In the Harry Potter films Emma Watson plays the bossy but adorable Hermione Granger, Harry's (Daniel Radcliffe) and Ron's (Rupert Grint) best friend, but in real life Emma is only adorable. We meet the schoolgirl, bombed to world star (Emma's still only 15 years old), in a luxurious hotel in Hertfordshire, north of London . She doesn't have a lot of time: she's expected in the Leavesden Film Studios, where director Mike Newell and his crew are finishing ‘Harry Potter and the goblet of fire'. And we're not alone: in the room there's an evil looking lady – probably a disguised dementor – who listens along during the whole interview, to make sure that we don't ask any ‘wrong' questions. We climb into the couch next to Emma, who wears the most adorable braces and answers our questions in a very polite way.

I have something to confess: I never read a Harry Potter book. I'm more a Lord of the rings- kind of person...
What!? But that's just criminal! (To the dementor) Send this man immediately away! (Laughs)

But I have seen the films en I loved The prisoner of Azkaban very much. Is The goblet of fire just as dark and scary?
It's even darker! People die for the first time, and things begin to collide a bit between Hermione, Harry and Ron. And for the first time you get a direct duel between Harry and Voldemort. All together, I find that this film is perhaps the most terrifying one out of the whole series.

This is your fourth Harry Potter film, but for director Mike Newell it was the first one. Did you look at him as if he was the new student in the class?
Yes, absolutely (laughs). The first thing he said, was: ‘You've been doing this for four years and I'm a rookie, so you're gonna have to show me the way!' (laughs) But Mike of course had already made a lot of excellent films – like Four weddings and a funeral, which I love very much. I can still learn a lot more from him than he can from me.

The Harry Potter films rely mostly on special effects. Does it actually matter who directs the film?
Yes it does, because each director has his own kind of style. Mike Newell was the first British director and you can feel that: he knows the boarding school ambience and has a very dry sense of humor. He also gave a lot of his attention to us, the actors. He always said: ‘In this film we get to see magical owls, snakes and dragons, en we're working with a huge budget and a lot of special effects, but all that means nothing if you aren't convincing.' The result was that he spent a lot of time with us and talked a lot to us. And that was new. But I don't think that one way of working is better than the other, there's just a difference.

Isn't this the movie in which Hermione falls in love?
(blushing) That's right, she has her first romance. That was interesting to play.

It probably was. Until now our little Hermione always was very busy with wands, spells and wizards: things that don't exist in real life. But falling in love…
Yes, for the first time there's something happening to Hermione that could also happen to me in real life! Hermione has something going on with a very famous quidditch player, who asks her to the Yule ball. That was a very exciting take

Were you nervous?
A bit, but I was in good hands. Mike knew exactly how awkward and clumsy a teen girl can feel when a guy asks her out for the very first time. I think that he made that Yule ball scene a really brilliant one. Hermione, Ron and Harry obviously begin to develop feelings for the opposite sex, and they don't know how to handle with that. I think a lot of teenagers will recognize themselves in our characters.

During that scene, were you able to use some of your personal experiences?
You bet! I know exactly what it's like! I'm afraid that I already had some very embarrassing and awkward encounters with guys.

Tell!
(blushing really hard) The first time I danced with a guy was an absolute disaster. I never slow danced again since that moment and I'm also never gonna do it again in my entire life! No way! In that way I'm kind of like Hermione. She doesn't know what to think about boys and she definitely doesn't know how to handle with them. (laughs)

Are there more things you have in common with her?
No, actually I'm not like Hermione at all. Hermione can be very energetic: when she wants something, she will not rest until she has it. In this movie you will by the way notice that she will less and less follow Harry and Ron and she's more than ever pushing her own little will. I'm not like that: I'm just a very good decent girl that most of the time just thinks about shopping. (laughs)

Actually we get to see you grow up on the screen. In the time of The sorcerer's stone you were just a kid. Now you're becoming a young woman. Do you experience it like that yourself?
Yes, absolutely. In the beginning Harry Potter was something that happened to me. I didn't understand what was happening to me and I absolutely didn't know how to behave: it was like I'd landed in the eye of a tornado. But when I got older, I gained self-confidence. I also pay more and more attention to the technical aspects: what would it look like if I stood here? How do I have to stand in front of the camera to look right? Sometimes I even raise my voice against the director (laughs).

You haven't outgrown the magic of Harry Potter yet?
No, because the fun part is that our characters grow along with us. Hermione, Ron and Harry are no longer the little innocent children that they were four years ago. They've become real teenagers. And the audience also grows along with us. Little kids will still be able to enjoy it, but the movies are more and more aiming at a teenage audience. The characters are becoming adults, and the stories become more serious.

What do you do actually, when you're not on set?
I go to school (laughs). I experience the filming in a whole other way than the adult actors. They're probably often bored to death, because on a film set you sometimes have to wait a very long time before you can actually shoot a scene. But that doesn't affect me: as soon as I'm ready with my scene, they take me from the set and drive me to school. By the way, I'm only allowed by the law to work a limited amount of hours a day.

