Harry Potter star Emma Watson has officially been banned from driving

In a scene that could have been plucked from a Studio Ghibli tale, where cobblestone streets glow under lanternlight and the wind whispers secrets through ancient trees, two stars of the Harry Potter universe found themselves grounded—not by a spell gone awry, but by the stern hand of the law. Emma Watson, beloved as the brilliant Hermione Granger, and Zoë Wanamaker, the spirited Madam Hooch, have both been banned from driving after speeding through the quiet lanes of England. The verdicts, delivered on July 16, 2025, at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court, paint a curious picture of these two witches caught in a decidedly Muggle predicament.

Imagine a twilight evening in Oxford, where the spires of the university pierce a sky painted in hues of lavender and gold, much like a Ghibli backdrop. On July 31, 2024, Emma Watson, now 35, was caught driving her sleek car at 38mph in a 30mph zone. The actress, who has traded film sets for the hallowed halls of the University of Oxford to pursue a master’s degree in creative writing since 2023, might have wished for Hermione’s Time-Turner to undo the moment. Her vehicle, perhaps zipping through the misty streets with the urgency of a first-year rushing to Potions class, was snapped by a vigilant speed camera. The consequence? A five-minute hearing she did not attend, held a 45-minute drive southeast of Oxford, where District Judge Arvind Sharma showed no leniency.

Watson, whose last silver-screen appearance was in the 2019 Little Women remake, faced a hefty $1,400 fine. Her driver’s license, already burdened with nine penalty points from prior infractions, gained three more, tipping her over the edge. The court’s ruling was as firm as a Hogwarts professor’s decree: a six-month driving ban. One can almost picture Watson, standing in Oxford’s historic libraries, her quill poised over parchment, sighing as she contemplates a semester of walking or perhaps borrowing a broomstick.

Coincidentally, the same court, on the same day, turned its gaze to another Harry Potter alum. Zoë Wanamaker, the 76-year-old actress who brought the broomstick-flying instructor Madam Hooch to life in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, was also caught in a speeding snare. On August 7, 2024, while motoring along the M4 in Newbury—a 40-minute journey south of Oxford—she drove at 46mph in a 40mph zone. The offense, less daring than Watson’s 26 percent over-the-limit sprint, still carried weight. Wanamaker, born in New York but a fixture in British television, faced an identical $1,400 fine and a six-month driving ban. Like Watson, her license already bore nine points, and Judge Sharma added three more, grounding the actress who once taught young wizards to soar.

In a Ghibli-inspired world, one might imagine Wanamaker’s car gliding through a countryside where wildflowers sway like spirits in the breeze, only to be halted by the unyielding tick of a speed camera. Her brief but memorable role in the Harry Potter saga, teaching Harry and Hermione the art of flight, feels ironic now, as both she and Watson are tethered to the earth. The synchronicity of their court dates adds a touch of magic to the tale, as if fate wove their stories together like threads in a tapestry.

The court’s decisions reflect the strictness of UK traffic laws, where penalty points accumulate like detentions at Hogwarts. Both actresses, with their licenses now at 12 points, crossed the threshold for a mandatory ban. VOCAL MEDIA has reached out to their representatives for comment, but the stars remain silent, perhaps retreating to the quiet of their own enchanted forests to reflect.

This tale of two witches, caught not by dark magic but by the mundane rules of the road, evokes a Ghibli-like blend of whimsy and consequence. Oxford’s ancient streets, alive with the whispers of history, now bear witness to their grounded journeys. As Watson pens her stories and Wanamaker recalls her stage and screen triumphs, they navigate a world where even stars must walk the earth—until their bans lift in January 2026.

Topics: Emma Watson, Harry Potter, UK News, Celebrity, Film and TV