Potter star gets portrait

Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has given the seal of approval to his new portrait, going on display at the National Portrait Gallery.

With the exception of the royals, Radcliffe is the youngest person to have an individual portrait at the London gallery.

The star was 14 and had just embarked on the fourth Potter film when he posed for the drawing by Stuart Pearson Wright, whose previous studies include Potter's creator JK Rowling.

The end result shows him in jeans and t-shirt and looking thoughtful while sitting in an armchair in the artist's studio.

The portrait forms part of an exhibition of over 40 new drawings opening at the National Theatre and National Portrait Gallery today.

Radcliffe, who is shooting Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, said
he was delighted to be the gallery's youngest subject.

"It's very weird. It's fantastic. It's a very, very strange feeling," he said.

"It's a great honour to be in there among such amazing actors and actresses."

He said: "I had about three or four visits, probably over 14 or 15 hours.

"Stuart never wore a watch so my mum would be there saying 'It's time to go'."

The Potter star said his parents were so taken with Wright's drawing, that they wanted to buy it, before the National Portrait Gallery snapped it up.

"My mum and dad bought one of Stuart's paintings, but not the one of me.

"My mum said to Stuart after he'd finished my drawing, 'could we buy it?'

He said; 'oh no problem but the National Portrait Gallery might want it.'

"My mum was like 'if that's the case, we'll leave it.'

"I think they thought having a picture of me in the National Portrait Gallery was much better than having it at home."

He said: "I love it. Until recently, I'd seen a peek of it in the catalogue, but not actually seen the real thing.

"It was strange seeing myself as I was two years ago, not as I am now.

"If you look at each individual part of my face they look exactly like part of my face. Together it's surreal."

He admitted that when he modelled for the drawing "it was probably quite hard for me to keep still" and added: "In terms of painting, drawing and sketching I'm utterly talentless."

The Radcliffe drawing will be unveiled at the National Theatre before going on permanent display at the National Portrait Gallery.

It has been acquired by the Gallery alongside nine other actor portraits by Wright.