Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in Shropshire

Friday 19th November 2010, 9:36AM GMT.

Paddy Jones, from Donnington, and Lecitta Ferrar, from Hadley, were among the first to see the new Harry Potter film at the Odeon cinema, Telford

Harry Potter mania was sweeping through Shropshire today as the latest film in the hit series opened at county cinemas.

More than 40 screenings of The Deathly Hallows: Part One were planned across the county today to cope with the phenomenal demand.

The movie was being shown today at Odeon Telford, Cineworld Shrewsbury, Majestic Bridgnorth, and the Ludlow Assembly Rooms.

Review – click here

The Telford cinema was first off the mark, opening early for its first screening at 9.45am.

The film is the first part of JK Rowling’s final Harry Potter book, and follows the young Hogwarts pupils on their quest to kill dark lord Voldemort. The concluding part is released next summer.

More than 1,000 advance tickets had already been sold for today’s Shropshire screenings, and cinema bosses said they were expecting one of their busiest weekends of the year.

It comes as producers at Warner Brothers continue an investigation to find out how more than 30 minutes of the film was leaked on to the internet.

l Don’t miss today’s At The Movies Harry Potter special, including Carl Jones’s review of the film, and behind-the-scenes feature on Pages 38 and 39

View more: Shrewsbury news, Telford news.