Helena Bonham Carter to appear in BBC TV Spy Thrillers

It has recently been announced that Helena Bonham Carter, who portrays Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter films, will play an MI5 agent in two thrillers produced by BBC TV.

The two films, called Turks & Caicos and Salting the Battlefield, are part of The Worricker Trilogy. The first part of the trilogy, called Page Eight and starring Rachel Weisz, aired two years ago. Little is known about Helena's role in the film other than that she is an MI5 agent - we'll have to tune in to learn more about her role in the film! Filming on Turks and Caicos is set to begin later this month, and filming should be completed on both installments by September.

Are you looking forward to seeing Helena play a Spy? Did you catch the first installment of the trilogy, Page Eight? Let us know in the comments!

Helena Bonham Carter to play role of Elizabeth Taylor in upcoming BBC film 'Burton and Taylor'

Coming off the heels of the ill-fated Lifetime biographical film Liz & Dick, which starred Lindsay Lohan in a comeback role playing the part of Elizabeth Taylor - a British-American film icon - BBC Four has announced plans for a new movie proudly made in Britain, featuring Bellatrix Lestrange actress Helena Bonham Carter.

The new movie entitled "Burton and Taylor" will focus on Taylor's troubled relationship with actor Richard Burton (played by Dominic West) and captures the time the couple had to take the stage and perform as each other's love interest. The film is representative of a new line of dramas coming from the BBC which they say take a "bold, adventurous, authorial approach that exports because of its Britishness not despite it."

Do you think Helena will fair better than Lindsay Lohan in the role? Let us know in the comments!

Thanks to Hypable for the tip!

Helena Bonham Carter to be honoured by London Critics' Circle

Her work was described as “packed with iconic, offbeat characters, each of which she invests with an unusual spark of humanity” by the Chair of the Critics’ Circle Film Awards, Rich Cline. This “unusual spark of humanity” has certainly made Helena Bonham Carter, who portrayed Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter films, a unique actress who dazzles in every one of her performances. The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Bonham Carter will be the recipient of the Dilys Powell Award for excellence in film at the 33rd London Critics' Circle Film Awards.

The Dilys Powell Award is the London Critic’s Circle highest honor, having been previously won by fellow Potter actors Julie Walters (2007), Richard Harris (2000), and John Hurt (1998), as well as other industry greats such as Dame Judi Dench (2008) and Quentin Tarantino (2009).

Rich Cline also added:

“She regularly receives nods from the Critics' Circle Film Award, most recently with two nominations in 2010, for The King's Speech and Alice in Wonderland. And she gave three unforgettable film performances this past year."

Helena Bonham Carter reacted to the award by saying:

"To be chosen for this award is a surprise and an honor. I am delighted! It's always nice when critics say something nice about you for a change, and especially the critics in your hometown."

The 33rd London Critics' Circle Film Awards will take place on January 20^th, 2013. Be sure to watch for Helena in the upcoming films Great Expectations and Les Miserables.

Which of her characters is your favourite? Do you think her portrayal of Bellatrix was accurate?

Dan Radcliffe apologized to Robbie Coltrane for Phone Prank

Daniel Radcliffe’s tendency to prank his fellow Harry Potter cast-mates often added levity to the set, but there was at least one time when his antics went a little too far.

Reportedly, Robbie Coltrane, who portrayed Hagrid in the films, was once a victim of a prank where the young actor changed the settings on his friend’s phone from English to Turkish. The joke seems harmless enough—except that Coltrane was left unable to make calls!

The infuriated actor had a hard time finding anyone on set who could change the settings of his phone back to English, and Radcliffe was left feeling understandably sheepish about what he had done. Coltrane remembers the event clearly:

Eventually we found a girl in the Harry Potter make-up department who was Turkish Cypriot. She phoned her mum and was chatting away in great detail until they sorted it out. I think Daniel was so upset at what had happened that he wrote me that note...'Dear Mr. Coltrane, I'm sorry I changed your mobile telephone into Turkish...

Have you ever been part of a prank gone too far? Let us know in the comments!

Helena Boham Carter is interviewed by Daniel Radcliffe for Interview Magazine

Interview Magazine is giving us a little role reversal as Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe interviews the beautiful Helena Bonham Carter - the actress that portrayed Bellatrix Lestrange.

Helena has her latest project Dark Shadows coming out this month, which she collaborated on with director and husband Tim Burton. So who better to send for an interview than someone who has actually worked alongside her for several years.

Dan: Your Harry Potter character, Bellatrix Lestrange, is one of the scariest characters in the books. But I think it's fair to say that she is very playful and quite sexy as well.

Helena: When they sent the part, I thought, What am I going to do here? Because, actually, on the page, she wasn't all there, so I thought, Well, you've got to be noticed. And Bellatrix-kids were terrified of her. So I think, Okay, I've got to be scary. But then also, if you're with kids, you want to have fun being naughty.

Dan: Do you think you take inspiration from kids a lot? Because I do. They're very honest in how they act and how they are in the world.

Helena: Oh, yeah. They are. And I also think there's a lot of Peter Pan about me anyway. I never really wanted to grow up. I grew up really young. I moved out when I was 13-that's when I started acting. Dad was really ill-he was pretty much paralyzed—so there was a part of me that felt like I had to become responsible.

Be sure to read the entire interview right here.

Thanks to Leaky for the tip!

Helena Bonham Carter to be honored with CBE from Queen Elizabeth in 2012

According to a recent report, actress Helena Bonham Carter - who portrayed the evil Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange - is set to be named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE), by Queen Elizabeth of the United Kingdom.

Helena, whose career in acting is highly acclaimed, has previously received two Oscar and six Golden Globe Award nominations including an Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth in The King's Speech. She has also won a BAFTA last year for the same film.

The Queen's honor list is released twice a year, on New Year's Eve and on her majesty's birthday in June. You may recall that author J.K. Rowling has already received an OBE from the Queen back in 2000.

Congratulations to Helena Bonham Carter on this prestigious honor!