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Entertainment Today: Showbiz News

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Published: May 9, 2003 at 3:00 AM
By KAREN BUTLER, United Press International

FOUR NABBED IN HARRY POTTER CAPER

Three teens and a 44-year-old man have been arrested on suspicion of stealing advance copies of the fifth Harry Potter novel.

Two copies of the hotly anticipated "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" were discovered in a field in Eastern England earlier this week. They were found less than 1 mile from the printing company that will be inking thousands of copies of the book.

The incident made headlines because fans of the series have been dying to know what happens next to the boy wizard and the book is not scheduled for release until late next month.

Suffolk police said Thursday they nabbed the four suspects late Wednesday night.

The person who found the boosted books handed them over to a reporter for The Sun newspaper. The publication in turn gave them back to Bloomsbury Publishing.

J.K. Rowling's four previous Potter adventures have sold more than 190 million copies and movies based on the first two books in the series have become blockbusters.


MCGREGOR DENIES BAD BLOOD WITH BOYLE

Ewan McGregor denies he is feuding with Danny Boyle, but says he still probably won't star in a "Trainspotting" sequel for the filmmaker.

According to published reports, McGregor and his "Trainspotting" and "A Life Less Ordinary" director had a falling-out when Boyle hired Leonardo DiCaprio to star in "The Beach" a few years back.

Asked if he would consider working with Boyle again, McGregor replied: "I don't know. It would just have to be the right thing, I guess. No, there's no problem."

So, what about "Porno," that "Trainspotting" sequel everyone's buzzing about?

"Everyone is asking me about 'Porno,'" he told reporters in New York. "Irvine Welsh wrote a book called 'Porno'... But I haven't seen a script for it, but it would be very dangerous territory, I think, to go back. I read it and I loved it because I got to see what happened to our characters and what they were up to 10 years later, but it didn't move me quite the same way the 'Trainspotting' novel had done, and ultimately, it's more or less the same story, but it would be terrible to leave the audience remembering a poor sequel as opposed to a great first film. That was just such a phenomenal movie."

McGregor can next be seen in the romantic comedy "Down With Love," opposite Renee Zellweger, due out next week.


MOORE DOING WELL AFTER COLLAPSE

Roger Moore is recovering nicely after fainting on stage during a matinee performance of the Broadway hit, "The Play What I Wrote."

The former James Bond was the mystery guest star in the second act of the comedy's afternoon performance Wednesday.

A spokeswoman for the show said the curtain came down for about 10 minutes to give the actor the chance to catch his breath. Moore then finished the play and was taken to the hospital to be checked out. He is doing well and was expected to be released Friday or Saturday.

Alan Alda, who has done "The Play" before, was interviewing Marvin Hamlisch at The Museum of TV and Radio, where he was subbing for someone else, and agreed to leave at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday to get to the Lyceum Theatre, where he went on in the mystery guest star role and gave a letter-perfect performance, the show's spokeswoman said.

Eric McCormack, of TV's "Will & Grace," was expected to be "The Play's" mystery guest Friday night, but agreed to make his debut Thursday instead.

Topics: Alan Alda, Danny Boyle, Eric McCormack, Ewan McGregor, Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling, James Bond, Leonardo DiCaprio, Marvin Hamlisch, Renee Zellweger, Roger Moore
© 2003 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

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