Emma Watson is still incredibly famous, but she’s gotten to the point where people aren’t tracking her every move anymore. Before this week, I don’t even remember the last time I heard one piece of gossip or news about her. For the past few years, Emma has been living in Oxford and pursuing a doctorate. This week’s gossip is fascinating – apparently, Emma’s driver’s license has been suspended for six months. The suspension came after she was given a speeding ticket for… going 38 mph in a 30 mph zone. In Oxford.
Emma Watson has been temporarily banned from driving as a result of a 2024 speeding incident.
PEOPLE confirms that the Harry Potter alum was ordered not to drive for six months on Wednesday, July 16 — nearly a year after a camera caught her going 38 mph in a 30 mph zone in Oxford, England, on July 31, 2024.
As detailed by the BBC, Watson, 35, already had nine points on her driver’s license before the incident, and was ordered to pay a fine of £1,044 ($1,396) at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court Wednesday. The actress did not attend the related hearing, which lasted five minutes, per the BBC.
A rep for Watson did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on Wednesday.
At first, I thought the only way this would make sense is if the 30-mph-zone was like a school zone or near a hospital or something, because here in America, the cops are very strict about speeding in those kinds of speciality zones. But the “nine points on her driver’s license” part is relevant here. In the UK system, you’re given “penalty points” for driving infractions and if you accumulate a certain amount of points in a certain time frame (three years, apparently), that’s when your license will get suspended. So yeah, it’s crazy to say “Emma lost her license for speeding at 38 mph,” but she had already committed several other driving infractions in recent months/years. Is Emma a bad driver? A reckless driver? Apparently, she drives an Audi. Nice, but it’s not like she’s ripping around in a souped-up sports car.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
-
- Kering Foundation Caring For Women Dinner hosted by Anderson Cooper. Featuring: Emma Watson Where: New York, New York, United States When: 15 Sep 2022 Credit: JOHN NACION/startraksphoto.com/Cover Images
-
- Milan Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2024 – Prada – Arrivals Featuring: Emma Watson Where: Milan, Italy When: 21 Sep 2023 Credit: Abaca Press/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
-
- Milan Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2024 – Celebrity Sightings – Day 3 Featuring: Emma Watson Where: Milan, Italy When: 22 Sep 2023 Credit: Abaca Press/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
I read that the other 9 points were for speeding, too.
NINE POINTS?!l Girrrrrrrrrrrrrrrl….
What makes it worse is that in the UK you usually get offered a speed awareness course at first time of offence in lieu of points. So 9 points in three years indicates that this is actually her fourth time of significant speeding, and is pretty poor considering lots of areas and cameras in the UK are quite lax.
She’s a regular speeder. Not the worst kind, as she’s just going “a bit” over the limit (which can still be dangerous), but do that enough times and you lose your licence. At least some of her traffic points came from wrong parking, too. Apparently she blocked somebody’s driveway for hours while visiting a pub.
Yes that did sound excessive for driving 38 in a 30 zone there had to be more to it to get the license suspension.
The points thing does look bad, and not going to one of the class things if they are available, but it still seems like they are harder on speeding in the UK because, at least where I live (maryland/DC area), 8 miles over is pretty much considered “not speeding”. The speed cameras only send a ticket if you are like 11 or 12 miles over, and I feel like it’s pretty much known you can go ten miles over in most places and be fine. I’d like to know how fast she was going in the other incidents. Because I would have been jailed in the UK if I drove the way I do here, lol! 🙂
Also, EW looks so cute in both those photos!
Same. Also in the DMV, where speed cameras are super common. When we moved to our new neighborhood the folks next door flat out said the camera on the main 40mph road leading back to our places is triggered at 53! I don’t think anyone would bother pulling you over for 8mph unless you’re driving otherwise erratically or in a school zone with kids actually around. Though it does sound like this is an ongoing problem for her, but it would be for me too if 8 over was a trigger, that’s barely enough to keep you from being run over here!
It’s quite easy to go over the 30mph limits here, but it is what it is. I wonder whether she did do the speed awareness course, because imagine doing one of those and Emma Watson popping up in the group, it might have been a calculated risk that she didn’t do it and just accepted the points. Either way, bad times for her.
I saw on the BBC article that Zoe Wanamaker also got a six month ban at the same court on the same day, what are the chances that Hermione and Madame Hooch were both in court and receiving the same penalty? Haha
And not even on their brooms!
FYI: 38 mph =61.155 km/h. 30 mph=48.38 km/h.
I’ll be honest: 50km/h in a residential area is still much too high! Hitting a pedestrian at 60km/h pretty much ensure their death
Thanks for this. It seems to be a small difference, but when converted to km/h, it is clear she was very much speeding. It’s not like she was going 31 mph…
In Buenos Aires, the speed limit is 40 km/h for residential areas. Going over 60 km/h is wild and reckless. Avenues have speed limits of 70 km/h, so going 60 down a residential street could cause a lot of harm.
Thanks for the conversion. Yikes, 10+ km over is a big deal in my state, you’d get 3 points and $450 fine. 2-10km over is still 1 point and a $300 fine but people do tend to view that range as less serious/ revenue raising, there’s less judgement.
I must admit I am a reformed speeder, but I am not rich and/or dumb enough to ignore THREE points + fine accumulation incidents and keep speeding. Repeat offending is definitely viewed as reckless.
The good news is that in the UK there’s public transportation, and she is rich and can call an uber. The bad news is that 6 months is too long without a car. Oh well.
I never speed in residential or commercial areas, but speeding on highways is very normal in the US. The (sexistly named) “gentleman’s 10” means the police won’t even bother unless you’re 11+ MPH over the limit. These days I think it’s up to 20 on the interstates.