Who is harry potter

It changed the business model for publishing books for kids. Harry Potter did fine when it first emerged in the UK 20 years ago, winning a Smarties Award and garnering respectable sales for its publisher, Bloomsbury. He just knew that he loved it and wanted to publish it. The hook came from the press: Newspapers featured articles about the little English book that had garnered such a huge sale.

Reviewers wanted to know what kind of book would justify that kind of money. It was a curiosity, and as such, it was a story. The budget came from Scholastic itself. Whenever a publisher acquires a book, it creates a budget for that book. It arranged for Harry Potter to be displayed on the front tables at bookstores, and for ads to appear in the right newspapers and magazines.

In short, it gave the book many more resources than are typically afforded to the average debut novel from an unknown author, and that decision paid off. A study found that 55 percent of YA novels are bought by adults. In large part, that boom is courtesy of Harry Potter , which became a surprise crossover hit adored by both children and adults, and which made it acceptable for adults to read books that are ostensibly for children.

But there are plenty of reasons for a grown person to enjoy Harry Potter. The Harry Potter books combine the intricate plotting of a mystery with the sweep and scope of epic fantasy and the intimacy and character development of a classic boarding school narrative. The result is purely pleasurable to read at any age: The puzzlebox mystery plotting keeps the pages turning propulsively forward, the fantastic mythology gives the world scope and magic and joy, and the boarding school structure makes the characters warm and familiar and charming.

It also makes their eventual death for some and trauma for all deeply affecting. But if you are an adult who can imagine reading for more than one reason the pleasures of story, the joy of immersing yourself in another world , the Harry Potter books become enormously appealing. Part of what made Harry Potter such a literary phenomenon is that so many kids were reading the books despite an unprecedented number of attempts to get them to stop reading the books. The Harry Potter series, like many works of fantasy, involves wizardry and witchcraft.

Both are heavily involved in charity work as supporters of the Teenage Cancer Trust, and often participate in soccer tournaments, climbing expeditions, and sky dives to raise money for worthy causes. He starred in the original production of Seminar on Broadway a few months later, for which he earned the Broadway.

In , he married Rima Horton, a former Labour Party councilor and a lecturer at Kingston University, with whom he had been in a relationship since Rickman passed away in January at the age of He rose to fame as the bumbling-yet-brave Neville Longbottom, but in the years since Potter ended, Lewis has established himself as a potential leading man, thanks to roles in The Syndicate , The Rise , and Bluestone Lewis made his stage debut in a touring production of Agatha Christie's Verdict in , and made his West End debut the following year in Our Boys.

In he received an honorary Masters of Arts Degree from Leeds Metropolitan University, and in he got married. After hanging up his wand in and thus drastically reducing the amount of explosions on the Hogwarts grounds , Murray, best known as Seamus Finnigan, seemed to take a break from acting. And yes, he is still close with Alfred Enoch, a.

Dean Thomas, and they are still totally adorable. Since winning Harry Potter's heart and plenty of Quidditch Cups! Since then, she has started her own production company and directed several short films and music videos.

Wright started dating her Potter co-star Jamie Campbell Bower in ; they were engaged in , but called it off in Walters made us all laugh, cheer, and cry as the overprotective, incredibly loving Mrs. Weasley, and she's continued to do so in the years since Potter wrapped, with roles in The Hollow Crown , Paddington , and Brave. In , she returned to the stage in the National Theatre's production of The Last of the Haussmans. He may never have learned what, exactly, is the function of a rubber duck, but since leaving Mr.

Weasley behind, Williams has starred in another British institution, playing the lead role in the costume drama Father Brown since With stunning photography, insightful interviews, and never-before-seen sketches, notes, candid backstage photos, and more, this full-color deluxe edition offers readers unparalleled access to this unique production, and is a beautiful gift for Harry Potter fans and theater-lovers alike.

While Harry grapples with a past that refuses to stay where it belongs, his youngest son Albus must struggle with the weight of a family legacy he never wanted. It's all here in the official game guide to Harry Potter: Wizards Unite, your key to the wonders of the wizarding world.

The enduringly popular adventures of Harry, Ron and Hermione have sold over million copies, been translated into over 80 languages, and made into eight blockbuster films, the last of which was released in In J.

