Willy Widdershins

Willy Widdershins
Biographical information
Born	Before or during 1973
Nationality	British
Physical information
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Affiliation
Loyalty	British Ministry of Magic

Dolores Umbridge: "I have testimony from Willy Widdershins, Minerva, who happened to be in the bar at the time. He was heavily bandaged, it is true, but his hearing was quite unimpaired. He heard every word Potter said and hastened straight to the school to report to me —"

Minerva McGonagall: "Oh, so that's why he wasn't prosecuted for setting up all those regurgitating toilets! What an interesting insight into our justice system!"

Dexter Fortescue: "Blatant corruption! The Ministry did not cut deals with petty criminals in my day, no sir, they did not!"

— Dolores Umbridge, Minerva McGonagall, and the portrait of Dexter Fortescue discussing the Ministry's actions about Willy Widdershins

Willy Widdershins was a British wizard who repeatedly engaged in the criminal act of Muggle-baiting. Easily identified due to leaving his initial "WW" on all of his pranked objects, he well was known to the Ministry of Magic by the 1990s, when he was arrested by the Auror Alastor Moody, alongside the head of Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office, Arthur Weasley. Despite being caught and sentenced, he would continue to prank Muggles all throughout the 1990s.

Biography

Jacob's sibling: "What's the trouble?"

Arthur Weasley: "Willy Widdershins."

Jacob's sibling: "Willy Widderwhat?"

Arthur Weasley: "A young wizard prankster called Willy Widdershins is playing jokes on innocent Muggles. He's a wily one. He's evaded all of our efforts so far. In order to outsmart him, we need someone smarter. Someone like you!"

— Arthur Weasley to Jacob's sibling regarding Willy's activities

In adulthood, he repeatedly engaged in Muggle-baiting pranks. In the 1990–1991 school year, Widdershins caused trouble for the British Ministry of Magic by pranking innocent Muggles, and was sneaky enough to evade capture. He sold one hapless Muggle man some Frog Spawn Soap. Arthur Weasley and Alastor Moody had Jacob's sibling investigate his offences for the Ministry, and thanks to their help, he was caught so he could face proper consequences for his actions, with magic being kept secret from the Muggles he targeted.

"I was just reading about Willy Widdershins’s arrest when you arrived. You know Willy turned out to be behind those regurgitating toilets last summer? One of his jinxes backfired, the toilet exploded, and they found him lying unconscious in the wreckage covered from head to foot in —"

— Arthur Weasley regarding Willy's 1995 arrest detailed in the Daily Prophet

In 1995, he was arrested by the British Ministry of Magic for jinxing a series of regurgitating toilets in Muggle areas such as Bethnal Green, one of which backfired against him during its creation, as well as covering him in the toilet's contents. He was badly injured in his capture and was wrapped heavily in bandages. To avoid prosecution, he made a deal with the Ministry, that if he spied on Harry Potter and his friends, they would let him go. He did so, and reported to Hogwarts High Inquisitor Dolores Umbridge and Cornelius Fudge that they were planning on making a secret Defence Against the Dark Arts group while they were in a meeting at the Hog's Head Inn. The fact that the Ministry was willing to work with a petty criminal who had violated wizarding law highlighted how corrupt and immoral they were at the time. Whilst he spied on Harry and his friends in the Hog's Head, he was covered in dirty grey bandages as a result of his injury, and also to likely obscure his face.

Despite being given a second chance, Widdershins soon resumed his criminal activity and was later caught selling biting doorknobs, which bit off the fingers of two Muggles, and was subsequently given a prison sentence.

Personality and traits

Widdershins was an extremely mischievous wizarding prankster who enjoyed using magic to play pranks on unsuspecting Muggles, which was a violation of wizarding law, showing he appeared to have little regard for the law and saw no problem in breaking it. He also appeared rather underhand in nature, given how he willingly spied on Harry Potter and his friends in the Hog's Head for the Ministry. Arthur Weasley once commented that he was "a wily one".

His feeling towards Muggles was unknown; he could have felt his pranks on them were harmless jokes, but according to Arthur Weasley, Muggle-baiting pranks were often a sign of sinister supremacist attitudes towards Muggles. He also seemed to be unrepentant and stubborn, as even after one of his pranks backfired, resulting in him being injured and arrested, he continued to create such harmful prank despite the "second chance" he received from his deal with the Ministry.

Magical abilities and skills

• Dark Arts: Widdershins was proficient with using amusing jinxes to enchant Muggle toilets, making them regurgitate, although one of his jinxes backfired, badly injuring him.

Etymology

Widdershins (sometimes withershins, widershins or widderschynnes) means to take a course opposite the apparent motion of the sun (in the Northern hemisphere), going anti-clockwise, lefthandwise, or to circle an object, by always keeping it on the left.

Behind the scenes

• It is possible that Willy may be the same Will mentioned by Mundungus Fletcher earlier in the same book.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (First appearance)
• Pottermore
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery (Mentioned only)