Hello magical friends and welcome to the first episode of 2026! I’m your hostwitch Bess and I can’t wait to see what we do this year.
Do you have wrock goals? Resolutions? Hopes and dreams? Let’s start writing them down while the first block of music plays.
Here’s “Broken Wand” by Kirstyn Hippe.
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We’re starting the new year with “Broken Wand” from Kirstyn Hippe [lyrics], Miranda Puffskein’s “Wanna Be a Weasley” [lyrics], and “She’s a Keeper” by Mudblud [lyrics].
Get excited, magical friends! It’s time for our first report of the year from that wandering wix, our Special Correspondent in the Field, DQ!
ScitF DQ: Happy new year, magical friends. This is Special Correspondent in the Field DQ with a brand new segment just for you! Your hostwitch and I thought it would be fun to introduce a little bit more fan fiction into the mix since wizard rock can often feel like musical fan fiction. So every now and then I’ll be offering up a fan fiction recommendation in a segment I’m calling ‘Fanfic Fieldwork.’ And since this is a brand new year, I thought it would be appropriate to begin with a brand new fan fiction with a popular theme. So today I’m recommending “A Christmas Reflection” by Anonymous. It is a Wolfstar fanfic, a one shot that was published on December 30th, 2025, and it comes in at a modest but respectable 1,084 words. According to the summary, ‘Remus and Sirius exchange gifts that help them see each other, and themselves, in a new way.’ As a matter of interest, this piece was published for a user by the name of Pringle All The Way as part of the MMF Winter Fic Exchange 2025 and now for a short passage:
“Pads, step back please.” Remus says in a quiet voice. Sirius hears it over the wind, he always does, but only grins and leans out further. Remus rolls his eyes and turns back towards the stairs, “I guess I’ll just keep your gift if you die.”
Scrambling feet chase after him, his friend as predictable as ever, and Remus lets a smug smile slide across his features.
“Moons, wait.” Warm fingers wrap around his arm, tugging him back and burning his skin. “I want to give you your gift.”
A present is shoved into his hands and suddenly the confident Marauder is gone and replaced by a gorgeous boy shuffling his feet and glancing up through thick eyelashes. “It isn’t much since my parents cut me off, but I hope you like it.”
“If it’s from you, I’m sure I’ll like it.” Remus says, beginning to open his gift, carefully peeling back the paper as if it’s sacred.
Inside is a thick knitted sweater, the deep maroon appearing almost black in the dim lighting. He runs his fingers over the soft material, the scent of Sirius rising from it and he wonders how he can keep it there forever.
“Lily taught me how to knit.” He whispers, voice still lacking his normal confidence. “I missed a few stitches, but—”
Remus cuts him off, wrapping his arms tightly around Sirius and causing his heart to race as he holds the boy he’s been admiring in his arms. He whispers harshly, voice getting caught in his throat, “Thank you.”
If you’re at all curious where the boys end up by the end of this fan fiction, or if you’d like to find out what Lupin got for Sirius for Christmas, you can check out “A Christmas Reflection” by Anonymous from the MMF Winter Fic Exchange 2025 collection on ArchiveOfOurOwn.org. This is Special Correspondent in the Field DQ saying keep your eyes out for more Fanfic Fieldwork from your fantastic friend, me.
Thank you so much, DQ! I can’t wait to see what new adventures you have this year.
Here’s our next musical interlude, opened by Percy & the Prefects.
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That music block included Percy & the Prefects with ““Ron and Scabbers” [lyrics], Hawthorn & Holly’s “Felix Felicis” [lyrics], and “Window in our Hearts” by Quickspell [lyrics].
A new year means new adventures, and here are just a few ways to start yours off right!
First of all, your hostwitch is hosting a reread! Starting Wednesday, January 7th I’ll be opening up a discussion in the wizard rock discord and the Wizard Rock Revival Facebook group, one chapter per week. This year we’ll work our way through Book One, so start reading!
If you’re in Belleville, IL on January 9th, there’s going to be a Harry Potter Skate night (the kind with wheels). [link]
The long-awaited 2025 Wrock Swap results are being released on January 10th, with a listening party in the wizard rock discord.
Brea, CA is going to have a Harry Potter Drag Brunch on January 11th, the best kind of brunch if you ask me. [link]
January 16th through 18th there’s going to be a Harry Potter-themed Bookish Retreat, which sounds kind of awesome. [link]
Also on January 17th there’s going to be Harry Potter Book Night Market, which I love, in Mission, TX. [link]
If you’re in Quincy, MA January 28th I hope you stop by the Harry Potter Puzzle Race. Who knew? [link]
As for what happened in December:
Self-Defensive Spellwork released her song from the “Just Joy” comp as a single. [link]
The Bookish Hufflepuff gave us “I Got Hit By a Flying Car.” [link]
The indefatigable Striking Down Diggory released the full album “The Man Who Died.” [link]
And if you missed the Yule Ball, don’t worry! You can watch it any time on the Wizrocklopedia YouTube channel. [link]
I’d like to thank all the listeners who help me out by sending in events; I can’t find them all on my own, so thank you magical friends! If you’ve got an event coming up you think deserves sharing, send it my way.
I’d also like to point out that almost none of these are wizard rock events. Let’s fix that! Start messaging your favorite wizard rockers and invite them to your house or local coffee shop for a house show! Then tell me about it.
All these events and more can be found on the Potterhead Calendar page of the WZRD website.
While you start looking up email addresses for your faves, here’s our final music break.
First up we have the Nargleptics with “Green Eyes.”
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That was “Green Eyes” by The Nargleptics, Toanna & the Cliffhangers with “What’s Wrong” [lyrics], and Twitterbug’s “All is Well.”
I’m excited to see what we do this year, magical friends. Let’s make it wrock!
If you heard your new favorite song, go to the transcript at WZRDRadioPod.com, follow the link, and buy yourself a copy. You’ll get a great new addition to your music collection and a wizard rocker will know they’ve got a fan. And you know what I always say: without our wizard rockers, we wouldn’t be here.
You can support WZRD and the Community Wrock Fund by joining the Patreon at Patreon.com/WZRDRadioPod. There are two, five, and ten dollar tiers that all get the same perks, including early episodes and bonus content, and support the Fund in helping our wizard rockers get their music out there.
You can still guess this episode’s theme on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok at WZRDRadioPod. You can also get in touch by commenting on the transcript or emailing me at WZRDRadioPod@gmail.com.
Until next time, magical friends: Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts!
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