In the same year, she made her debut as a screenwriter with the film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them , which was inspired by the original companion volume and features magizoologist Newt Scamander. Her second screenplay, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald , was released in cinemas in She lives in Scotland with her family, and is at her happiest alone in a room, making things up.

Entertainment Inc. You are now leaving Scholastic. Or go back to Scholastic. After half of the prophecy was reported to Voldemort, courtesy of Severus Snape , Harry was chosen as the target due to his many similarities with the Dark Lord. In turn, this caused the Potter family to go into hiding.

Voldemort made his first vain attempt to circumvent the prophecy when Harry was a year and three months old. During this attempt, he murdered Harry's parents as they tried to protect him, but this unsuccessful attempt to kill Harry led to Voldemort's first downfall. One consequence of Lily's loving sacrifice was that her orphaned son had to be raised by her only remaining blood relative, his Muggle aunt Petunia Dursley.

While in her care, he would be protected from Lord Voldemort due to the Bond of Blood charm Albus Dumbledore placed upon him. Due to Petunia's resentment of her sister and her magic gifts, Harry grew up abused and neglected. On his eleventh birthday, Harry learned that he was a wizard from Rubeus Hagrid. The Sorting Hat hat told Harry that he would do well in Slytherin House , but Harry pleaded 'not Slytherin' and the Hat heeded this plea, instead sorting the young wizard into Gryffindor House.

He later became the youngest Quidditch Seeker in over a century and eventually the captain of the Gryffindor House Quidditch Team in his sixth year , winning two Quidditch Cups. In his fourth year, Harry won the Triwizard Tournament , although the competition ended with the tragic death of Cedric Diggory and the return of Voldemort.

During the next school year, Harry reluctantly taught and led Dumbledore's Army. He also fought in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries , during which he lost his godfather, Sirius Black. Harry played a significant role in many other battles of the Second Wizarding War. He, Ron, and Hermione hunted down and destroyed Voldemort's Horcruxes. He encountered Voldemort and nearly sacrificed himself, knowing that his doing so was the only way to destroy the fragment of Voldemort's soul inside of him.

In limbo , after Voldemort cursed him in the forest clearing , Dumbledore gave Harry advice and background information on the Dark Lord. When told he could choose to live or to "move on", Harry chose to live. After he awoke, Harry confronted Voldemort and defeated him once and for all.

Harry was also noted for being the only known Master of Death , having united the three Deathly Hallows at the mere age of seventeen. After the war, Harry became an Auror and helped reform and revolutionise the Ministry of Magic.

He was also named the godfather of Edward "Teddy" Remus Lupin. The Potters were an old and wealthy pure-blood family, [64] dating back to their founding patriarch Linfred of Stinchcombe.

Linfred was given the nickname "Potterer", which over the years was changed simply to "Potter". The family took on the simplified nickname as a surname, thus leading to future generations calling themselves Potter.

The Gaunt family were also descended from the Peverells through Cadmus Peverell , who passed the Resurrection Stone as an heirloom, set in a signet ring. Before the start of the 17th century , some of Harry's ancestors migrated to the United States , and held strong ties with the Magical Congress of the United States of America.

This distant relation of Harry's was uncovered by genealogists centuries after Abraham's death. The Potters were related to many other wizarding families in Britain, largely through the marriage of Charlus Potter to Dorea Black , who was, in fact, the great-aunt of Sirius Black , Harry's godfather and best friend of his father, James Potter. It is very likely that both Charlus and Dorea were closely related to Harry.

Two members of the Potter family had held positions on the Wizengamot. The first was Ralston Potter and the second Henry Potter. Harry inherited much wealth from his grandparents Fleamont and Euphemia , as Fleamont invented Sleekeazy's Hair Potion , which quadrupled the family gold.

By that time, his parents were both elderly even by wizarding standards , and he grew up in a doting household to the point where he became a proud yet arrogant boy. But deep down, James was a good person. Conversely, Harry's mother Lily J. Evans was a Muggle-born , who was introduced to the wizarding world via her friendship with Severus Snape , who lived nearby.

The discovery of Lily being a witch caused a rift between her and her older sister Petunia , who envied her abilities. Their relationship was a rocky one; while James was a popular student and talented Quidditch player, Lily was unimpressed with him.

