Keen Harry Potter fan launches fund-raising campaign for magical London pub
Hold onto your wands because a wizarding pub could be coming to London with ‘magic’ never-ending drinks.
One dedicated fan is raising funds to create ‘The Cauldron Wizarding Pub & Inn’ which could be a big hit for those Harry Potter fans who’d rather spend their time drinking pints than watching the films.
The project is the brainchild of designer and technology entrepreneur Matthew Cortland who is launching a Kickstarter campaign on June 26 – the 20th anniversary of Harry Potter.
The Kickstarter campaign offers rewards to backers. Credit: thecauldron.io
To avoid intellectual property rights problems the bar won’t directly reference the Harry Potter series but it will aim to recreate some of the magic in the Potter universe using existing smart home technology like voice control to control the lights or ignite the fire.
The bar would use touch-sensitive and auto-refill technology to ensure the drinks are full all night. Using magnetism, candles will float in mid-air and photos on the walls will move, which is likely to confuse patrons who have been sitting at the bar too long.
Naturally the pub will have a wizard-inspired cocktail menu including creations called “Liquid Luck” and a hand-crafted “Cauldron Ale”.
There are a range of incentives for Kickstarter backers costing between $US25 to $US300, from laptop stickers and pint glasses, to having your name inscribed on the wall, permanently a part of the place’s history.
“Premium” incentives also include inventing a “magical cocktail,” naming a snug, or renting the pub for an evening.
On the Cauldron’s website Cortland writes that a generation of people have grown up reading about magic, “and now we have the chance to bring some small part of that into the world.
“We are creating a physical location that straddles the line between the magical and non-magical worlds… a place where adult fans can visit, have a pint, and geek out.”
Potential floor plans for the cauldron Inn. Credit: thecauldron.io
Cortland has set the ambitious goal of raising $US500,000 ($668,000) and hopes there are enough keen Harry Potter fans worldwide to get the idea off the ground.
The money raised would go towards paying the lease on a premises, somewhere in Central London or Charing Cross, and ”getting the pub up to scratch”.
