Happy 2010 everyone!!!!

What a year we had in 2009, the Half-Blood Prince movie, tons of Potter stars joining Twitter and tons of great things!  But there were also some hard times in the real world, but we have all made it through!

Hopefully 2010 will bring even better times, especially with Deathly Hallows Part I being released in November!

In an interview with the Romford Recorder Bonnie Wright’s body double Danielle Sambrook talks about filming Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Danielle, a Potter fan herself, said: “It’s a lot of fun. I get to see how they do all the things when you watch the film and think ‘how did they do that?’ It’s really weird. I used to watch the films when I was at school. And now I’m 21 and on set.”

As a body double Danielle gets to do almost everything Bonnie does during filming to effectively shadow her as each scene is being filmed.  But, unlike Bonnie, only shots of the back of Danielle’s head will be used intermittently in the final cut.

Danielle, a former student of Marshalls Park School, said: “Another girl does it as well but she has to wear a wig. I only have to brush mine and put clips in, or I sometimes wear a hairpiece.”

Days on set in Hertfordshire can last for 12 hours, but Danielle does get to mingle with the stars. “I like talking to Dan – he’s really down to earth. The whole bunch I work with are great.”

Thanks SS!

SS has received some information from Alexandra Billington, writer and producer of Geography of the Hapless Heart about Bonnie Wright’s performance in the segment called ‘Sweat’.  She said Bonnie is:

[A] free spirited young woman yet has enough depth to attract the more intense and introspective Jamie character played by Matthew McNulty.

Filming went fantastically well and Bonnie was both highly professional and a complete pleasure to work with.

Bonnie played the role of Mia beautifully and with a maturity that did great justice to the character.

The movie should be released “nearer May 2010? but as always, release dates may change.

JKR has made the list of 10 Scotswomen who changed the decade put together by The Scotsman.

It is hard to think of a more powerful female figure to have emerged from Scotland in the past decade than JK Rowling. In 2000, Rowling was cementing her position as the world’s most popular children’s author with her fourth Harry Potter book, which broke all literary sales records in both the US and the UK. By 2007, Forbes magazine had ranked her the 48th most powerful celebrity in the world – not just for her enormous impact on child literacy but for her philanthropic work. Her Volant Charitable Trust funds disadvantaged children and MS research. She is a vocal president of One Parent Families, and successfully campaigned for a law change in Romania concerning caged beds for orphans. Whatever she turns her hand to, Rowling has proved she is capable of effecting real change on a global scale.

Thanks HPANA!

Reelz Channel has released a list of the Top Ten Animated/Kid Movies of the Decade and Harry Potter has made the list at number 3!  I should also mention that Harry Potter is the only non-Disney film on the list!

3. The Harry Potter Series
An amazing cinematic achievement unfolding over a decade (and with more yet to come), this series brings J.K. Rowling’s world of wizardry to life and gives us characters worth caring about. With the latest and darkest installment, Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, the series proves that it can not only continue to deliver, but keep on building the drama.

Also on the list are Spirited Away (awesome movie), Enchanted, Up, Wall-E, The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc., Ratatouille and Lilo and Stitch.  The only one on the list that I dislike is Lilo and Stitch.

The ballots are ready for the 2010 Empire Awards and we all need to vote for Half-Blood Prince, the actors and director to win awards!  Follow this link to enter your votes.  The categories we can vote for HBP in are:

Best Newcomer (Jessie Cave, Freddie Stroma, etc)
Best Sci-Fi / Fantasy (Half-Blood Prince)
Best Actor (Dan, Rupert, etc)
Best Actress (Emma, Bonnie, Evanna, etc)
Best Director (David Yates)
Best British Film (Half-Blood Prince)
Best Film (Half-Blood Prince)