This had to do with James' hostile relationship with Snape, who was falling in with a gang of Slytherins aspiring to join the Death Eaters. By their seventh year, James lost the less savoury aspects of his personality and was even appointed Head Boy , despite the fact that he had not been a prefect. This impressed Lily, who was appointed Head Girl, and the two began dating.

The couple eventually married after graduation in , and served as members of the original Order of the Phoenix at the height of the First Wizarding War. They personally defied Voldemort on three occasions, the first being when they refused to join his cause when he tried to recruit them possibly at Snape's request.

For Harry's first birthday, Sirius bought him a toy broomstick. In Lily's letter to Sirius , it mentioned that this broomstick had been Harry's favourite present and that he had smashed a horrible vase that had been a gift from Petunia and nearly killed their cat. In the letter, Lily also included a picture of Harry flying around on the broom and James chasing after him. Lily also stated in the letter that Harry looked pleased with himself while flying around on the toy broom. Lily and James also hosted a very quiet birthday tea.

The only ones in attendance were them, Harry, and Bathilda Bagshot also used to dote on infant Harry. The Potters owned a cat, but it is unknown what happened to it after Voldemort's attack.

Voldemort arriving at Godric's Hollow , planning to murder infant Harry. When it became clear that Voldemort marked the Potters for death in regards to the prophecy, Albus Dumbledore suggested they use the Fidelius Charm to keep them safe.

On Sirius' advice, they changed this designation to Peter Pettigrew , who they thought would be less suspicious.

Harry as an infant facing death for the first time at the hands of Lord Voldemort. He murdered James first, who tried to distract the Dark Lord; unfortunately, he did not have his wand with him and was killed immediately. Voldemort then advanced on Lily, who died trying to protect Harry.

When Voldemort attempted the curse on Harry it backfired on the caster and instead of murdering Harry, Voldemort lost all his powers and his physical form was obliterated. Voldemort was saved from death by the five Horcruxes he had made up to that point, including his diary , Gaunt's ring , Slytherin's locket , Hufflepuff's cup , and Ravenclaw's diadem.

This gave him some of Voldemort's abilities such as the ability to speak Parseltongue. This event made Harry the only person to have survived the Killing Curse, thus giving him the title the "Boy Who Lived". The failed curse left a lightning-bolt scar on his forehead marking him as Voldemort's equal. The scar would be a bane and also a blessing to Harry in the years to come, as it opened a telepathic link between Lord Voldemort and himself, giving each some awareness of each other's thoughts.

Rubeus Hagrid delivering baby Harry to 4 Privet Drive. Rubeus Hagrid rescued Harry from the house, partially destroyed by Voldemort's faulty killing curse, and was given specific orders from Albus Dumbledore to take him to his aunt and uncle. As Hagrid left, he was intercepted by Sirius Black , a close friend of the Potters, who pleaded for Hagrid to give the baby to him, as he was the chosen guardian in the event of James and Lily's death.

Hagrid refused, saying that he was under orders from Dumbledore to take Harry to his relatives. Sirius, though reluctant, relented and gave Hagrid his flying motorcycle to take Harry to Privet Drive , and left to find Pettigrew, who subsequently faked his death and framed Sirius for his death and that of twelve Muggles. Hagrid delivered Harry to Dumbledore late on the evening of 1 November Dumbledore leaving the infant Harry with a note at the doorstep of 4 Privet Drive.

As the Dursleys were Muggles , they could not use magic. They knew about it but refused to associate with wizards. They proudly considered themselves a "normal" family and despised anything out of the ordinary even if it had nothing to do with wizards.

They lied to Harry about his parents' death, claiming they had died in a car crash. They also claimed that the lightning-bolt scar on Harry's forehead was from the same crash. He tried to understand what it was, or if it was from the car crash, but he simply could not.

Petunia and Vernon Dursley, Harry's new guardians, forbade him from asking questions, particularly those regarding his parents. In addition, the Dursleys refused to have pictures of Lily and James, and did their best to avoid the subject of Harry's parents altogether. They resented Harry for his magic , which was sporadic, but evident and strongly discouraged any sort of imagination. They neglected Harry, verbally and emotionally abused him, and inflicted cruel punishments like depriving him of meals and locking him into the cupboard under the stairs on him whenever something "unusual" occurred.

