Paul Broad is absolutely potty over Harry Potter - and he doesn't care who knows it.
He's so obsessed with the stories featuring the fictional character he treated himself to a personalised number plate which is attracting quite a bit of attention around Rotorua.
The Mamaku man
has been spellbinding motorists with the AUROR number plate on his Nissan Mistral wagon, also featuring "Magical Law Enforcement" and "Ministry of Magic".
Mr Broad admits he gets some funny looks from people when he drives by.
"People are always asking what it is and what it means."
For those not already in the know, an Auror is a police wizard in the Harry Potter series while Magical Law Enforcement is a department of the Ministry of Magic.
And no, he hasn't started a new Government department. It all came about after he watched the first Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone and bought the book for his daughter Chontelle, 7.
She never got the book. Mr Broad ended up reading it and like thousands of other New Zealanders fell in love with the Harry Potter series.
"I was hooked," he said. "I've always been interested in magic and thought it would make a great number plate.
"We all need a little bit of escapism in this world."
Mr Broad said the Harry Potter series were the first books he had read since leaving school years ago and he'd made sure that his daughter, who has yet to receive one of the books intended for her, hasn't missed out. She has the movies.
He hopes the number plate will lead other people to experience a "little bit of magic" in their lives.
"I think Harry Potter has done a lot for literacy in young people to get them interested in reading again."
Mr Broad isn't new to turning heads.
He painted his previous car in camouflage colours and added the personalised plate CAMOED.
And a friend of his also has an interesting personalised plate - REAPER with the word Grim above it.
"It gets people thinking," Mr Broad said.
