Helena Barlow

Helena Josephine Barlow (b. 5 September 1998) is an English teen film and stage actress who is best known for portraying Rose Weasley in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. In 2012, she starred as young Estella in Mike Newell's Great Expectations alongside Helena Bonham Carter and Ralph Fiennes.

Career
Barlow began her career on the small British stage in 2009, where she appeared in a bit part in The Nutcracker for the English Youth Ballet and later participated in the opening number for the Michael Croft Theatre, a host to a variety of school productions, including the Alleyn's Junior School, which Barlow attended in 2010. Her first leading role was Wendy Darling for the Alleyn's Junior School Year Six production of Peter Pan, adapted by Maggi Law. She co-starred alongside fellow pupils Sky Yang in the titular role, George Barnard as John, David Stockwell as Michael and Rebecca Windsor as Captain Hook. Like many of the school's productions, it too was performed in the Michael Croft Theatre. In a newsletter composed for and by the school, Barlow's performance was described as "effervescent and talented."

Her most notable role came in 2011 when it was announced in June by the Harry Potter websites The Leaky Cauldron and SnitchSeeker that she had been cast as Rose Weasley--oldest child of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley in the commercially successful Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2. At the age of 12, this was her first professional film credit.



She went on to appear the same year in Horrid Henry: The Movie, an adaptation of Francesca Simon's children's book series of the same name and in 2012, in Mike Newell's adaptation of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations as the younger version of Estella Havisham played by Holliday Grainger as an adult, respectively. She starred alongside Harry Potter alums Helena Bonham Carter, Ralph Fiennes, Robbie Coltrane and Jessie Cave.

Her latest project is Harriet and the Matches in the title role, a five minute short film directed by Miranda Howard-Williams and written by Heinrich Hoffmann. It also features Bernice Stegers and Cillian Murphy. According to the official site synopsis, the film is an adaptation of "a traditional German fairy tale" and "is a dark cautionary tale about a lonely little girl." The film "mixes live action with puppetry and stop motion to create a visually stunning and atmospheric short film."

Personal life


Barlow was born in Lambeth, London where she currently lives with her parents, two sisters, and one brother. Her interests are ballet, athletics, cooking, and writing.

She is a former pupil of the Alleyn's Junior School.

Behind the scenes

 * Before being cast in the Harry Potter films, from the time she was very young she has always been a huge fan and has read all seven novels more than once.




 * She attended the Closing Film Premiere for Great Expectations during the 56th BFI London Film Festival at Odeon West End on 21 October 2012 in London, England.
 * She shares a strong physical resemblance to her on-screen father Rupert Grint (Ronald Weasley) and on-screen brother Ryan Turner (Hugo Weasley).