British actress Emma Thompson has long struggled with depression and insists the only way to beat her condition is to use creative therapy techniques.

The Oscar-winner first experienced the illness during a stint on the London stage in her twenties and admits it was one of the darkest times of her life.

She says, “I’m prone to depression and to all sorts of mental illnesses. I did a musical in the West End - I became clinically depressed even though I was being paid to be cheerful. I had no life at all. I lived like a nun. I didn’t drink. I didn’t have sex. I was 24, for crying out loud. No wonder I was depressed.”

Thompson reveals that the condition often comes back to haunt her, with her most recent episode of serious depression occurring as she struggled to get pregnant with her daughter, Gaia, who was born in 1999. But she has now found a new way to manage her moods.

She adds, “I discovered something about writing recently. With writing, you can pick up a pen and say, ‘I have to write’. And you should certainly write your early experiences because they are fascinating. Writing has freed me a lot.”

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Daniel Radcliffe, the actor who claimed his fame through his depiction of the famous by wizard Harry Potter, opens up on kissing Ginny Weasley and Dumbledore’s funeral in ‘Half-Blood Prince’.

Having been sharing bits about Harry Potter’s relationship with Ginny Weasley in earlier interview, Daniel Radcliffe opened up more about “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”. Quoted by Entertainment Weekly, the young actor who played the boy wizard in the “Harry Potter” series straight from the beginning shared on the kissing scene with Ginny’s depicter, Bonnie Wright and on Dumbledore’s funeral.

Of the kissing scene, he teased, “Harry’s got a real thing for her, and that is slightly odd, because when we met, I was 11 and she was 9, and she was only ever Ron’s little sister. But that all changed, and here we are snogging.” Meanwhile, on the filming of Dumbledore’s funeral, the 19-year-old claimed that it wasn’t easy since it took on more of an Irish wake, explaining “Because there’s a lot of people there, it’s one of those things that takes on a party atmosphere.”

Following Harry Potter in his sixth year at Hogwarts, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” tells the time the threat to the wizarding world by the evil dark wizard Lord Voldemort grows even stronger by day. Directed by “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” helmer David Yates, it stars Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Helena Bonham Carter, Robbie Coltrane, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman and many others. Initially set to be released on November 21, it has been pushed back to see a U.K. and U.S. release on July 17, 2009.

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Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has said he would like to try his hand at musicals after he finishes his current tour with stage production Equus.

After making his singing debut during at charity gala in New York to raise money for Broadway Cares, the young actor told the Equus co-producer Candia Fisher that he would he’d like his next stage performance to be an all-singing affair.

Fisher is said to have told him: “First you must ride a real horse,” to which Radcliffe responded, “I’ll try that too, but I think singing is safer.”

The humorous charity benefit featured Radcliffe performing an original song he wrote himself entitled The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Neigh that included the show’s horses characters dancing and cavorting with their young star.

Fisher also took Radcliffe and his fellow Equus actors and designers on a tour of the stables in Greenwich, Connecticut, where she and her daughter Matti keep their own horses. “They went to learn about horses, how to react like horses,” one source told a US-based gossip website.

The cast were introduced to Peter Leone, an Olympic silver medallist in show jumping who owns Lionshare Farm.

Meanwhile, disrobing on stage every night must be losing its novelty for the actor, but the producers still apparently see his nude scene as the show’s principal selling point: they have lately started wallpapering city streets with posters of the 19-year-old nude from the waist up.

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Twilight hunk Robert Pattinson has shown he has class as well as good looks by defending the late Heath Ledger.

The actor - who has risen to stardom off the success of vampire movieTwilight - was reportedly at the No On H8 comedy show at the Improv in Hollywood with some friends when the material took a poor taste turn.

The comedian on stage is said to have simulated Heath convulsing on the floor - a reference to the actor’s alleged overdose in January this year.

According to U.S reports, Robert and his pals immediately began booing and yelling at the distasteful routine.

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You can read what Robert and his friends reportedly said at the source. I will not be posting it here as it is not appropriate for all ages.

The gallery has gone through some major changes as of late and some of those changes have kept me from updating the site as much as I would have liked to.

First of all, the gallery now has its own domain, hpf-images.net, and is on a different host than the main site, forum, and video archive and because of this you may notice some differences (such as the fact that right now there are no ads on the gallery). To celebrate this fact, the gallery has a new layout featuring JK Rowling at a reading for Tales of Beedle the Bard!

During the gallery’s move to it’s domain and new host, I made the decision that I will no longer be making screencaptures of the actors in other roles as this takes up too much of my time and prevents me from updating the site as often and as much as I would like. Due to this change, all the screencaptures I had previously uploaded to the gallery have been deleted. There will, however, continue to be promotional images, stills, and posters from the actors’ other roles.

