'Harry Potter' stars banned from driving after being caught speeding
Watson, 35, who played Hermione Granger, the friend of boy wizard Potter in the hugely popular movie franchise, was banned for driving at 38 miles (61 km) an hour in a 30-mile zone in southeastern Banbury last July.
Zoe Wanamaker, 76, who played Quidditch teacher Madame Hooch in "Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone", was banned for six months for her offence.
She had been caught driving at 46 miles an hour in a 40-mile zone of the M4 motorway in southeastern Berkshire last August.
The cases were dealt with separately by a lower magistrates court in the town of High Wycombe.
Neither of the stars attended the hearings, at which they were each fined £1,044 ($1,400).
Watson, who was stopped while driving her blue Audi, has been studying at Oxford University. Her lawyer told the court that although she was a student "she is in a position to pay the fine".
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sharjah 24
38 minutes ago
- Sharjah 24
China's first Legoland opens to tourists in Shanghai
The Chinese branch of the British-owned theme park franchise is the biggest Legoland in the world. It drew in early customers who flocked to attractions including a miniature train ride and a dragon-themed rollercoaster. "I personally love to play with Lego blocks and we have many sets at home... so I wanted to come to Legoland at the earliest opportunity," said Shi, a 35-year-old resident of nearby city Hangzhou, who was visiting the park with his wife and child. Despite the Chinese economy's sluggish growth in recent years, domestic tourist spending grew 18.6 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the previous year, according to statistics. "Ever since the pandemic, I've made very few trips abroad," said Shi, adding his family now travels to theme parks around China "many times a year". Eager Lego fans rushed into the park as soon as it opened, wearing themed shirts and waving branded flags as they enjoyed the 318,000-square-metre (78.5-acre) compound in scorching temperatures. Beijing has announced subsidies intended to make travelling within the country more affordable for Chinese citizens, and is pushing local governments to heavily market their attractions on social media. Companies have taken note of the wider local tourism boom and stepped up their plans in China. A new "Spider-Man" attraction at Shanghai Disneyland broke ground in May, while Warner Brothers is set to open a Harry Potter experience in Shanghai by 2027. Toy giant Hasbro said this week its giant Peppa Pig park in the city was now "in the phase of creative design". Chinese collectable toy maker Pop Mart has also opened an attraction in Beijing featuring life-sized versions of its popular Labubu toys. "The various provinces are putting a lot of effort into expanding their tourism industries, and all of them have special attractions," said Xu, a 34-year-old parent visiting Legoland on Saturday with his children. But profitability remains a problem, especially for local companies with less brand recognition. As of late 2024, around 40 percent of parks were still failing to turn a profit, according to state media reports. Yet analysts point to a growing population of retirees and job market changes as key factors pushing more locals to visit domestic attractions. "The labour market is turning more flexible," said Ernan Cui, China consumer analyst at Gavekal Research. "More people have leisure time to travel around."
Khaleej Times
2 days ago
- Khaleej Times
Look: Influencer Mia Zelu goes viral at Wimbledon; social media users discover she's not real
Annual tennis tournament Wimbledon is a place where celebrities from every industry come out in force — and an event that garners a lot of attention for several reasons. This year, one woman — an influencer called Mia Zelu — seems to have stolen the spotlight. Mia has a 165,000-strong following and went viral after posting several photos of herself at the star-studded sports event. Complete with a stunning fit for the day, and a glossy hairdo, this digital storyteller looks like your average influencer; well-groomed, successful, travelling the world, and throwing in some inspirational quotes. But there's just one problem — she doesn't exist. Who is Mia Zelu? This Instagram personality is an AI influencer who serves up fashion inspiration, with a side of daily moments. She is simply a product of an algorithm, with carefully curated Instagram posts involving AI-generated visuals that appear startlingly human, and cleverly crafted captions. With photos in different settings, the AI-generated influencer closely resembles human tastes. While she has her "everyday life" featuring casual clothes and settings, she also occasionally splurges at concerts, in yachts, and soaking up the sun at beaches. Why did she go viral at Wimbledon? Mia shared photos of her Wimbledon outing, with an inspirational message: "Your time will come. Keep showing up". Commenters agreed with her caption and engaged with her post. While Mia makes it clear on her Instagram profile bio that she is an AI influencer, several commenters remained unaware. Some ask for her outfit details, yet others wish her a good weekend. But in the AI era, one can not be too sure — are the commenters real, or are they a product of AI too? However, some individuals expressed their confusion at the discovery that Mia was AI, having just found out from the news after her Wimbledon post went viral. One Instagram user said "Wait, so you aren't real?! I'm so confused now". Another commented "AI; I just saw on the news." Mia has 165,000 followers, and even a "sister" — Ana Zelu, who boasts 266,000 followers. Ana, like her "sister", is a digital creator who posts "snapshots of her life". The AI debate The two AI influencers are part of a growing trend of humans connecting to chatbots, personalities who don't exist, and tech "friends". Other than not being real, what do they have in common is a human audience who seeks validation through these artificial characters who are instantly available, do not judge, and seem to always listen. However, experts have reiterated time and again that such a dependence on AI personalities will prove harmful in the long run, as they can only provide short-term gratification, and can not take any real action, or provide real support.
The National
2 days ago
- The National
Protesters and police clash outside UK migrant hotel
Protesters have clashed with police outside a hotel believed to be housing asylum seekers in the UK. Fireworks were let off and eggs were thrown outside the hotel in Epping, Essex. It is the latest demonstration to take place outside the Bell Hotel after a 38-year-old man was accused of sexual assault. Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu denied trying to kiss a 14-year-old girl when he appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court on Thursday. On Thursday, a man was arrested on suspicion of affray following reports of an assault during Sunday's protest, police said. 'We have closed a section of High Road, Epping, for the safety of the public and those protesting,' Essex Police said. 'We will not tolerate any criminality on our streets, whether linked to protesting or not,' the force added. 'One man has already been arrested at today's protest on suspicion of affray following reports of an assault near The Bell Hotel in Epping on Sunday July 13. 'He will be taken into custody while our inquiries continue.' Chief Superintendent Simon Anslow said: 'Disruption and offending is never an appropriate response, no matter the strength of feeling in this case, and on this issue. 'People protesting peacefully, lawfully and responsibly cause us – and the wider public – no concern. 'However, we can never, and will never, tolerate criminal behaviour of any sort and anyone identified as committing crime will be dealt with robustly.' Police later said one officer had sustained a minor neck injury. Mr Anslow said: 'I am sure those living in Epping have concerns following tonight. I share those concerns. 'We know the people who carried out these crimes do not represent Epping or Essex. 'Nothing about the offending we saw tonight is representative of these communities, or the peaceful event that ended before this started. This was crime. 'Our detectives are already working through the footage of this evening – from our officers bodyworn camera, from our drones and from social media – and where offences are identified we will take action.'
