be just children who are desperate to get tickets to the final Harry Potter movie. In total, the movies to date have grossed over $6 billion worldwide, and made their three young stars into some of the best known actors on the planet. The Harry Potter series of movies has made more to date than all of the James Bond movies put together, or all of the Star Wars movies. The Harry Potter phenomenon is completely unprecedented in the film making world.

In order to try to continue to spark interest in the books, the movies and the associated merchandise, Universal has recently opened an attraction called The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at its theme park in Florida, where visitors can immerse themselves in the world described in the books by shopping in the stores mentioned in the novels and drinking the weird concoctions that Harry and his friends drink in the films. The first movie was released in 2001 when the three main stars were still primary school age, and as the film series has progressed we have seen them growing up into the young adults they are today. Apart from the actors who play Harry, Ron and Hermione, most of the other actors who play teachers at Hogwarts or other people in the wizarding community are also British, and the series of Harry Potter movies has put the UK film industry firmly back on the international map.

For fans of the books, the Deathly Hallows Part II movie will hold no secrets in terms of plot and how the story ends. The book was released several years ago and the film will closely follow its plot, including the epilogue sequence when the viewer will learn what happens to the main characters after the book finishes. By all accounts the special effects used in the movie are stunning, with the scenes culminating in the battle for Hogwarts being particularly impressive. Movie fans are sure to flock to the cinema in their millions to see the final episode in the series of movie, and real die-hard fans are desperate to get their hands on some sort of Harry memorabilia which they can keep as a reminder of the success of the franchise.

A quick browse on any search engine will turn up a whole host of Harry Potter and Hogwarts related merchandise, some of which is excellent quality and some of which isn’t so good. The choice of what to buy as a memento of the films will depend on whether you are buying for investment value or just for pleasure. In the latter case, there is no point researching for hours to try to work out what will appreciate in value and be worth a lot of money in the years to come. However, for the serious collector or movie investor it is worth taking time to appraise what is available on the market and working out what to buy which will provide a decent return on money.

Film posters are eternally popular with collectors as they are widely available, cheap to purchase and look great hanging on the wall. They look equally good either framed or unframed, and having a display of one or more Harry Potter posters from the film franchise will add atmosphere and interest to a stairway or child’s bedroom.