Their behaviour was left unreported to authorities. In his youth, Harry could make strange things happen without understanding why he could, as no one had told him that he was a wizard. For instance, after Petunia had sheared off all of his messy hair using a pair of kitchen scissors in her fury that it would not lay flat, leaving him almost completely bald with only the fringe at the front, it had grown all the way back, and to its previous messy state at that, by the next morning.

Harry was punished, even though he had not done anything on purpose. Another time, Dedalus Diggle bowed to him in a shop, and Petunia furiously interrogated Harry as to know how he knew the man before leaving the shop hastily.

The Dursleys spoiled and pampered their son Dudley and paid almost no attention to Harry; indeed, what little attention they did pay to him was negative in its entirety. All his clothes were hand-me-downs from Dudley and were far too large for Harry. He was made to sleep in the Cupboard Under the Stairs , while his cousin got two bedrooms to himself one for sleeping in and one for storing all his toys.

They also made Harry do household chores for them, such as making food and getting the post. In time, Dudley started bullying Harry. The Dursleys took Dudley and his friend Piers Polkiss to someplace spectacular every year for his birthday, but the only thing Harry ever got for his birthday was one of Vernon's old socks or a coat hanger.

The Dursleys always hid evidence of Harry's existence by not having pictures of him in the house. Among the few people who did know about Harry were Petunia's friend Yvonne and Vernon's sister Marge , the latter of whom the boy was forced to consider an aunt to him despite not being a relative of his.

Aunt Marge showed the most dislike for the frail boy while visiting Privet Drive during Dudley Dursley's fifth birthday , when she whacked Harry around the shins to stop him from beating Dudley at musical statues , and on holidays like Christmas, when she brought a computerised robot for Dudley and a box of dog biscuits for Harry to apparently eat. Dudley laughed himself silly at the sight of his cousin then, and to the Dursleys' delight, Marge refused to call Ripper off until past midnight. Harry's hardship, however, was highly necessary as by returning to live with his mother's only living blood relative, the protection that Lily gave Harry would continue.

While Harry could call that place home he could not be harmed. However, the Bond of blood charm would be broken when Harry turned seventeen years old, or when he no longer called 4 Privet Drive his home.

Unknown to Harry, one of his neighbours, Arabella Figg , was a Squib. Unfortunately for Harry, to maintain favour with the Dursleys, she was forced by Albus Dumbledore to give him a lousy time whenever she had to look after him, as the Dursleys would never have let him go if they knew Harry was enjoying himself, a possibility that infuriated them.

Harry discovered her connection to the wizarding world when it was revealed during the summer before his fifth year that she worked undercover for the Order of the Phoenix to keep tabs on Harry's suffering. Potter speaking Parseltongue to a boa constrictor at the zoo. Unfortunately for the Dursleys, they had to take Harry with them, as Mrs Figg had broken her leg and there was no one to take Harry, and they refused to leave him alone in their house.

At the zoo, Harry spoke with a boa constrictor and unintentionally made the glass of its enclosure disappear. This allowed the snake to slither out of his cage which scared Dudley into thinking it was after him. Harry was able to communicate in Parseltongue with the freed boa, which thanked Harry briefly, then slithered out of the reptile house calmly. Harry's primary school teacher panicking after he accidentally turned her wig blue.

Harry attended St. Grogory's Primary School , [83] a Muggle primary school, with Dudley. He had no friends there, since all the students were afraid of Dudley's tough friends, who hated Harry simply because Dudley did. Dudley and his friends liked to play a unique game — ' Harry Hunting ' — which involved chasing Harry for hours on end.

Although Harry was good at sports, he was always the last picked for a team because no one wanted to admit to Dudley that they liked him, rather than because he was no good. Harry got decent, if not good grades at school. On one occasion, Harry accidentally turned his teacher's wig blue ; on another, he accidentally apparated onto the school kitchen roof when escaping from Dudley's gang; and on a third, he made Dudley's old jumper shrink as Aunt Petunia tried to shove it over his head.

These incidents always enraged the Dursleys, and after each, they would punish Harry by throwing him into the cupboard — except for after the jumper incident because Aunt Petunia thought that the jumper had shrunk in the wash.

