Harry Potter fans force £430m Greenlink pipeline diversion to protect Dobby's grave
Energy project rerouted away from Welsh beach where fictional house elf's death scene was filmed, after BBC interview sparked hundreds of fan complaints.
Conversation activity · last 24 hours peak 5/hr
Summary, timeline and people extracted by Claude from 8 items across 3 sources · 6h ago. Quotes are verbatim.
Greenlink, a £430 million energy interconnector between Wales and Ireland, was diverted from its original landfall point at Freshwater West beach in Pembrokeshire after Harry Potter fans objected to the cable running through a memorial site for the fictional character Dobby. The site had become a shrine with fan tributes following the filming of Dobby's death scene there in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part One. The project successfully launched in 2025 with the rerouted cable, now powering 380,000 homes.
- A £430 million UK-Ireland energy interconnector was rerouted after Harry Potter fans mobilized to protect a Dobby memorial site at Freshwater West beach in Wales.
- The beach became a shrine to the fictional character after the filming location of Dobby's death scene, with fans leaving painted stone tributes.
- A BBC Wales interview with project director Simon Ludlam sparked hundreds of complaints, prompting the project team to redesign the cable route to avoid the memorial.
- The project launched successfully in 2025 with the diverted cable and now powers 380,000 homes.
How it unfolded
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Report Story goes viral across news outlets
Multiple news organizations including The Independent, BBC, Telegraph, and Metro report on the pipeline diversion story.
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Event BBC Wales interview triggers fan outcry
Simon Ludlam, Greenlink director, appears on BBC Wales and subsequently triggers hundreds of phone calls from Harry Potter fans angered that the cable would go through Dobby's grave.
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Reaction Project team responds to complaints
Ludlam's colleague Tom insists the matter is "very, very serious" and the team works with planners to reroute the cable away from Dobby's memorial.
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Report Ludlam recounts events on Energy Revolution podcast
In a podcast interview released on Wednesday (2026-08-06), Greenlink director Simon Ludlam discusses how the project was diverted due to fan pressure.
- 83 weeks quiet
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Event Greenlink goes operational
The £430m project launches successfully with the rerouted cable, avoiding Dobby's grave and powering 380,000 homes.
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Event Beach becomes shrine to Dobby
Freshwater West beach becomes a memorial site for the fictional character, with fans leaving tributes including painted stones.
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Event Dobby death scene filmed at Freshwater West
The scene of Dobby's death in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part One is filmed on Freshwater West beach in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
What people are saying verbatim
“Once we'd agreed with all the authorities, with all the landowners and the people who own the beach, the local residents, how we'd make landfall, I remember BBC Wales said, 'Could you come down and just do a quick thing,'”
Simon Ludlam, Greenlink project director · The Independent · Aug 5
“Dobby? Who's Dobby?”
Simon Ludlam, Greenlink project director · The Independent · Aug 5
“He is a fictitious character in a fictitious book, the whole thing's fictitious, what are you talking about?”
Simon Ludlam, Greenlink project director · The Independent · Aug 5
“Simon, we're going to have to respond to these calls.”
Tom, Greenlink permitting staff · The Independent · Aug 5
“So we got back with the planners and discussed exactly how to reroute the cable so we wouldn't go anymore into Dobby's grave.”
Simon Ludlam, Greenlink project director · The Independent · Aug 5
“And a lot of people were very happy about that and, you know, the project's now going and Dobby's happy.”
Simon Ludlam, Greenlink project director · The Independent · Aug 5