Bubble-Head Charm

Bubble-Head Charm
Type	Charm
Hand movement
Light	None
Effect	Creates bubble protecting the head

"The Bubble-Head Charm is used to allow a person to breathe underwater. An enormous bubble appears around the head of the person casting the spell, which makes their features look oddly wide and stretched."

— Description of the Bubble-Head Charm

The Bubble-Head Charm (incantation unknown) was a charm that produced a bubble around the head of the caster, giving them a continuous supply of oxygen, allowing them to breathe where they could not otherwise.

It was the most effective spell for breathing underwater or in any environment where fresh air is at a premium, allowing one a supply of oxygen.

History

During the 1989–1990 school year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Professor Filius Flitwick taught his sixth-years how to cast this particular charm in Charms class.

Guests attending Professor Neville Longbottom's Blooming Party in the 2010–2011 school year cast this charm on themselves to avoid smelling the foul odour of Stinksap.

During the Calamity in the late 2010s, St. Troglodous Order of Labours member Sanderson Bowles recommended that a Calamity Investigator working for the Statute of Secrecy Task Force utilise dried dung as fuel for fires used to brew potions. The Calamity Investigator found that the efficient and long-burning dung helped reduce the time it took for them to brew their Potent Exstimulo Potions, although they were forced to utilise the Bubble-Head Charm in order to avoid the terrible smell.

Effects

"Harry looked up and saw Cedric swimming toward them. There was an enormous bubble around his head, which made his features look oddly wide and stretched."

— Cedric Diggory using this charm during the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament

The charm causes a protective bubble to form about the caster's head, described to look like upside-down fish bowls; this bubble may allow for underwater exploration or to avoid nasty smells, although wizards with bad breath have reported problems after the first thirty minutes.

Known uses

"Fleur Delacour, though she demonstrated excellent use of the Bubble-Head Charm, was attacked by grindylows as she approached her goal, and failed to retrieve her hostage. We award her twenty-five points... Cedric Diggory, who also used the Bubble-Head Charm, was first to return with his hostage, though he returned one minute outside the time limit of an hour... We therefore award him forty-seven points."

— Ludo Bagman after the 2nd Task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament

Caster(s)	Date	Notes
Jacob's sibling	1986–1987 school year	Used twice to go the bottom of the Great Lake to find out why a sea serpent was behaving strangely.
Barnaby Lee
Jacob's sibling	1986–1987 school year	Used three times by Jacob's sibling and once each by Penny and Ben to go to the bottom of the Ocean in the Magical Creatures Reserve to find out why a Giant Squid was distressed. Jacob's sibling also used the spell on Rubeus Hagrid the third time to enable him to join the third trip.
Penny Haywood
Ben Copper
Jacob's sibling	1986–1987 school year	Used twice to go the bottom of the Ocean in the Magical Creatures Reserve to rescue a Horned Serpent egg from an approaching cold front and to view the hatching of the baby Horned Serpent. Jacob's sibling also used the spell on Rubeus Hagrid the second time to enable him to join the second trip.
Holly Blackbird
Jacob's sibling	1986–1987 school year	Used to go to the bottom of the Ocean in the Magical Creatures Reserve to observe the interactions between a Shrake shoal and other fish to confirm that the Shrakes were suffering from Spike rot.
Sal Grimstone
Amos Diggory	1987–1988 school year	Used to attempt to swim unseen under the waters of the Great Lake to reach a chair set up on the shore during a demonstration of the intruder-sensing abilities of a Clabbert.
Jacob's sibling	1990	Used to go under the Great Lake and break into the Sunken Vault.
Merula Snyde
Ben Copper
Jacob
Cedric Diggory	24 February, 1995	Used during the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament to enable them to breathe underwater.
Fleur Delacour
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry students	1996	Students also used this spell after the departure of Fred and George Weasley, when it became fashion to throw Dungbombs and Stink Pellets in the corridors of Hogwarts.
Blooming Party guests	2010–2011 school year	Guests used this spell to avoid smelling the foul odour of Stinksap.
An unnamed Calamity Investigator	At least the late 2010s	A Calamity Investigator used this spell to avoid smelling the foul odour of burning dung.

Known practitioners

Filius Flitwick

Jacob's sibling

Barnaby Lee

Penny Haywood

Ben Copper

Holly Blackbird

Sal Grimstone

Amos Diggory

Merula Snyde

Cedric Diggory

Fleur Delacour

Ivy Warrington

• Jacob
• Tiburon Merriweather's great-grandchild
• Other Blooming Party guests
• An unnamed Calamity Investigator

Behind the scenes

• In the films, the charm creates a bubble around the mouth and nose, similar to an oxygen mask, not the entire head.
• It's unclear why Harry Potter was unable to find information on this spell while researching for the second task. It is possible that the spell was a relatively new invention not covered in many books as of 1995, or that the spell was not commonly used for breathing underwater, but for other purposes. It was also said that Harry searched for a spell "that would allow human to survive without oxygen", rather than for some form of oxygen supply.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (play) (Mentioned only)
• Pottermore
• Harry Potter (website) (Mentioned only)
• Wonderbook: Book of Spells
• Fantastic Beasts: Cases from the Wizarding World (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened