Harry Potter · Character

Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington

Also known as Nearly Headless Nick

Minor
First seen · Book 1 · Ch. 6

Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington is a supporting character in Harry Potter (Book 1).

Gender: male
Age: ghost
First appears: Book 1 · Ch. 6
Books: 3

Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, better known as Nearly Headless Nick, is the genial ghost of Gryffindor House, whose head dangles from a neck left incompletely severed by a botched execution in 1492. He first greets Harry at the Sorting Feast as a whimsical guide to Hogwarts' spectral society. In the second year his comic dignity gains depth: he longs for acceptance among the ghostly elite, invites Harry to his Deathday Party, and is Petrified by the basilisk's indirect gaze before being restored. By the Triwizard year he remains a fixture of feasts and celebrations, his ruffled doublet and wobbling head a running source of humor and a reminder of Hogwarts' long, strange history.

Description

Nearly Headless Nick is a pearly-white slightly transparent ghost clad in a ruff and tights from Elizabethan times. His head dangles from his neck on a thin hinge of skin, swinging loosely with gestures. An aristocratic face peers out ethereally, his ghostly form floating with courtly poise and faint luminescence. A pearly-white slightly transparent ghost with an aristocratic bearing, long curly hair cascading beneath a dashing plumed hat. He wears an Elizabethan tunic and lace ruff that partially conceals his nearly severed neck, head dangling precariously from a thin hinge of skin. His pale face, smoke-like in pallor, holds somber eyes and a dignified expression. Ethereal form floats inches above the floor, tunic billowing faintly in an unseen breeze. Nearly Headless Nick is pearly white and semi-transparent, with a ghostly body that lets light show through. He wears a historical doublet and a particularly large ruff, which frames his neck and makes his wobbling head all the more conspicuous. His head hangs from a partially severed neck, giving him an unmistakably lopsided, otherworldly silhouette.

Connections

Family & partnersFriends & mentorsRivals

Harry PotterFriend / mentor figure
Nick welcomes Harry to Hogwarts in his first year and grows into a loyal ally, inviting him to his Deathday Party and standing by him when the Chamber of Secrets attacks cast suspicion on Harry.
GH
Gryffindor HouseHouse ghost
As Gryffindor's resident ghost, Nick embodies the house's chivalrous past and remains a constant presence at its feasts and celebrations throughout the series.
TH
The Headless HuntRejected aspirant
Nick's yearning to join the Headless Hunt, denied because his head was not fully severed, exposes the social hierarchies of the ghostly world and his wounded pride.

Story so far

BOOK 1Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
- Introduces himself to Harry and the new Gryffindors at the start-of-term feast
- Demonstrates his nearly severed head swinging on its hinge of skin, revealing the origin of his nickname
- Represents Gryffindor among the Hogwarts house ghosts during feasts and events
BOOK 2Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- Laments his rejection from the Headless Hunt because his execution left his head not fully detached
- Hosts his five-hundredth Deathday Party, commemorating his 1492 execution
- Is Petrified, turned black and smoky, after seeing the basilisk's gaze through Justin Finch-Fletchley
- Is restored with the Mandrake draught after the Chamber of Secrets crisis ends
- Shows loyal support for Harry while suspicion falls on him
BOOK 4Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Appears at the start-of-term feast in his historical doublet and oversized ruff
- Laughs so heartily that his ruff slips and his head flops off, to comic effect
- Continues to embody Hogwarts' ghostly traditions, including Deathday celebrations