Movies - Hogwarts ghosts

Home > Listing Index > Movies > Hogwarts ghosts

	Movies - Hogwarts ghosts

The article is about the ghosts which inhabit Hogwarts in the Harry Potter novels by J. K. Rowling. Moaning Myrtle, also a ghost, has her own article and Peeves, often considered a ghost, has his own page as well. Professor Binns, the only ghost teacher, is listed on the Minor Hogwarts teachers page.

Nearly Headless Nick

Nearly Headless Nick (died October 31, 1492) is the nickname of the Gryffindor ghost (actually named Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington) whose neck was almost completely severed in life (45 swings with an axe), but not enough to join in the games of the Headless Hunt, a society of ghosts who had been decapitated on earth (a source of annual vexation to the ghost). Harry Potter becomes friends with Sir Nicholas when he attends his "deathday" party (the 500th anniversary of the event) in a Hogwarts dungeon. Sir Nicholas' death date has the distinction of being the basis for the entire timeline of dates in the Harry Potter series.

Sir Nicholas has a fairly small role in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, where he is merely introduced as Gryffindor's house ghost. In Chamber of Secrets, he is a victim of the Basilisk that Ginny Weasley unleashes, under the influence of Tom Riddle. The stare of the Basilisk is supposed to be lethal to anyone who looks it directly in the eye. While the living students all had some barrier between them and the eye; and are therefore merely petrified; Nicholas does look it directly in the eye. He too is petrified, saved from death by the fact that he is already dead. This attack on Sir Nicholas is proof that he is in fact Muggle-Born and also proves that Muggle-Borns can also become ghosts after they die. Since in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix Sir Nicholas tells Harry that a person must be a wizard to return as a ghost, this forms an argument against the belief that Muggle-Borns are not real wizards.

Sir Nicholas appears again in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when he explains to Harry the nature of death, and what it means when a ghost is left behind. Harry had been looking for some comfort, but Nick's explanation dashes Harry's hope of communicating with the recently deceased Sirius Black. Nick makes clear that this is not possible.

The word mimsy is borrowed from Jabberwocky, where it is explained by Humpty Dumpty to be a portmanteau of flimsy and miserable (which quite fits with the character). Porpington is likely a portmanteau of Orpington and Perpignan.

In the movie versions of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001) and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Sir Nicholas is played by John Cleese.

The Bloody Baron

The Bloody Baron is one of the ghosts that haunts Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. His domain is Slytherin House. He is the only person besides Dumbledore who can exert any control over the poltergeist Peeves, given how Peeves is terrified of him for some unknown reason; Refers to him as "Your Bloodiness" and "Mr. Baron."

The Baron is covered with silvery blood stains, which has never been explained in the books but theorised by some fans to have been Unicorn's blood, which is likewise silvery in color; however, given how all ghosts of Hogwarts have a silvery hue this may be coincidence.

In contrast to a very solemn and quite frightening ghost in the books, in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the Bloody Baron is represented as being quite mirthful.

The Fat Friar

The Fat Friar is the resident ghost of the Hufflepuff House. He is a jolly man and very forgiving. In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone when the first years are waiting for McGonagall to return and the ghosts pass overhead the Fat Friar is pleading on behalf of Peeves the Poltergeist to allow him to come to the welcome feast despite his past wrongdoings.

The Grey Lady

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Hogwarts ghosts ]

This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article Hogwarts ghosts; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.

Searches on eBay