Feature for Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix

Harry Potter grows up By Albertina Lloyd.

Harry Potter has come of age.

The latest boy wizard movie instalment ‘Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix’ sees him turn 16 and fall deeper into the dangerous world of the dark arts.

Arch enemy Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters are gathering strength, but the Ministry of Magic is turning against Harry and branding him a liar in a bid to cover up The Dark Lord’s return.

Life is getting even tougher for the teenager – who must also work hard to pass his OWL exams to remain at Hogwarts – and he doesn’t know who to trust.

Just as J.K. Rowling’s books have become darker and scarier as Harry has grown older, so have the films. While the fifth film is still classified PG for the multi-million dollar children’s audience, and released during school holidays, the wizard school adventures are maturing with its characters and becoming more appealing to adults.

The books and films have always been entertaining for parents as well as their children, but Harry Potter is becoming ever more a global phenomenon with adult fans queuing up for the latest book alongside younger readers.

Original Harry Potter fans have grown up with him, and - knowing that the blockbusting success will keep young children interested in the magical adventures - Rowling, and the film producers, are developing a darker side to the stories.

And just as the characters have grown older, so have the film cast.

Daniel Radcliffe was just 11 when he made his movie debut as the boy wizard.

This year, aged 17, he made his theatrical debut in the West End play ‘Equus’, which required him getting into the mind of a disturbed teenager harbouring an erotic obsession with a horse – and standing completely naked on stage every night.

The stubbly, muscley young man who bared everything on stage to prove he could really act, was a far cry from the wide-eyed, round faced young boy we saw cast his first spell.

Daniel is now a teenager entering the world of dating and girlfriends, just as Harry is in the latest film – when he shares his first screen kiss with love interest Cho Chang.

Daniel said himself: “I think people are shocked that I’ve had girlfriends, which I have. They think I’m a ‘Peter Pan’ figure, but I’m not – I promise you!”

Watching the cast grow up on the big screen has been as odd for them as it has for the audience.

Emma Watson, who plays Hermione Granger, compares the experience to having your embarrassing baby photographs shown to the whole world.

She said: "In the fifth film the director David Yates uses flashbacks from the previous film so you get this very shocking contrast between what we look like now and what we used to look like. It's like having your baby photos that you try to hide away, which your parents occasionally and very embarrassingly bring out. Only ours are in the biggest films that people will ever see. We have to swallow these images of our chubby cheeks and baby faces."

The 16-year-old actress is rumoured to have negotiated a £2 million contract to commit to playing feisty Hermione in the last two films, after previously threatening to quit.

Emma said: “I've kind of come from nowhere and gone straight in at the top. Where do I go from here? I feel like I need to backtrack and work my way through again. I'd be really interested to kind of train properly because I feel I shouldn't be here. I should have done so much more.”

But she denies money was the reason she considered quitting.

She said: "It was more about juggling my A-level exams, going to university and doing the movies."

In fact the young star is said to have become a bit of a diva.

Emma allegedly asked David Yates, the director of ‘Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix’, whether she was contractually obliged to do so many takes.

Yates, who likes to do 30 or so takes to ensure everything is perfect, politely told her yes.

While fame may have gone to Emma’s head, Daniel is just relishing the experience for all it’s worth.

He said recently: “Girls who want to go out with me just because I’m famous has never been a problem. I’m 17. I don’t care.

“Obviously, if I wanted a deep and meaningful relationship then I wouldn’t want to be going out with somebody who is only with me because I’m an actor, but if you don’t want that then it’s fine.”

However, the teenage star insists any passion would soon fizzle out if a girl called out Harry’s name in the heat of the moment.

He said: “People do call me Harry. I once had a friend call me it by accident. If there’s another person in the room called Harry and somebody shouts their name I do respond slightly, which is embarrassing.

“But no one has ever said it in the throws of passion. God no! That would be the end of that session.”

The young actors are privileged to work with the all-star cast of veteran British actors, including Michael Gambon, Imelda Staunton, Helena Bonham-Carter, Robbie Coltrane and Gary Oldman.

But Daniel hasn’t just been picking up acting tips from Gary – who plays Harry’s godfather Sirius Black – he’s also been getting sex advice.

Daniel said: “Gary did give me a few really good pieces of advice about girls that I’m definitely going to stick to. One of them was that you’ve got to find out if they get on with their parents, which is a good rule of thumb.

“I can’t repeat the rest. It was a private moment between myself and Gary.”

Unfortunately for Daniel, Gary’s character meets a grizzly end in the latest film.

In fact there few happy endings in Rowling’s books any longer – and it seems no one is safe.

In the sixth book ‘Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince’ she kills off beloved headmaster Professor Dumbledore, and rumours surrounding the seventh and final instalment of the young wizards and witches time at Hogwarts school suggest most of the cast will lose their lives in a bid to overcome the evil Lord Voldemort.

‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’ is not due to be released until July 21, but computer hackers have leaked what they claim to be the ending on the internet.

Rowling has previously revealed that at least two characters will die in the seventh and final instalment of the adventure series, but has not named them.

The spoilers allege Harry Potter decides to end his life in order to kill his evil enemy Voldemort.

It has also been claimed that Harry’s best friends Ron and Hermione will both die in the new book and the trio are reunited in the Deathly Hallows - the Ghost World - along with Harry’s late parents, godfather Sirius Black and Hogwarts’ headmaster Albus Dumbledore.

Rupert Grint, who plays Ron Weasley, remains blasé about his character’s future.

The 18-year-old – who dropped out of school at 16 – said: "It would be quite cool to have a death scene if it was a really cool battle scene, but I don't have any theories.

“It's going to be really sad when it all ends, and it's going to be weird because it's been a big part of my life.

"But I've got to do other things after Harry Potter so I'll just see what happens."

Rupert has already showed he, like Daniel, can act outside the boundaries of Harry Potter, by starring in children’s comedy ‘Thunderpants’ and British film ‘Driving School’, alongside Julie Walters.

But while Rupert might not care about the fate of Ron and his friends, diehard Harry Potter fans are devastated to think that this might be the end and are petitioning J.K. Rowling to write more books.

Bookstore giants Waterstone’s have urged one million fans to sign their online petition to help save the teenage wizard.

The petition reads: “We, the undersigned, petition J.K. Rowling to write more new adventures for Harry Potter and his friends no matter what happens at the end of ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’.”

Waterstone’s Wayne Winstone added: “We’re not asking J.K. Rowling to start another novel tomorrow we’re just asking that she doesn’t rule it out.”

If Harry does die in the final tome, surely it will be hard to continue the stories without him.

Whatever the fate of the young wizard and his friends, millions are hooked and more and more fans are buying the book, or queuing up at the box office to find out what will happen next.

Harry Potter has grown into a global brand and has cast its spell across the world.

And though the young wizard may not have a bright future ahead of him, Daniel Radcliffe and the rest of the talented young cast have proved golden opportunities await far beyond the walls of Hogwarts.