JKR.com - The '?' Door

One of the greatest mysteries of the jkrowling.com site is the room that the site calls only '?', but most of the fandom has long since referred to as either the 'Chamber of Secrets' or the 'Room of Requirement'.  This room can be reached by clicking on the pink rubber/eraser/revealer on the main page of jkrowling.com.  (As of March 2006; before this, the room was reached by clicking a hairtie.)  The room's contents do change from time to time, but almost always include a door, a window, a mirror, and a potted plant.  Usually, a 'Do Not Disturb' sign hangs on the door handle, but occasionally this disappears, signifying that there is a way to open the door, and that there is some special reward for figuring out the puzzle behind it.  Below is an archive of all the times the door has opened to date, and just what was revealed each time...

28th June 2004: Sixth Book Title
The first time the 'Do Not Disturb' door opened was scarcely six weeks after the new, revised jkrowling.com was launched, and not a moment too soon - fans had already started to hack into the site to gain access to the door, although all they received for their trouble was a book containing some Lorem Ipsum text.  When the door opened officially, visitors found themselves - quite literally - banging their heads against a brick wall, as that was all it revealed.  It didn't take long for fans to realise that this was a similar wall to the one at the entrance to Diagon Alley - a doorway to something much more magical, if only the correct combination of bricks could be found.

When certain bricks were clicked, they would disappear from the wall, indicating they were part of the puzzle.  Once all five were found, it was a simple matter to find the correct order - first, (and counting from the top-left of the brick wall) the brick 4 across and 7 rows down, followed by the one 4 across and 18 rows down.  Then came the bricks that were 2 across/5 rows down, 3 across/21 rows down, and finally 2 across/3 rows down.  The reward for opening the door on this first occasion was a massive one - jkrowling.com visitors were the first to find out the title of the sixth book in the Harry Potter series would be Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

16th August 2004: Sixth Book Quote
Almost two months later, the door would unlock again, this time with a very different sight greeting anyone who opened it.  Or, more to the point, a lack of one - a black expanse was all that could be seen, on first appearances.  Fumbling around in the darkness would, eventually, find a lightswitch in the middle of the doorway, just below the doorhandle.  Once the light was turned on, it revealed that the room seemed to have been converted to a games room in the meantime - specifically, one containing a dartboard.  Darts were also provided, and throwing them into the numbers 7, 1 and 3 would reveal... that you needed yet another code!  The dartboard moved aside to reveal a hi-tech safe, and you would need the distinctly low-tech assistance of Peeves to open it - if you waited for his appearance on the 'Extra Stuff' page, he would reveal a business card carrying the combination you needed to type into the safe, which was 302723.

After finally fighting your way past all these different codes and combinations, the reward for making your way through was a brief-but-potentially-revealing snippet from the upcoming sixth book.  The quote was simple - "He looked rather like an old lion. There were streaks of grey in his mane of tawny hair and his bushy eyebrows; he had keen yellowish eyes behind a pair of wire-rimmed spectacles and a certain rangy, loping grace even though he walked with a slight limp."  Much of the fandom assumed it was a description of the already-announced new character McLaggen, but the eventual release of the book revealed it to be the new Minister for Magic, Rufus Scrimegour.

31st October 2004: Sixth Book Chapter Names
The wizarding holiday of Halloween was chosen for the third secret to be divulged by the mysterious room, and again the mysterious and mischievous Peeves was an integral part of opening the door.  Initially, the door could not be opened at all, despite the 'Do Not Disturb' doorhanger disappearing - you had to wait for Peeves to make his appearance, at which point a selection of identical-looking keys appeared, hovering in front of the door in a similar way to the Key Room in Philosopher's Stone.  Once you had found the correct one - trial and error, ahoy! - you were greeted with a rather unusual view of JK Rowling's desktop.  Namely, the view you would get if you were hanging from the light fitting, looking down.  Unusual as this view was, it did give you access to one thing that normally cannot be reached - the handle for the desk drawer.  Dragging the drawer open would reveal a magnifying glass, and this in turn would allow you to read the note that had been left on top of the desk.  The note gave a simple riddle, which is reproduced below.  

The answer to the riddle, if you haven't worked it out yet, was 'Chapters', and that the final step was to type this response into the keyboard.  (Your own keyboard, not the one on the desktop - to date, the desktop one has never been used.)  Once you had typed the answer in, you would be given access to a folder that contained the names of three of the chapters found in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - Chapter 2, Spinners End; Chapter 6, Draco's Detour; and Chapter 14, Felix Felicis.  Once again, the entire fandom erupted with speculation about what these chapter titles might mean, without anyone coming remotely close to getting it right.

20th December 2004: Sixth Book Release Date
Christmas was coming, the geese were getting fat, and all over the fandom people were wondering if jkrowling.com would be giving it's followers another little present for Christmas.  In fact, the present came a few days early - as JKR pointed out herself, those of us who celebrate Christmas would have other things to do on the day, besides knocking on doors.  So, it was with great excitement that everyone noticed that the room had been decorated especially for Christmas.  Some quick experimentation found that clicking on the Christmas tree in the mirror was all it took to open the door, to reveal another tree, complete with presents.  Each of the 6 presents contained either a riddle or a Potter-themed trivia question, which could be answered simply by typing in the correct response.  Once all the answers were given, the star on the tree would glow.  An identical star on the rack of Christmas cards could then be clicked to reveal the greatest secret yet - the release date of book six! (16th July, 2004) Below, you'll find all six puzzles, along with the answers.  (The answers are spoiler-protected - highlight the text next to 'Answer:' to read them.)

