Emma Watson’s alleged return to the city of dreaming spires where she grew up has created a media frenzy this week.
The Harry Potter actress, now 21, is rumoured to have accepted a place to read English at Worcester College for the upcoming academic year. This comes amid speculation that Watson wishes to escape bullying at Brown university.
Watson was reported to have taken a semester off from Brown to the movies and focus on being face of Lancome.
However, she dispelled allegations that this was linked to bullying at Brown. In a message posed on her website on 29 April 2011, she said, “Please don’t try and speculate about what I might do in September – no one can possibly know because I don’t even know yet! Like my other fellow Brown students I am trying to figure out my third year and whether or not I will spend it abroad (this is common).
“I felt the need to let you all know the reason I took a semester off from Brown had nothing to do with bullying as the media have been suggesting recently. I have never been bullied in my life and certainly never at Brown.
“This ‘10 points to Gryffindor’ incident never even happened. I feel the need to say this because accusing Brown students of something as serious as bullying and this causing me to leave seems beyond unfair.”
In an interview with the Sunday Times, Watson commented, “It made me so sad when all this stuff came out that I left Brown because I was being bullied. It made no sense at all.
“Brown has been the opposite. I’ve never even been asked for an autograph on campus. I threw a party for nearly 100 students and not a single person put a photo on Facebook.”
Katy Routh, head of the English Faculty, dismissed the media hype around Watson’s acceptance of a place to study English at Oxford as “rumour in the Mirror.”
The university Press Office also declined to comment as to whether or not Watson would be transferring or taking a year abroad to study at Oxford.
James Gibson, leader of the Emma Watson fan club at Oxford stated “She’s certainly put a spell on me. I am completely under her charm. I can’t wait to Wingardium Levios-her! ”
