Harry Potter's love interest found
(Agencies)
Updated: 2006-02-05 16:30

An Irish Harry Potter fan, Evanna Lynch, will play his love interest in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" after she beat out around 150,000 hopefuls.

Actors Daniel Radcliffe (L) and Rupert Grint and actress Emma Watson (C) pose at the premiere of the film 'Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire' in New York November 12, 2005. Warner Bros announced on Thursday that filming will begin next week of 'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix' with Radcliffe, Watson and Grint reprising their roles as teenage wizards. [Reuters]

According to contactmusic.com, Lynch will play Luna Lovegood. Lynch is such a big fan of the Potter series that she named her two cats Luna and Crookshanks. She was even sent a signed copy of the book when she was too sick to attend a book signing.

Her father says, "Words cannot describe how happy she is." 

'Harry Potter 5' to Start Filming

Imelda Staunton arrives for the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Feb. 5, 2005, in Los Angeles. She will join the cast of the new Harry Potter movie and play Dolores Umbridge, an unpopular new professor at wizard academy Hogwarts. Filming will begin Monday, Feb. 6, 2006, in Hertfordshire, a county in southern England. [AP]

A veteran Academy Award nominee and a 14-year-old Evanna Lynch will join the cast of J.K. Rowling's epic Harry Potter series as filming begins next week on the latest movie, producers said.

Millions of fans across the world are eagerly awaiting the adaptation of Rowling's fifth book — "Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix" — which sees the return of young actor Daniel Radcliffe in the title role.

Filming will begin Monday in Hertfordshire, a county in southern England. The movie is not slated for release until next year.

The plot centers on the arrival of Dolores Umbridge, an unpopular new professor at wizard academy Hogwarts. She will be played by actress Imelda Staunton, nominated for a 2005 Oscar for her performance in the bleak period drama "Vera Drake."

Potter also wrestles with his attraction to new character Luna Lovegood, a role taken by 14-year-old newcomer Evanna Lynch.

The last film in the series, an adaptation of the fourth book, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire," was directed by Mike Newell and grossed over $285 million at the box office.

"The Order of the Phoenix" will be helmed by British director David Yates, who last year made the HBO movie "The Girl in the Cafe."