Timon | 31 Jul 2025
Happy Birthday, Harry Potter: Celebrate Like You're at Hogwarts
- When is Harry Potter’s birthday?
- How to plan a Harry Potter birthday: the basics
- Your advanced Harry Potter birthday celebration
- Butterbeer recipe: Cheers to Harry!
Harry’s birthday has been marked in your calendar for ages? Then you’re in the right place. In this post, we’ll show you how to celebrate your own birthday Hogwarts-style – with magical party ideas, decoration tips, and a Butterbeer recipe that definitely doesn’t come from the school kitchen.
Planning an unforgettable birthday party can be quite the challenge. But if you’re thinking of throwing a Harry Potter-themed celebration, we’ve got great news: we’re here to help! In this article, you’ll find everything you need for a successful Hogwarts party – from the invitation to the late-night fun. And if it’s a party for kids, we’ve also got tips on how to wind down afterwards.
Image @eressea_cosplay, @rommrommcosplay, @toriyuca_arts, @sephira_photography
1. When Is Harry Potter’s Birthday?
Harry James Potter, our favourite wizard with the lightning bolt scar, was born on 31 July 1980 in Godric’s Hollow – the same legendary wizarding village in southwest England where Godric Gryffindor, one of the four founders of Hogwarts, also came from. Harry is the only child of wizard James Potter and witch Lily Potter, who were murdered by Lord Voldemort when Harry was one year and three months old.
If you’d like to visit Harry’s birthplace Godric’s Hollow in real life, we recommend taking a trip to the medieval English village of Lavenham – as some of the background scenes from “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1” were filmed there. However, the cast did not stay in Lavenham during the shoot.
2. Planning a Harry Potter Birthday: The Basics
Planning an unforgettable Harry Potter birthday party is almost as exciting as your first visit to Diagon Alley – and there’s nearly as long a to-do list! An absolute must-have for a successful Harry Potter birthday is a magical invitation, because unlike Harry’s first Hogwarts letter, yours will only be delivered once. How about using some stationery that looks like it came straight from Albus Dumbledore’s desk drawer?
When it comes to food, don’t think like a Muggle. After all, who wants to settle for pretzel sticks and herb dip when you could be snacking on Chocolate Frogs, Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes or Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans? These treats are perfect for your Harry Potter birthday and might even bring a smile to the (almost always) grumpy Professor Snape’s face.
3. Your Advanced Harry Potter Birthday
If you've already earned your OWLs in magical party planning and want to take things to the next level, we totally get it – and we’ll dive into the fine art of birthday celebrations with you. How about a Harry Potter waffle maker, along with bowls and mugs for a magical tea time – guaranteed free of dark prophecies from Professor Trelawney?
Games are always a great idea too – from Harry Potter playing cards to a spellbinding quiz or an epic round of Harry Potter Monopoly (Muggles can join in too, but shhh).
And if you're hosting a children's birthday party, we also have a tip for advanced parents – not entirely serious, of course, but definitely something some of you might appreciate the day after.
4. Butterbeer Recipe: Cheers to Harry!
You can’t truly celebrate a Harry Potter birthday without a nice glass of Butterbeer. To save you from too much exp— uh, magic, we’ve written down our favourite Butterbeer recipe for you.
Ingredients for 4 large glasses of Butterbeer:
- 1 litre whole milk
- 250 ml heavy cream
- 500 ml malt beer (not light!)
- 2 vanilla pods
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 packet bourbon vanilla sugar
Instructions:
Pour the milk, 120 ml of the cream, malt beer, vanilla pods, cinnamon and vanilla sugar into a pot and bring to a brief boil. Then reduce the heat and simmer for a short while. Whip the remaining cream and add it on top of the Butterbeer. Done!