I hope you like the new layout and understand why I felt the need to delete the non-Harry Potter screencaptures. Regular updates to the gallery will resume shortly!

“Like Charles Dickens, Rowling has given us a perfect Christmas treat – ideal to slip in any stocking” – The Times

“…a charming confection of a book from the world of Harry Potter with the sparkle and wit that remind us why she became a publishing sensation in the first place.” – Associated Press

JK Rowling has expressed her thanks today to all those who have bought a copy of her charity book, The Tales of Beedle the Bard, making it the fastest selling title of 2008 and raising millions of pounds for children suffering in institutions.

“I am absolutely delighted that so much money has been raised”, she said, “and would like to thank everyone who has so far purchased a copy of the book.  All royalties will be going to help children without families, many of them with disabilities, whose voices have been unheard for many years.”

The first official international sales figures for Beedle, out today, show the book is set to become a Christmas bestseller. More than 2.6 million copies have been sold worldwide generating £4.2 million for the Children’s High Level Group (CHLG), the charity co-founded by JK Rowling to help vulnerable children in Central and Eastern Europe.

Richard Alderslade, Chief Executive of CHLG, said: “We had no idea what to expect in terms of sales figures so we are thrilled by such impressive sales in the first week alone. Whatever the final total, and we do hope that Beedle stays on top of the bestsellers list for Christmas, the project will certainly raise a huge amount to fund our work, giving hundreds of thousands of vulnerable children across Central and Eastern Europe a better life. Each time someone opens a copy of Beedle this Christmas or gives it as a gift, they will be making a difference to the life of a vulnerable child living not so very many miles away.

“Once again, we’d like to extend our thanks to JK Rowling for her ongoing support and for the wonderful gift of Beedle; not only the beautiful handcrafted copy we auctioned last year, but for allowing us to publish the tales so that people everywhere can enjoy them.”

Currently the top-selling book of the year in the USA Today and the Daily Telegraph charts and number one on Amazon, BarnesandNoble.com and Waterstones.com, The Tales of Beedle the Bard is published by CHLG in collaboration with Bloomsbury, Scholastic and Amazon.

The book has also been gathering rave reviews on both sides of the Atlantic:

“I can think of only three authors who are genuine creators of new fairytales: Joan Aiken, Tolkien and E. Nesbit. Rowling is the fourth, blending the comic with the gorgeously grotesque and adding her own delicate line drawings. … All of these tales – funny, sinister and wise and captivating – could have come new-minted from the Brothers Grimm. The pared-down language is tinged with antiquity but never patronises. Her gift for finding the perfect name and the unexpected twist is undimmed. Like Charles Dickens, Rowling has given us a perfect Christmas treat – ideal to slip in any stocking.” – Amanda Craig, The Times (4 December 2008)

“No, not a new book about the young wizard — THAT would be like a birthday combined with Christmas! Instead, she’s written a charming confection of a book from the world of Harry Potter with the sparkle and wit that remind us why she became a publishing sensation in the first place.”  – AP (4 December 2008)

“Dump the Xanax and grab J.K. Rowling’s ‘Tales of Beedle the Bard’. This charming little book is the best anti-anxiety medication on the market. Under the Bard’s spell, readers will forget at least briefly the tsunami of bad news and find themselves happy and entertained.”  – USA Today (5 December 2008)

Many thanks to the person who sent me this e-mail!

JK Rowling’s latest release has become the fastest-selling book of the year.

The Tales of Beedle the Bard, published just three days ago, has already sold five times more than its closest rival, Guinness World Records 2008.

It shifted 368,000 copies last week compared to 73,000 for the records annual.

“None of the other big releases managed to get near the sales figure for Beedle the Bard,” Phil Stone of The Bookseller magazine told The Daily Telegraph.

“I would be very surprised if it is not Christmas number one, but it’s not a dead cert.”

The book, dubbed the “unofficial Potter farewell”, comprises five fairy tales which were mentioned in the final installment of the Harry Potter series.

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You might think Emma Watson has already lived a fairy-tale life, what with starring since age 11 in the mega-successful “Harry Potter” films. But it took her performance in the upcoming film “The Tale of Despereaux” to make her a princess.

The 18-year-old actress lends her voice to the charming animated tale (based on a best-selling children’s book) of a courageous mouse (Matthew Broderick) who saves a princess in the most desperate of times. MTV News caught up with Watson to chat about venturing into non-”Potter” acting, why she might be moving to the United States, and whether she’d ever take it all off for a role as her friend Daniel Radcliffe did.

MTV: Apparently, you only work on films based on beloved books.

Emma Watson: [Laughs.] There is a bit of a pattern, isn’t there? Who knows what’s next?

MTV: Was this project a no-brainer for you to sign on to?

Watson: I read the script, and I just loved it. It was so charming. I fell in love with Despereaux, so I really didn’t have a choice. I had to be his princess.

