Happy New Year, Potterheads! Who among us isn’t excited about what 2026 will bring? 2026 means we’re one year closer to 2027, and 2027 is the year the Harry Potter HBO Max show comes out! A year is a long time to wait, but the Harry Potter fandom used to have to do a ton of waiting for new books and movies to come out. The time between the release of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix books was lowkey agonizing. Sure, there were movies coming out nearly every year, but there was so much suspense about the fate of the characters after Voldemort’s return.

One of the biggest pieces of Harry Potter New Years lore is that Voldemort was actually born on New Years Eve in 1926. If he was smarter, he would’ve let himself age gracefully like Dumbledore did. If he had, he could still be alive today, because powerful wizards often live to be 100+ years old. Dumbledore was 115 or 116 years old when he sacrificed himself for the good of the cause. He didn’t even pass from old age! He had another 20 or 30 years in him if he really wanted to stick around! 

If you’re an aspiring witch or wizard who wishes you had the chance to live as long as Dumbledore, these Harry Potter memes might be just the thing you need to ring in the new year. They might make you appreciate the time that you’ve got.