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James Arthur reveals how he landed Harry Potter's Tom Felton for the 'Empty Space' music video

He called it an "honour"

Author: Emma DoddsPublished 27th Nov 2018
Last updated 27th Nov 2018

James Arthur gave an absolutely amazing performance at Hits Radio Live at the Manchester Arena on Sunday 25th November. The former X Factor winner performed in a line-up with Little Mix, Ellie Goulding, Cheryl, The Vamps, Mabel, Rak-Su, and James Hype, singing all his biggest hits.

Before taking to the stage, the 30-year-old opened up to our very own Sarah-Jane Crawford about how things have been going for him recently - even speaking out about his recent cover of 'Rewrite The Stars' featuring Anne-Marie for The Greatest Showman Reimagined album.

But James also spoke out about his recent music video for new single 'Empty Space', and revealed how he managed to wangle Harry Potter actor Tom Felton to star in the video.

James told Sarah-Jane, "We wanted to have a big star in the video. I was in Brazil doing a soap opera which was a good opportunity for me to be viewed by 50 million people. I was singing, I wasn't acting.

"I moodily walked to the chair, sang a song and then bounced. It was cool. 50 million people watch it, so it was either that or I be in the music video, so I thought we'll just get someone who's amazing at acting to do it."

He went on, "Thankfully, we had a contact at management who knew Tom Felton and he was kind enough to do it for us. It was a massive honour. I wanted to do the acting but thank god he did it because he's much better."

When Sarah-Jane then quizzed him over his ambitions, he gushed that he'd love to do a bit of acting in the future, "I do, I really do, it's not a secret. Who knows!"

WATCH: James Arthur reveals how he got Harry Potter's Tom Felton to star in the 'Empty Space' music video

See the best bits from Hits Radio Live 2018:

Ellie Goulding backstage at Hits Radio Live with Sarah-Jane Crawford


James Arthur reveals how he landed Harry Potter's Tom Felton for the 'Empty Space' music video
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Ellie Goulding backstage at Hits Radio Live with Sarah-Jane Crawford


The X Factor’s 2012 winner James Arthur has come a long way since the show. Releasing two albums and countless songs, his Number 1 hits include ‘Impossible’ and ‘Say You Won't Let Go’. James has also recently teamed up with Anne-Marie for a fantastic cover of ‘Rewrite The Stars’ from the film The Greatest Showman.

We are so excited for Hits Radio Live 2019 that tickets are on sale NOW! There are two places you can buy your tickets from, Eventim and Ticketmaster. Be sure to get yours now for our show on Sunday 17th November 2019 where we'll once again be bringing you the biggest hits live at the Manchester Arena.

Buy early bird tickets from Eventim

Buy early bird tickets from Ticketmaster

WATCH: Hits Radio Live 2018 Highlights

Watch all the videos from Hits Radio Live on YouTube.

For great music, brilliant banter and incredible competitions tune into Hits Radio on our Hits Radio app, your DAB radio, Smart Speakers or online. We give you the biggest hits from the world’s hottest artists. You find new favourites every day and hear the songs you've missed from the last few years