Aren't your friends very jealous?
I do get some mean reactions from time to time, but not from my friends: they always act very normal when I'm with them. That's because I stayed normal myself: the fact that you play in a movie from time to time, doesn't mean that all of the sudden you have to act like a star. By the way, when I'm with my friends, we almost never talk about Harry Potter. Actually we only talk about clothes and boys (laughs). You know, I don't feel like a movie star at all. When I go to school, I'm just a student like all the rest and when I'm on set, I have to work until I drop. Only during the world premieres I get to taste some of the glitter and glamour of the film world.

At which moments do you feel like you're the happiest person in the world?
When I can chat with my girlfriends, or when I can go shopping. I have one big passion: trying new clothes. When I have to go to a premiere or a big dinner, I really like to try and make myself look good. I guess there's a little coquettish lady in me (laughs). Not that I have to walk around in a dress all the time: at home I just shuffle around in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.

I also like to sleep. When I don't have anything to do, I just fall asleep. And I also like to listen to music.

What kind of music can we find on your iPod?
I've already listened a thousand times to Coldplay's latest record. And I also listen a lot to James Blunt and David Gray.

On set you're constantly surrounded by grown-ups, but once you're back in school, you're back between people of your own age. Isn't it hard to turn that switch?
Yes, sometimes it is. I try to lead a very normal life, but Harry Potter has created some sort of wedge between me and my classmates. I often have the feeling that there's a great distance between us, and I don't like that. I also often have the feeling that a lot of great things are passing me by, just because I have to put so much time in the movies. That's why I always try to get back to school as fast as possible when the filming is done, just to spend as much time as possible with my girlfriends. And I do love going to school. I might not be the smartest girl in my class, but I do want to get good grades, so I can go to university.

Don't you wanna continue acting?
I do, I do! After Harry Potter I definitely would like to try other roles, and I'd also like to perform on stage before an audience. I'm determined to become an actress! The only problem is that this business is so unpredictable. You're only an actress for as long as the filming lasts, after that you have to start looking for another role again. You're never really sure that you're going to find work all the time. So I'd like to have a diploma first, then I've got something to rely on.

Which parts would you like to play?
Yesterday I finally saw The Motorcycle Diaries and I absolutely loved it. I'd love to play in a movie like that. I also look up to Julia Roberts and Goldie Hawn, I wouldn't say no to a career like theirs!

On the Harry Potter-set you get to work with a lot of famous actors, such as Michael Gambon, Gary Oldman, Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson. Do you ask them for advice sometimes?
No. It's funny but I've never really got any advice or tips. That's not necessary: I learn by watching them. I'm very happy that I can work together with those people; they inspire me to become a better actress and work even harder.

What is strange is the fact that now I am much more impressed by them then in the early days. In the beginning I was only ten and I didn't know who Alan Rickman or Emma Thompson actually were. But actually that was an advantage: I wasn't afraid of them.

Do think it's nice or annoying when people recognize you on the street?
Actually it flatters me.

You haven't had any problems with stalkers yet?
No, but it often happens that people approach me on the street and ask me for an autograph. The past five years I've learned to sign autographs really fast (laughs). And I also get a lot, but really a lot of fan mail. Those letters get sent to a special address, where each one of them is being read and answered. I really wouldn't like it when they were all sent to my address; I prefer to keep my business and personal life separated. But I do think it's nice that a lot of people are thinking about me and I wished that I had more time to read and answer all those letters myself.

You haven't got any marriage proposals yet?
No, not yet (laughs).

On the internet, there are dozens of websites dedicated to you. Do you sometimes take a look at them to find out what people have to tell about you?
No, I deliberately try to avoid that. I don't think it's really healthy when you're busy with yourself all the time. By the way, if I wanted to know what people tell about me, it would only make me depressed. I really don't like the fact that other people are judging about me. In the beginning, when the first films came out, that was different: then I read everything that was written about me and I could get really angry when the people wrote something negative about me. But now I just let it slip away.

You're a very grounded girl...
I owe that to my parents. They watch me very closely and make sure that I keep my feet on the ground.

Were you frightened by the terror attacks in London ?
Yes, at school we talked about it all the time. I was in class when it happened, but my father was only 200 metres away from the place where one of the bombs went off. His office is in the middle of the city. I couldn't reach him and for a moment I really panicked. I was so happy when I heard his voice!

Of course we were all shocked, but it wasn't really unexpected. Everybody knew that sooner or later something terrible had to happen in London .

Are you worried about the future?
I know that terrible things happen in this world, and I try to follow and understand it all as good as possible, but I think that you don't only have to look at the attacks and the wars. You also have to dare to look at the fun parts in life!

Imagine that you would have to choose: a great career in Hollywood or a great marriage?
Hmmmmm… Can't I have both? (laughs) But if I would really have to choose, then I'd pick a great marriage. I think it would be amazing if I would get to play beautiful parts and win Oscars, but that would all mean nothing if my parents and friends weren't there with me. What is success when you don't have anybody to love? No, I'd rather be happily married.