Harry Potter legend Julie Walters has revealed she's just rewatched all the classic movies based on the books by J.K. Rowling.
The 71-year-old star has won a host of awards and been nominated for two Oscars during a glittering screen career, yet one role still holds a very special place in her heart.
Julie played Molly Weasley in all of the Harry Potter films, except The Goblet of Fire, and she says she still likes to settle down on the sofa and watch them at Christmas time!
Julie retired from acting last year after making a recovery from bowel cancer but has lent her voice to Channel 4's animated Christmas film The Abominable Snow Baby., which promises to be a Christmas TV highlight.
Yet with so much free time on her hands in recent months, Julie decided to watch the entire Harry Potter series from start to finish.
"The films were all on TV recently and I thought 'I'm going to sit down and watch them!'" she says. "They're perfect for this time of year and I really enjoyed them. I think the kids were brilliant and I love seeing how they developed as actors over the series. The films are great and they get better as they go on don't they?"
Julie says her favourite movie is the final one, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, because that's when her character has her most famous scene.
"That's the one where I get to kill Bellatrix," explains Julie. "That's my only bit of action! I still get lots of people writing to me, sending a picture of me with the wand and they say, 'can you put on "Not my daughter, you bitch!" at the top?' I remember reading the book before we did the film and I thought 'they better put that in or I'll be on the phone!'"
Meanwhile, on New Year's Day Harry Potter fans have something special to look forward to. Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts will see many members of the cast reunite.
Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts will air on HBO on Jan. 1 2022 in the US and on Sky in the UK.
