LAST NIGHT
Rowling back the years! Nearly 2 decades on, JK looks as wizard as ever
IT may be 17 years since her first foray on to the red carpet – but it’s clear that for JK Rowling such events have lost none of their magic.
And for last night’s London premiere of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald, she gave a clear fashion nod back in time. The 53-year-old was dressed in navy blue – as she had been for the premiere of Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone in 2001.
But this time, rather than posing slightly shyly in a blue velvet trouser suit, Miss Rowling radiated confidence in a flowing navy chiffon gown, with matching blue shoes and jewellery.
The new film is a sequel to 2016’s Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them, a spin-off prequel to the phenomenally successful Harry Potter series.
It again stars Eddie Redmayne as magizoologist – expert on magic creatures – Newt Scamander. With the help of a young Albus Dumbledore, played by Jude Law, he takes on dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald, played by Johnny Depp.
Speaking on the red carpet, Miss Rowling said that even after eight Harry Potter films she still finds it incredible that her ideas have been brought to life in such an amazing way.
‘You write these things and you do have moments sitting alone in your writing room where you think “Wow, they’re going to do this”,’ she said. ‘You write these insane things and they do it and they make it even better than you imagined it.
‘It’s a privilege to work with people this talented. They’re all staggering actors, I was so excited to work with this cast.’
Marvelling at the turnout of Harry Potter fans who lined Leicester Square, she added: ‘It’s amazing seeing everyone wearing all their Hogwarts colours after all these years.’
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald is in UK cinemas from Friday.