Daniel Radcliffe, who has given life to J.K Rowling’s wizard Harry Potter, has more to his credit than the Potter fame. The actor has gone beyond big screen to express his impressive acting skills on the stage. And he has shown his magic once again. He has been nominated for the Drama Desk Awards in New York Monday.

Radcliffe has been shortlisted for outstanding actor in a play for his intense and bold performance as Alan Strang in the play “Equus.” Others actors nominated in this category include Bill Irwin for “Waiting for Godot,”Simon Russell Beale for “The Winter’s Tale,” Reed Birney for “Blasted,” Raul Esparza for “Speed-The-Plow,” Geoffrey Rush for “Exit the King” and Thomas Sadoski for “Reasons to be Pretty.”

Daniel Radcliff in "Equus"

Nominated for the Drama Desk Award for outstanding actress in a play are Jane Fonda for “33 Variations,” Saidah Arrika Ekulona for “Ruined,” Marcia Gay Harden for “God of Carnage,” Elizabeth Marvel for “Fifty Words,” Jan Maxwell for “Scenes From an Execution” and Janet McTeer for “Mary Stuart.”

In the list for outstanding actor in a musical are James Barbour from “A Tale of Two Cities,” Daniel Breaker and Brian d’Arcy James from “Shrek The Musical,” Josh Grisetti from “Enter Laughing The Musical,” Sahr Ngaujah from “Fela!” and Will Swenson from “Hair.”

Shortlisted for outstanding actress in a musical are Stockard Channing for “Pal Joey,” Janney, Megan Hilty and Stephanie J. Block for “9 to 5,” Sutton Foster for “Shrek the Musical” and Karen Murphy for “My Vaudeville Man!”

The Harry Potter wizard made his Broadway debut in the revival Broadway production of Peter Shaffer play “Equus” in September 2008. Daniel Radcliffe in “Equus” has proved his acting talent which has placed him alongside popular stage actors. “Equus” also received two other nominations: David Hersey, for Outstanding Lighting Design in a Play, and Gregory Clarke, for Outstanding Sound Design.

The Drama Desk is an organization made up of professional theater critics, and it gives awards to Broadway production and off-Broadway productions competing in the same categories. Awards ceremony will be held on May 17 at F.H. LaGuardia Concert Hall at Lincoln Center.

A scene from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Now that the release date for ¨Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince¨ has finally been fixed, talks have begun regarding the seventh Potter film ¨Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.¨ The film, which is set for release next year in two parts, is being shot currently. But the question is where does the movie split. Why not know it from Harry Potter Himself?

Daniel Radcliffe, along with producer David Heyman, has revealed a few things regarding the split that is to separate the two parts of the film version of the seventh Harry Potter. The young actor played with words while talking about the film recently. The split is ”at a very tense cliffhanger,” he tells Empire. It is a bit of a clue for readers of Harry Potter book series.

Producer David Heyman says teasingly ”We’ve played around with a couple of places,” and adds ”[We] ultimately settled on a place that we think is very exciting, and I think quite bold, in that it’s not necessarily where one might expect. You want to give a sense of completion, on one hand, but a sense that there’s another piece, more to come. We tried one and then [writer] Steve Kloves, came up with the idea to try it another way and when we tried that, it felt just right.” Well, that is not exactly good enough revelation, but it does help solving the mystery a little.

Harry Potter stars shoot in London

While shooting for an action sequence for the first part of the same movie, Harry Potter crew caused chaos on the streets of London where they stopped traffic to film the scene. Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint were all there. The two actors were in smart suits and Watson was wearing a glamorous red dress with high heels. Along with the three stars were 400 extras who blocked London´s famous Piccadily Circus and surrounding roads to shoot scenes in a cafe and on the streets.

Emma Watson and Robert Pattinson

There is one more feather on the hat. The Robert Pattinson infatuation line has now been joined by Harry Potter star Emma Watson. By calling Rob, her former co-star a “very handsome man” Watson has already erupted a new controversy.

In a recent interview Watson was all gaga over the most charming vampire on screen. She praised Rob for his recent achievements and acclamations for his role as Edward Cullen in the vampire flick Twilight. She also said that she finds the Brit born star very attractive indeed.

About Rob’s long lining female fan following Watson in an interview with MTV said, “He is incredibly handsome! He is a very, very handsome man, so I’m not too surprised”. Although Emma hasn’t watched the blockbuster film of Robert Pattinson yet, she is still in complete awe of its remarkable success. “I don’t know much about it. I haven’t seen the film“, Watson said.

“I’m just gob-smacked by the level of excitement and hype around Twilight. I’m very happy for Rob that it’s been so successful”, Emma added. She also added that she is very thrilled to find Rob play Salvador Dali in “Little Ashes“.

“Obviously, I know Rob“, she claimed. The 18 year old actor has also predicted that Robert Pattinson will become a famous actor as she considers him a heartthrob.

Harry Potter

´Yes, it will.´ That’s what the makers of the sixth Harry Potter film ¨Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince¨ have to say. They are sure that the boy wizard will continue to attract audience, even though we all know what happens in the last of the series. who dies, who lives and who marries whom.

The opening dates for the film have been changed for a few times. Now, it is supposed to be released July 15, 2009. The online trailer of the film will be released today (Thursday) at 9 pm (Eastern) on harrypotter.com. In theaters, the trailer will be rel;eased on May 1, before ¨Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.¨

Director David Yates says ”Once you’re hooked into these stories, it’s really difficult to let go. The audience has grown up with these characters. I think that gives them a very special relationship. I can’t think of any other movie franchise that has had that. They started out at 10 or 11, and now they’re 18 and 19.”

