Harry Potter actor Phil Wright has spoken out about the decision to take him to court for not pulling down his summerhouse.

The planning wrangle between Medway Council and Mr Wright, who played Lord Voldemort’s henchman in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, went on for seven years.

The actor, of Nore View, Grain, appeared before Medway magistrates, where he admitted failing to comply with a planning enforcement notice.

He was given a 12-month conditional discharge and ordered to pay almost £800 in costs.

Mr Wright built a timber-clad outhouse at his home in 2007 as a summerhouse for his five daughters.

He said: “The council said ‘it is basic in design and does not match the bricks and tiles of the main buildings in materials’, but of course it doesn’t match the bricks and tiles of the main house – it’s a shed.

“They also said ‘the new building is prominent in the street scene and detracts from the character and appearance of the area’ but you can only just see it over my high garden fence and it’s a shed in a garden in a rural area. Opposite is a huge football cage topped with massive floodlights.”

He disputed the council’s claim that the shed was a poor quality building as he said the materials had cost him around £3,000.

He claimed he was unaware of any complaints from neighbours.

Mr Wright was also unhappy about the council’s decision to “wash his dirty laundry in public” by putting out a press release after the case.

The court heard Mr Wright did not seek planning permission to put up the shed and failed to dismantle it after the enforcement notice was issued.

He was given a final chance to take it down by August 2013, to avoid court action, and he eventually dismantled it in July.

He appeared in court in June and July, where he pleaded not guilty before a third appearance, when he admitted the matter.

Alan Conroy, prosecuting for Medway Council, told the court: “This has been a long process and opportunities were given to move the building and this was not done.”