1st April 2006: WOMBATs - Grade 1
With the release of Half-Blood Prince, the birth of JK Rowling's third baby, and another film coming to general release, 2005 was a busy enough year for the fandom, even without any new snippets of information from the 'Chamber'.  So, it would be well over 15 months before the door opened again, while the fandom absorbed their new dose of canon with impunity, and JK Rowling took care of the latest addition to her family.  By the time the cries for more new content started to get unbearably loud, jkrowling.com was more than ready to provide - but not with book seven details, at least not yet.  The fifth opening of the door marked the era of the WOMBATs - the Wizards' Ordinary Magic and Basic Aptitude Test, an OWLs-style test.  However, this was not a mere trivia test, but rather asks visitors to think about the wider wizarding world to try and deduce the most logical answer.  (Well, as much as logic can be applied to the wizarding world, at any rate!)

The first WOMBAT could only be accessed if you were willing to do something a little naughty - you had pick up the rock on the table, and throw it at the mirror!  Breaking the mirror would reveal some shelves, including a key, but the door still would not open, even after being unlocked.  Closer investigation of the shelves revealed a note, which told you that to open the door, you must first repair the mirror - a simple matter if you remember your basic spells, namely the 'Reparo' charm.  Type this into the keyboard, and the mirror would magically reassemble itself, allowing you to click on the open door in the reflection - this would close the door in the mirror, and open the one in front of you.  Once again, a view of JK Rowling's desk was revealed, and a graduation cap could be seen on the desk.  By moving the tassel to the 12 o'clock position, you could move the cap away, and get to the first of three WOMBAT tests.

29th September 2006: WOMBATs - Grade 2
It was almost six months before the door opened again, to allow access to the second grade of WOMBATs.  Once again the door opened without difficulty, to reveal a very messy desk, laden with objects relating to studying and/or luck.  To unlock the new test, you had to click on some - but not all - of these objects, in a specific order.  Specifically, visitors had to click on the Candle, Quill, WOMBAT practice paper, Four-Leaf Clover and the Hourglass. (Which is seen top-down, so it looks somewhat like a wooden disc.)

The order in which you had to click on the items seemed to take the theme of preparing to take a test - first, you click on the candle to light it, giving light to work by.  Then, you had to ready your quill, by dipping it in the inkwell with another click.  Next, you had to close your WOMBAT practice book - no more last-minute revision for you - and give your Four-Leaf Clover a quick stroke, just for good luck.  Once all these things were done, a key appeared, just where the Clover once was.  Drag this key to the desk drawer to open it, and the WOMBAT Grade 2 paper was revealed!  All that remained then was to click the Hourglass to start the test.  

21st December 2006: Book Seven Title
The theme of this little event seems to be completing Jo's Christmas decorations for her - first you have to click on the open doorway in the mirror, to put up your tree. Then, you put a holly wreath on the '?' door itself, and paper chains on the ceiling in the mirror, again by clicking them. Oh, and while you're at it, clean away those nasty little cobwebs by the door, would you? Once all that is done, click on the wind chimes until one of them turns gold - click and drag this, and you'll find it is a key, which can be used to unlock the door.

On the usual overhead view of JKR's desk, you'll see a present, sitting there waiting for you. Open it to find a magical Hangman game - a little more flash than our own forum Hangman, but not as much fun with a group. As you might have guessed, you're looking for the title of a book - one you'll probably be reading in 6-12 months time. It gives you the (utterly obvious) 'Harry Potter and the...', and leaves you to guess the rest. Even if you die, the game is simply reset, so guess all you like...

14th June 2007: WOMBATs - Grade 3
With scarcely more than a month before the release of the final chapter in the HP saga - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - the entire fandom looked eagerly to JK's mysterious door, hoping for some tantalising appetiser from the new book to whet their appetite. What they received was something else, but no less welcome - the third and final grade of the WOMBATs tests. This time around, the test was even harder, requiring intricate knowledge of the extended HP Universe and no little deductive reasoning to find the answers. Even JKR.com's own secrets formed part of the quiz, including several former Wizards of the Month.

On entering the '?' Room, visitors found the door still securely locked, but the 'Do Not Disturb' sign missing - a sure sign that some secret was accessible. A little magic was required to open the door - using your 'wand' (ie. the mouse) to capture a passing fly, and Transfigure it into a key. Once the the door was unlocked with said key, an unusually-tidy desk was accessible. Only four items were visible - the WOMBATs paper, and wooden shapes that formed a triangle, a circle and a straight line. The upcoming Deathly Hallows provided a clue - a symbol appearing on the spine of the recently-released UK Children's cover for the book was made up of just those shapes, so a little experimentation was all it took to create the symbol. First, the circle had to be placed on top of the line, and then the triangle over the top of that, each of which would be accompanied by the usual magical sparks if placed correctly. All that remained was to swot up on HP lore, find that scrap of paper with your Student ID code, and open the test paper...

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Last Updated: 16 June 2007