Harry Potter banned in prison because characters are children

by · Mail Online

Prisoners in HMP Isle of Wight have been banned from reading Harry Potter books, after bosses decided teen books were 'off limits' for men convicted of sexual assault.

The category B 'super-prison' combines HMP Parkhurst and HMP Albany and holds 1,100 inmates.

A report into the sex offender jail by inspectors from the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) said there had been complaints that the seven novels by J.K. Rowling were not on the shelves. 

It states that, despite the library having a 'higher number of users' in the past year, there was some 'frustration' from inmates and library staff at the ban.

The report states: 'A frustration raised with us by library staff relates to the Ministry of Justice's approved stock policy for books in an establishment for men convicted of sexual offences.

Prisoners in HMP Isle of Wight have been banned from reading Harry Potter books (Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone pictured), after bosses decided teen books were 'off limits' for men convicted of sexual assault.
HMP Isle of Wight (pictured) is a category B 'super-prison' combines HMP Parkhurst and HMP Albany and holds 1,100 inmates
The Harry Potter were turned into films, in which the three main characters were played by Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter (centre), Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley (right) and Emma Watson as Hermione Granger (left). The actors were just 10-12 years old in the first film

'This policy cuts out a significant number of books - e.g. Harry Potter - where a teenager is the main protagonist.'

The Harry Potter books and movies have made author J.K.Rowling a multi-millionaire, with a fortune of more than £820m.

The seven books, which were all turned into films, follow the exploits of a boy wizard called Harry Potter and his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger as they battle the evil Lord Voldemort.

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In the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - published in 1997 and made into a film in 2001 - Harry is aged just 11 when he finds out he is a wizard and goes to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

He is just 17 in the final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

A prison source said the ban was in place to stop sex offenders indulging in fantasies.

He said: 'Prisons need to discourage the behaviour shown by offenders prior to being jailed.

'If this means not allowing books which might trigger a certain type of fantasy or behaviour, then so be it.'

He added: 'I've read all of the Harry Potter books, and I'm not quite sure how it would create a flashpoint for an offender, but mine is not to reason why.'

Prison chiefs declined to comment.

Evanna Lynch, Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe and Katie Leung pictured attending the Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix photocall on June 25, 2007
Rupert Grint as Ron Weasley (left), Katie Leung as Cho Chang (centre) and Matthew Lewis as Neville Longbottom (right) in Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix