Miriam Margolyes, best known for playing Professor Sprout in the Harry Potter films, has revealed she has earned £570,000 from the video messaging app Cameo since joining in 2020. The 84-year-old actress told Romesh Ranganathan on his podcast that this sum is nearly ten times the £60,000 she was paid for her role in the franchise.
Margolyes, who charges fans £100 for personalised video messages, said she tries to spend no more than two hours a day on the app. She noted a shift in requests, with many users now asking for advice and 'pep talks' rather than birthday greetings. 'It means that I can spend rather more freely than I would have done otherwise,' she said.
The BAFTA-winning actress appeared in two Harry Potter films: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. In 2022, she told Metro that while she initially grumbled about the £60,000 fee, the role made her very famous.
Margolyes also reflected on the franchise's impact, saying she did not realise how much she had become part of people's childhoods. She added that while Harry Potter was important for her career, it did not affect her as deeply as working with actors like Donald Sinden.
Other British celebrities on Cameo include Nick Frost, Bonnie Wright, and Mark Heap. In 2022, James Buckley became the app's first UK millionaire.