If Harry had not gone to Hogwarts, then he would have attended Stonewall High , a Muggle secondary school that Harry dreaded attending. Harry had no birthday celebrations until the day he turned 11, which was the same day that he discovered the exceptional reality about his identity.

On the week of Harry's birthday, hundreds of letters began arriving at the Dursleys' home, addressed to him from a place called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. When the Dursleys saw the first letter was addressed as " cupboard under the stairs ", they panicked at the thought of Harry's ill treatment being observed and transferred him to Dudley's second bedroom out of fear of being arrested for child abuse, which soon appeared on letters as the smallest bedroom.

When Uncle Vernon first read the letter, he turned a pale porridge grey out of fear that wizards were trying to contact Harry.

Because of this, Vernon tried to destroy the letters in a futile attempt to keep Harry from his destiny. But the letters kept coming in increasingly larger quantities, to the point where they started flying out of the fireplace by the dozens, and as they did, the Dursleys saw no alternative, but to flee from them. This was not enough to let the Dursleys avoid the letters, as the owls carrying these letters followed them wherever they went.

On 30 July , In a final desperate move on, the Dursleys moved to a shack on a rocky island at the edge of the sea. Potter receiving a birthday cake from Hagrid on his eleventh birthday. At midnight on Harry's birthday , Rubeus Hagrid appeared in person to find out why Harry had not received his letter. He was infuriated by the Dursleys and explained to Harry, in spite of Vernon's obstinate protests, that he was a wizard, how his parents died , that Dumbledore demanded him to take Harry from the ruined house to his hated relatives, and that he was to be sent to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

This would be Harry's first birthday celebration and Hagrid gave him a small homemade birthday cake and later, a snowy owl. This was the first birthday present Harry ever received. Hagrid took Harry to the Leaky Cauldron , where he learned that he was famous. Hagrid then took Harry to Diagon Alley , where he learned more about his fame in the wizarding world and that his parents had left him a small fortune in a vault at Gringotts Wizarding Bank.

Potter at Ollivander's on Diagon Alley buying his wand. Harry bought his first wand from Ollivander's that very day. The wand that chose Harry was made of holly wood and had a phoenix feather core; it was 11", nice and supple. The phoenix feather at its core came from Dumbledore's phoenix Fawkes. It was crafted by Garrick Ollivander, who had also created a twin wand.

This wand had been made from yew , and contained the only other feather supplied by Fawkes. This twin wand had long ago chosen Tom Riddle as its master. But Riddle, after he turned to evil and assumed the alias of Lord Voldemort, ended up using this wand to attack Harry and his parents. The two wands, sharing the same phoenix origin, had a unique connection which would prevent them from successfully duelling against each other in the years to come.

Harry was guided further to his destiny on 1 September , , when he was dropped off by the Dursleys at King's Cross Station. Vernon helped Harry wheel his things to the platforms and left laughing about how Platform Nine and Three-Quarters hadn't been built yet. The family then drove off leaving Harry at the busy station all alone. With only ten minutes left until the train's departure at eleven a. Harry meeting the Weasleys for the first time at King's Cross Station. Harry watched as the older boys magically passed through the barrier between platforms nine and ten.

Harry nervously interrupted them and was introduced to the youngest son Ron , who was starting his first year as well. Molly Ron's mother kindly gave him instructions on how to board the platform. Harry quickly ran through the barrier, followed by Ron, and arrived on the Platform, catching his first sight of the Hogwarts Express. As most of the compartments were full, Harry pushed his things to near the end of the train, and with some help from twins from the red-headed family, was able to get his things aboard.

While helping, the twins noticed his scar and recognised that he must be Harry Potter. While Harry sat near the window in his compartment watching the family, the twins Fred and George Weasley reported this discovery to the amazement of their little sister Ginny and their older brother Percy who was a Prefect and had already changed into his robes.

After boarding, the train soon departed and Ron asked if he could sit with Harry, who agreed. When the Trolley witch came by around half-past twelve, Harry bought some of all the treats from the cart and shared them with Ron.

The trio meeting for the first time aboard the Hogwarts Express. Neville Longbottom soon came by searching for his lost toad , Trevor.

While Ron was attempting a magic spell to change his rat Scabbers , Hermione Granger interrupted trying to help find Trevor. After Ron's spell failed, Hermione introduced herself and upon learning Harry's name, informed him that he was in several books on magical history.

