Emma Watson opted to go to university in America because she felt “claustrophobic”.

The ‘Harry Potter’ actress had been expected to enrol in prestigious Cambridge University but felt it was important to leave the UK so she could be “normal” for a while.

She explained: “I suddenly felt very claustrophobic. I thought, ‘I can’t stay here, I won’t be able to concentrate, I won’t be left alone.’

“I don’t want to put a negative light on it, as if I was escaping or anything like that. I think I wanted to meet people my own age and just be normal for a bit.”

While she enrolled in a liberal arts degree at Brown University, Emma put her studies on hold after two years so she could focus on promoting the final movies in the ‘Harry Potter’ franchise – ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Parts 1 and 2’ – and is expected to resume her education in Oxford in September.

Speaking about her decision to put her studies on hold, she said: “I was commuting back and forth between the US and the UK trying to fulfil my commitment to this enormous ‘Harry Potter’ franchise and it just wasn’t feasible. I’m only human.

“I wasn’t getting the best out of either my studies or the filming, so I decided to give a proper goodbye to 10 years of work and resume my studies later.”