| This article is non-canon.
This article covers a subject that has been deemed non-canon by either the author or the Harry Potter licensees, and thus should not be taken as a part of the "real" Harry Potter universe. |
- "It's like trying to catch smoke... like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands."
- — Bem on trying to catch Sirius Black[src]
Bem[3] (born c. 1979-1980[1]) was a Nigerian[4] wizard who attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1991 to 1998.[5] He was Sorted into Gryffindor and is in Harry Potter's year, however he does not dorm with Harry and friends.
Biography
Hogwarts education
Early years
Born in Britain or Ireland[6], despite being Nigerian in descent, Bem began his education at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 1991, along with students Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.[1] He was Sorted into the house of Gryffindor, but would not share a dormitory with the other known Gryffindor boys in his year.[5] During Bem's second year, the school would be under attack from a Basilisk. Many students became petrified. Hogwarts was under threat of being closed. Bem was not a mentioned casualty.[7]
House Loyalty
Though he was originally sorted into the Gryffindor house, due to the wise things he said in the PofA film, it is believed that he then moved to the Ravenclaw house, because of Dumbledore's reconiziton of his wisdom. He is the only Harry Potter character known to switch houses. All hail Bem.
Bem and other students learn that Sirius Black has been sighted
Third year
Bem chose Care of Magical Creatures and Divination as electives in his third year.
Physical appearance
He was a black boy with dark eyes and a round face.
Etymology
The name Bem means "peace" in the language of the Tiv, of Nigeria and Cameroon and also means "good" in Portuguese.[8] "BEM" is also an abbreviation for British Empire Medal, a medal received from British royalty for meritorious civil or military service, which reflects Bem being Sorted into Gryffindor.
Behind the scenes
- Like the character Nigel Wolpert, Bem is not mentioned in the books, but is credited in the films. Played by Ekow Quartey, the character is listed in the credits for Prisoner of Azkaban as simply "Boy 1". However, on the Prisoner of Azkaban DVD, the closed captions identify the character as "Bem" during the Divination class scene.
- Bem cannot be considered canon, as the books identify in several places that there are only five Gryffindor boys in Harry's year: Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas.
Appearances
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film) (First appearance) Template:Non-cannon
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Bem's age can be extrapolated from his presence during the third-year Divination class in the Prisoner of Azkaban film.
- ↑ He was not sent away from Hogwarts while it had been taken over by Death Eaters, so he was not Muggle-born.
- ↑ Closed captioning on the DVD release of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
- ↑ Prisoner of Azkaban script on IMSDb (archived here via the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
- ↑ Bem attended Hogwarts. Hogwarts only accepts wizards from Britain and Ireland, so despite being Nigerian in descent, Bem must have been born in England
- ↑ He did not appear in CoS, but still the CHARACTER would still be at Hogwarts, even if introduced later, just like Luna, she still attended Hogwarts before OotP but was never mentioned really.
- ↑ The New Age Baby Name Book by Sue Browder