Harry Potter and Half-Blood Prince evokes the dark atmosphere, which the fifth Harry Potter film hinted. Lord Voldemort has returned with a powerful hold over the muggle and the wizard world. Dark things are happening in Hogwarts. But Hogwarts principal Dumbledore is concerned about graver things, what Harry has to fight. Together, Harry and Dumbledore embarks on a journey to find Voldemort´s defenses.

The seventh Harry Potter, ¨Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows¨ is due in two parts on Nov. 19, 2010 and July 15, 2011.

James Waylett

Actor James Waylett, who plays Hogwart student Vincent Crabbe in Harry Potter films, has been arrested, along with his friend, in Central London for possession of drugs.

Sources revealed that police stopped the 19-year-old actor´s car suspecting there was drugs inside. ”The car was searched and officers found eight bags of a substance believed to be cannabis,” a Scotland Yard spokesperson has said. Both Waylett and his friend were detained in a central London police station.

Later, when police raided Waylett´s mother’s home in Camden, north London, they found about 10 cannabis plants worth 2000 pounds. Scotland Yeard declared ”Officers found a number of plants believed to be cannabis plants and equipment for the cultivation. Both men have been bailed until July pending further inquiries and tests on the substances.”

According to legal experts, cannabis is a class B drug and the maximum punishment in Britain for cultivation of the plant is 14 years of imprisonment. Warner Bros., that produces Harry Potter Movies, refused to make any comment on this matter.

Waylett has appeared in all the five films of Harry Potter as the bully Vincent Crabbe, who is the right-hand man to Draco Malfoy. The next Potter film, ´Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince´ is to be released in Britain in July 2009.

Harry Potter Stars

It has been confirmed that the final and the last sequel of the Harry Potter series will be released in 2011. Warner Bros has announced that the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II will be released on July 15th 2011.

Instead of wadding up the 608 pages book into one feature film, the film studio chose to divide the seventh and final Harry Potter book into two parts. While the 2nd part will be released in 2011, the first part of the film will hit screens in 2010. The studio mentioned that the decision was made to take full advantage of Hollywood’s busy summer blockbuster season. The 1st part of the film, which is based opn the last Harry Potter book will be released on 19th November, 2010.

Both the films will be shot back to back to make the viewers feel as if it was one film. According to Warner Bros. executive Alan Horn it will allow “an extra hour and a half to celebrate what this franchise has been and do justice to all the words and ideas in the amazing story”.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Daniel Radcliff remains as Harry Potter, who makes a decision to find the remaining Horcruxes, not returning for his seventh year at Hogwarts.

Emma Watson

Emma Watson alias ‘Hermione Granger’ of Harry Potter fame feels that she wants to get naked if the role suits her. Emma has expressed her wish to work for Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci. She revealed that she would not stop herself from stripping for a director like Bernardo Bertolucci.

She also told that shedding her clothes was part of her job so she would never shy away from it. She would get naked but only for the right role.

She told The Sun: “I’m not getting my kit off any time soon, but it is part of my job.” Emma is heading towards Daniel Radcliffe’s path who had shown his fully naked body in ‘Equus’. Emma will have to wait for her wishes to come true! She will be attending university to study English Language and for the time being she wants to concentrate on studies.

She revealed her present state of mind: “I’m not going to take a job just because, s***, I’m not doing anything else. I’m going to have a battle on my hands, because after Harry Potter has finished, I don’t know. I definitely want to go to university…” Emma also felt that she had a life that was far away from the world of Harry Potter. Emma also said that she “WOULD NOT” take up anything so big as Harry Potter.

The movie in the Harry Potter series “The half Blood Prince” is scheduled for release next summer and the final story in the franchise “Deathly Hallows” will be split into two movies.

Daniel Radcliffe

The boy who took the world by storm accepts the fact that whatever he is today is all because he was cast as the lead in the “Harry Potter”series. Daniel Radcliffe who presently wants to shed his boyish charm has stripped for a full frontal nude seen on London and New York stages in Equus. His role in the play was marvelous as anticipated earlier.

He is ever thankful for his magical role in the blockbuster franchise. His present star status and massive fan following along with his bank balance is all because of Harry Potter.

Daniel has revealed that he might never get over his wand-wielding character in Harry Potter because he believes (and rightly so) that his role in the film has “given him everything”, everything that an actor could ask for in his entire life and career. He says, “It’s a reality you have to come to terms with – rather than letting it bother you, just accept the fact that there will always be some people who will forever see you for the one part you are most famous for.

Later he explains, “It’s not that I want to distance myself from it because… they’ve given me everything… it’s just a matter of being an actor rather than a character”. Daniel’s coming to terms with Harry Potter has gained him an honest image and a strong recognition. He said he would love to be associated with Harry Potter all his life as it has become his identity and a way of living.

A new trailer of the Harry Potter sequel, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, has been released.

The trailer features every new footage of the sixth film in the Potter squeal. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince will debut in months ahead of the film’s July 2009 release.

The film is directed by David Yates. In the forthcoming release of the Potter film there follows a series of the trials of Harry as he ventures on his sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince also showcases the foundation for Potter’s final battle against Voldemort as told in the final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

To check out the latest released trailer of  Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince click on the following link:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/video.cfm?c_id=1501119&gal_objectid=10539754&gallery_id=103155