Although Draco attempted to ingratiate himself, Harry refused to shake his hand after he insulted Ron and his family. When Goyle attempted to take some of their Chocolate Frog Cards , Scabbers bit his finger and helped drive them off.

Ron afterwards explained that the Malfoy family were on Voldemort's side, but came back saying they had been bewitched, although his father didn't believe it. Upon arriving, Hagrid gathered all the first years together and they followed a path down to the edge of a Great Lake. In groups of no more than four, they climbed aboard a little fleet of small boats, and sailed across the lake to an underground harbour. Helping to remind Neville to take his toad, Hagrid took them up a passageway to the gates of the castle.

The new students were greeted at the castle door by Professor Minerva McGonagall , who explained the four houses of Hogwarts: Gryffindor , Hufflepuff , Ravenclaw , and Slytherin , as well as the rules of the House Cup. McGonagall led the first years into a small room off the Entrance Hall and told them to wait until she returned.

When she did, they were led into the Great Hall , where they were greeted by the rest of the students, and more importantly, a shabby wizard's hat on a small stool. Harry was particularly anxious, as he did not feel that any of the Houses as they were described in the Hat's song were right for him. Harry noted that Draco Malfoy , whom Harry had met in Diagon Alley , was instantly placed in Slytherin, and remembered what Hagrid and Ron had told him about Slytherin's reputation for turning out Dark Wizards , and that Voldemort had been in Slytherin.

When Harry put on the Hat, it slipped down past his eyes, and the hat told him that he "would do well in Slytherin". Thinking of Voldemort, Harry desperately repeated the phrase "not Slytherin". In his second year during a visit to Dumbledore's office, the Sorting Hat re-emphasised the idea that Harry "would do well in Slytherin".

The Sorting Ceremony was followed by the Welcoming Feast. Harry, who had never been allowed to eat as much as he wanted, was overwhelmed by the sheer variety of foods in front of him. Dessert arrived, and talk turned to the first years' families. Neville Longbottom told the others how his family thought he was a Squib until his Great-Uncle accidentally dropped him out of a window, and he bounced. Harry as his scar begins to hurt during the Sorting ceremony after making eye contact with Severus Snape.

It was during the Feast that Harry's scar hurt for the first time: Harry was looking up at the staff table at Professor Quirrell when the hook-nosed teacher Quirrell was talking to looked past Quirrell at Harry, who immediately felt a sharp pain in his scar.

This is because Lord Voldemort was inhabiting Quirrell's body as anytime Voldemort is near Harry's scar hurt. After the last morsels melted from the golden plates and goblets, Dumbledore gave a speech welcoming the new students to the school and the old students back.

He added a few warnings about staying away from the Forbidden Forest , and avoiding the third-floor corridor before leading the school in singing the School Song and sending everyone off to their dormitories. In his first ever Potions class, Harry discovered that Professor Snape hated him, mocking him as the school's "new celebrity" before teaching the class how to brew a Boil-Cure Potion. Hagrid and Ron began to talk about Ron's brother older Charlie Weasley.

While they were talking, Harry picked up a cutting from the Daily Prophet that was lying on the table. The article detailed a break-in that occurred on Harry's birthday at Gringotts. The vault that was broken into was number , the same vault Hagrid visited with Harry on their trip to Diagon Alley. One of the things Harry had been looking forward to was learning to fly until he found out that the Gryffindors would be taking flying lessons with the Slytherins. Malfoy had been bragging about his skill to anyone who would listen.

Madam Rolanda Hooch taught the class by starting with basic broom control. After learning the theory, the students were told to hover gently off the ground on Madam Hooch's go-ahead. Neville, terrified of being left behind, panicked and kicked off before anyone else, rising fifty feet in the air before falling off and breaking his wrist. Madam Hooch took Neville to the Hospital Wing after warning the other students to stay on the ground until she got back.

Draco Malfoy nicked Neville's Remembrall from off the ground and was told to give it to Harry, jeering that he'd leave it "up a tree" unless Harry stopped him and took off on his broom. Harry mounted his broom and kicked off after him.

As much to his surprise as everyone else's, he discovered that he could not only fly, but that it was something he didn't need to be taught.