The Telegraph has a new article on Ballet Shoes online now. I have quoted the parts where Emma speaks, click the link above to read the full article.

Emma Watson – famous as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films – is to star in BBC1’s new adaptation as Pauline, the eldest Fossil. She says she only took the role because Ballet Shoes is also a favourite of JK Rowling’s. “Jo said, ‘You have to take the part, just for my sake’,” says Watson.

Later, Watson talks about how resonant this moment was for her. “So much of what Pauline is experiencing is similar to what I went through when I auditioned for Harry Potter,” says Watson. “She becomes famous sort of overnight and I could relate to that. But I also relate to the experience that she goes through earlier. I got into acting because I loved reciting poetry. At my school you had to learn a poem a week and recite it.”

“I can relate to Pauline’s ambition,” says Watson. “She’d sell her soul to be an actress. And I did always want to be an actress and I think I do still; but there’s nothing reassuring about acting. School has become increasingly important to me. I find it quite grounding. That’s one of the reasons I’d like to go to university and study English literature.”