Harry Potter star Emma Watson has been banned from driving as unexpected court details are revealed
Emma Watson has been banned from driving for six months after she was caught speeding.
The actress, 35, best known for her role as Hermione Grainger in the Harry Potter film franchise, had a hearing on Wednesday (16 July) at which she was ordered to pay £1,044 on top of the ban.
It comes after she drove her blue Audi at 38mph in a 30mph zone in Oxford, on the evening of 31 July last year.
And she already had nine points on her driver's license before the July 2024 incident.
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District Judge Arvind Sharma, who was sentencing, endorsed three more points on her licence during the five-minute long hearing, meaning she is disqualified for six months from now.
Although she didn't attend the hearing at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court herself, Watson’s lawyer Mark Haslam, told the court that she is a student, adding: “She is in a position to pay the fine.”
Typically a driver can be banned for a six-month period if they accumulate 12 or more penalty points on their licence within three years.
The British actress has been studying a master's degree in creative writing at the University of Oxford since September 2023.
However, she is now reported to have progressed to a DPhil which is Oxford's version of a PhD, according to the Oxford Mail.
Watson's last film role was Meg March in Greta Gerwig's 2019 remake of Little Women, although most of the world know her as Hermione from Harry Potter.
She shot to fame in the role, which she played for all eight films between 2001 and 2011, alongside Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint.
According to The Mirror, Watson's Audi S3 was towed away in February 2024, months before the most recent incident, after it was parked illegally.
The publication reported that she failed to notice a 'No Parking' sign where she left her car before meeting up with her mum at a pub across the street.
However, a local pizza restaurant manager's car was reportedly trapped for three and a half hours before he called the police for help.
When they arrived, the actress was given a £192 fine and in a statement by Warwickshire Police at the time, they confirmed 'a report of a blue Audi S3 parked across a driveway and blocking in two cars on High Street near the junction with Sheep Street in Stratford'.
They added: "The report was made at 9.42pm and the car was impounded and taken away at 10.21pm. No crime was recorded."
Zoe Wanamaker, who starred alongside Watson in Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone in 2001 as teacher Madam Hooch, was also banned from driving for six months during a hearing at the same court on Wednesday.
The 76-year-old was caught speeding on 7 August 2024, on the M4 in Newbury, Berkshire while driving her blue Volvo at 46mph in a 40mph limit, the court heard.
Like her co-star, she was also fined £1,044 and banned for six months and chose not to attend the hearing.
Wanamaker’s lawyer Duncan Jones said that she was not asking for 'special treatment' and accepted the fine.
Topics: Emma Watson, Harry Potter, UK News, TV And Film
Madison Burgess