Those old enough will remember the hype surrounding Harry Potter as JK Rowling's creation made the leap from books to screen.

The first film, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, was released in 2001 and introduced us all to Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson, who were 12, 13 and 11, respectively.

As the series went on, the trio grew up, and we grew up with them. Though there were major differences, such as them making a shit load of money as we spent ours on cinema tickets and all the rest of it.

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Credit: Warner Bros.

They were living the dream. Magic, money, popularity, more money and fame. What a life. However, for one of them, there was another dream that needed to be chased, and he decided to do it with the fortune he'd earned.

Grint, who famously played Ron Weasley throughout the whole movie series, originally wanted to be an ice-cream man. None of this wand waving bollocks, serving 99s with a flake to hot people in summer.

Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2014, Grint said: "My first ambition was to become an ice-cream man, which is why I bought the Bedford van. Not long after I first got it, I pulled into a pub to do a U-turn and there were eight kids with their pocket money out, hoping to buy a 99 or whatever. But I had nothing to give them. I've learnt my lesson since then.

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Rupert Grint brought his ice-cream van to the Harry Potter set on the last day of filming. pic.twitter.com/bh0lDkojBM

- Famous History (@FAMOUSHlSTORY) January 20, 2016

"I keep my van well stocked. It's got a proper machine that dispenses Mr Whippy ice cream and I buy my lollies wholesale - 50 for a tenner - so I never run short. I'm not allowed to sell my merchandise. I'd need a licence for that.



"I tend to avoid July and August, but the rest of the year I'll drive around the local villages and if I see some kids looking like they're in need of ice creams, I'll pull over and dish them out for free. They'll say, 'Ain't you Ron Weasley?' And I'll say, 'It's strange, I get asked that a lot'."

A good man, is Grint.

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The actor has a fondness for vehicles in general, as he revealed when he was a guest on Top Gear in 201. At the time he had a Range Rover, the ice cream van and a hover craft. A varied collection. He also topped the time chart for A Star in a Reasonably Priced Car.

A multi-talented man if we ever saw one.

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