MTV: I would imagine all the green-screen work you’ve done in the “Harry Potter” films helped you with this one.

Watson: Completely. The key in working on an animated film is, you have to be incredibly imaginative.

MTV: You recorded your scenes opposite a veteran voice actor in Matthew Broderick. He was in “The Lion King,” after all!

Watson: Was he in “The Lion King”? Who was he?

MTV: He was Simba.

Watson: No way! I did not realize that! I knew he was amazing anyway, but I did not realize he did “The Lion King.” That is awesome. I have a whole newfound respect. I’m now even more in love with him.

MTV: Do you see a lot of differences between Hermione and Princess Pea?

Watson: Hermione is a real tomboy. Princess Pea is very graceful, and she’s more subtle. She’s much more girly. I just felt really sorry for her. She’s very alone.

MTV: I have a few questions about those other films you’re sometimes associated with.

Watson: [Laughs.] Oh, those ones no one’s heard of?

MTV: Have you seen “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” yet?

Watson: No! I’m dying over here. I literally can’t wait any longer. I think I’ll get to see it in January.

MTV: What’s next for you?

Watson: I’m attached to a film called “Napoleon and Betsy,” which will hopefully get shot in 2010. I’ve got the colossal final book ["Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows"] to finish off, and I’m going to university in September. I’m looking at scripts and auditioning. I’m very excited to do roles beyond “Potter.” It’s a very exciting time for me.

MTV: Where are you going to school?

Watson: I may stay in the U.K., but I’m also looking at universities in the States, on the East Coast probably. I’ve applied already to some schools over there.

MTV: What kind of roles are you looking for after “Harry Potter” is done?

Watson: I want when people look back on my career for them to not be able to put me in a box and say, “She always played this kind of role.” I want to do everything. I would love to be in a musical. I want to sing. I want to do a crazy Baz Luhrmann “Moulin Rouge!” sort of thing. I’d love to do a period piece. I’d love to do a French film. There are so many options out there!

MTV: What about theater? Would you ever take it all off onstage as Daniel Radcliffe’s been doing in “Equus”?

Watson: I think Dan is incredibly brave. I would be completely terrified!

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Emma Watson says it was “lovely” making a new movie that wasn’t Harry Potter.

The actress hit the red carpet in Hollywood for the world premiere of her new animated adventure The Tale Of Despereaux.

“It was lovely,” she told reporters in Hollywood. “I had so much fun and the cast was so nice. Everyone that I worked with was so great, I just loved it.”

Emma plays a princess in the film about a misfit mouse which also stars Dustin Hoffman and Matthew Broderick.

At the special screening she joked how making an animated feature had its perks: “You can literally just roll out of bed and go into the studio, it’s great in that sense.”

The young star also revealed how she’s looking forward to Christmas.

“I can’t wait it’ll be so nice to spend time with my family and just veg out a bit,” she said. “I watch the Queen, we have a roast, presents in the morning, stockings, all the usual suspects.”

“I really want a snuggly pair of pyjamas,” she added “like a really soft snuggly pair.”

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This should come as no surprise to anyone: Warner Brothers wants more Harry Potter. The last book in J.K. Rowling’s fantasy series is already being prepped for the big screen, but when it’s over that leaves Warners without a source of steady, reliable, wizard income. Knowing that the gravy train is coming to an end, the WB is looking for ways to squeeze more out of Potter. According to one of our regular, reliable sources, they’re hoping to do it by digging deep into other J.K. Rowling work; specifically “The Tales of the Beedle Bard”.

“The Tales of the Beedle Bard” is a book within the book. It was first referenced in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”, as a book of stories read by children in the Harry Potter world. It’s a collection of five completely separate short stories which Rowling has since gone on to actually publish in our world, which is last I checked, is the real world. It hit store shelves in July of this year.

The 5 stories included in “Beedle Bard” are: “The Wizard and the Hopping Pot”, about the son of a wizard who inherits a pot with a foot. “The Fountain of Fair Fortune”, about a fountain where people who bathe have their problems solved. “The Warlock’s Hairy Heart”, about a warlock who uses dark magic to prevent himself from ever falling in love. “Babbitty Rabbitty and her Cackling Stump”, about a king who wishes to keep all magic to himself, but is thwarted by a stump with a cackle. Lastly “The Tale of the Three Brothers”, about three traveling brothers granted wishes by death.

None of these stories seems to have any connection to the other, which ought to make it difficult for Warners to fit them all into a single film. Could they be planning five movies? That would seem unwise. These are short stories after all, it’s unlikely there’s enough material in any one story to justify a feature film.

According to our sources, Warners is still trying to figure out exactly how to make this work. But there’s definitely a strong interest in making Tales of the Beedle Bard: The Movie happen, once Harry Potter is over with.

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