Harry Potter/Characters/Ghosts

Nearly Headless Nick (John Cleese)
The resident ghost of Gryffindor House. Known in life as Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, he was beheaded (well, nearly) on Halloween in the year 1492. As per Jacob Marley Apparel, he is now stuck spending eternity with his head just barely connected to his body by a thin strip of flesh. This makes him ineligible for the Headless Hunt, much to his chagrin.

Nick is occasionally proud and pompous, but is nevertheless always a friendly mentor to young Gryffindors. He appears in all the books, but in only the first two movies.


 * Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Only in the movies, in which he disappeared after the second film.
 * Headless Horseman: He wants to be one, but the fact that his head isn't completely detached makes this impossible.
 * Hollywood Costuming: Wears a ruff (useful for hiding his severed neck) despite dying a good fifty years before the ruff was commonly worn.
 * Negate Your Own Sacrifice: Isn't killed by the basilisk's gaze due to already being dead.
 * My Name Is Not Durwood: He prefers to be known as "Sir Nicholas", but unfortunately for him, he is Only Known by His Nickname.
 * Off with His Head: Well, not quite all the way off.
 * Torso with a View

Moaning Myrtle (Shirley Henderson)
The ghost of a Muggle-born girl who attended Hogwarts at the same time as Tom Riddle and Rubeus Hagrid. She was murdered by Riddle, via the basilisk, and he used her death to create the diary Horcrux. After spending some time haunting the Alpha Bitch who tormented her when she was alive, the Ministry of Magic forced Myrtle to go haunt the place of her death instead. This was the bathroom containing the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets and she has remained there ever since.

She is, as Hermione tactfully observes in the second movie, "a little sensitive". "A little sensitive" means that she is an insane Large Ham with a Hair-Trigger Temper. In Myrtle's mind, everyone is constantly making fun of her and talking about her behind her back. Of course, this behavior causes people to make fun of her and talk about her behind her back. She also develops a humorous crush on Harry, although he generally finds her annoying.

In the books, Myrtle appears in Chamber of Secrets, Goblet of Fire, and Half Blood Prince. In the films, she appears in just Chamber and Goblet.


 * Abhorrent Admirer: To Harry.
 * Alliterative Name
 * The Confidant: In Half-Blood Prince, she becomes one for, of all people, Draco Malfoy. It's hinted she may have switched her affections from Harry to Draco.
 * Cute Ghost Girl
 * Dawson Casting: Being in her thirties both times she played the role, Shirley Henderson is the oldest person to play a Hogwarts student in any of the movies.
 * Hair-Trigger Temper
 * The Peeping Tom: A past time of hers, as revealed in Goblet.
 * Nerd Glasses
 * Really 700 Years Old: Being a ghost, she has remained physically (well, metaphysically) a teenager for over fifty years.
 * Wangst: Played for Laughs

Helena Ravenclaw (Kelly Macdonald)
The daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw herself. Jealous of her mother, Helena stole her mother's diadem and was subsequently killed by the man who would become the Bloody Baron. Centuries later, she was effectively manipulated by the charms of one Tom Riddle. She revealed the location of her mother's diadem to him and he turned it into a Horcrux.


 * All There in the Manual: Prior to Deathly Hallows, Word of God provided the only indication that she existed. She does have a cameo in the first book, but this was only identified by Word of God.
 * Berserk Button: Mention of Tom Riddle using her mother's diadem as a Horcrux has her go from withdrawn yet dignified to screaming rage about how Voldemort defiled it with Dark magic.
 * Brainy Brunette
 * Color Character
 * Green-Eyed Monster: She was jealous of her mother and stole the diadem because she wanted to make herself more important.
 * The Other Darrin: In the first film, she was played by Nina Young in a Continuity Cameo. Although she didn't have a single line, her role in the first movie was still larger than her role in any of the books prior to Hallows.
 * Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Both the books and the film portray her with long dark hair and pale skin. Fitting as she is not only the patron ghost of Ravenclaw, but Rowena Ravenclaw's own daughter.
 * Shrinking Violet: She is rather reclusive, not talking much to people or other ghosts, and she was shown briefly spending time in empty classrooms taking notes. The only person she does speak with regularly is Luna.
 * Unwitting Pawn: Of Riddle/Voldemort
 * What Could Have Been: For Deathly Hallows: Part 2, the role was offered to Kate Winslet, but her agent rejected it.
 * Woman in White

The Bloody Baron (Terence Bayler)
The resident ghost of Slytherin House. In life, he was infatuated with Helena Ravenclaw. Some time after Helena had run away with her mother's diadem, Rowena was dying and sent the baron to find her daughter. He found her, but killed her in the struggle to bring her back. Realizing what he'd done, he then killed himself. As per Jacob Marley Apparel, he will spend eternity covered in blood, hence the nickname.

During the time frame of the series, he is regarded as cold and mysterious, even by the other ghosts. For some reason, he is the only individual, other than Dumbledore, who can control Peeves.


 * Alliterative Name
 * Ascended Extra: In the first PC game, the Bloody Baron appears a couple times as a minor enemy whom you have to avoid. It's not a huge role, but it's still more interaction than Harry ever had with him in the canon.
 * Continuity Cameo: His only appearance in the films is in a brief shot during the opening feast from the first movie. Not that he appeared much more than that in the books anyway.
 * Driven to Suicide
 * My God, What Have I Done?
 * Noodle Incident: Why is Peeves so afraid of him?
 * Yandere

The Fat Friar (Simon Fisher-Becker)
The resident ghost of Hufflepuff House. He seems to be cheerful and comical in personality, but nothing else is known about him other than the fact that he was evidently a friar when he was alive. Well, it is Hufflepuff House, after all.


 * Alliterative Name
 * Big Fun
 * No Such Thing as Wizard Jesus: Well, since a wizard can be a friar, apparently.
 * The Pollyanna: He believes in giving Peeves second chances. And third chances. And fourth chances.

Peeves
A poltergeist who haunts Hogwarts, making mischief wherever he can. He's not considered a ghost by the "other" ghosts, but he's often classified as one for convenience. However, it's worth noting that Peeves is not white or transparent, but is rather solid-looking and often dressed in loudly-colored clothes. Rowling defines Peeves as "an indestructible spirit of chaos".

Peeves has no agenda, no motivation, no goals other than to create as much chaos as possible For the Lulz. He is rude, crude, fond of practical jokes, and takes orders from no one other than the Bloody Baron, though he also shows some respect to Dumbledore. Peeves and Filch are constantly at war with each other, a conflict Harry and his friends generally do not involve themselves in.

Although Peeves has a sizable role in all the books and some of the video games, he never appears in the movies.


 * Arch Enemy: To Argus Filch.
 * Even Evil Has Standards: While Peeves is very much For the Evulz, he does take his pranking Up to Eleven during Order of the Phoenix, wreaking complete havoc during Umbridge's reign. During DH, he causes havoc among the Death Eaters, and composes a rude song to commemorate the defeat of Voldemort.
 * Goldfish Poop Gang: His role in the video games.
 * Jerkass
 * Poltergeist
 * Trickster Archetype
 * Troll
 * What Could Have Been: A scene with Rik Mayall of Drop Dead Fred fame as Peeves was shot for the first film, but was left on the cutting room floor and has never even been featured as a bonus feature on the DVDs. As is, Peeves never makes any appearances in the films.