Rita Skeeter
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| Harry Potter character | |
|---|---|
 Miranda Richardson takes on the role of tabloid journalist Rita Skeeter in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire |
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| Rita Skeeter | |
| Gender | Female |
| Hair colour | Blonde |
| Eye colour | Unknown (green in the film) |
| Actor | Miranda Richardson |
| First appearance | Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire |
Rita Skeeter (born c. 1951[1]) is a fictional character from the Harry Potter series. She works as a reporter for the Daily Prophet and a correspondent for the Witch Weekly, who specialises in yellow journalism.
Armed with such magical devices as the Quick-Quotes Quill which automatically misquotes an interviewee even while he or she speaks, the character is clearly intended as satire on such journalists in the real world.
As a reporter who fabricated information in order to write an appealing story, she was an antagonist to Harry and his friends throughout Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
Rita Skeeter is played by Miranda Richardson in the film version of the fourth novel, released in 2005.
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[edit] History
Rita Skeeter's attempts to create controversy are first seen in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and include instances that occurred before Harry returned to Hogwarts for his fourth year. When Rita wrote about the Dark Mark appearing at the Quidditch World Cup, she said that there were rumours that several bodies had been removed from the forest an hour after the attack; Arthur Weasley commented that this report would likely create those rumours, even if they hadn't existed before. She also reported on Ludo Bagman's trial many years previous to when the story takes place, which Harry witnessed in Dumbledore's Pensieve. Dumbledore also mentions that she referred to him as an "obsolete dingbat" in a piece about the International Confederation of Wizards, while Bill Weasley recalls that she called him "a long-haired pillock" after an interview with all the Gringotts curse breakers.
[edit] Role in the series
[edit] Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Harry first encounters Rita when she interviews the Triwizard Tournament contestants for an article in The Daily Prophet. She ushers Harry into a broom cupboard, her Quick-Quotes Quill misquoting him as he speaks. The article turns out to be mostly about Harry. A picture of his face takes up the front page, and she has fabricated Harry's answers to her interview questions. The two foreign Triwizard champions' names are misspelled and do not appear until the end of the article, and Cedric Diggory (the other Hogwarts champion) is not mentioned at all. Harry endures much ridicule for her story. At some point in the interview, Dumbledore barges in and the following happens.
"Dumbledore" cried Rita Skeeter. "How are you? I hope you saw my piece over the summer about the International Confederation of Wizards' Conference?" "Enchantingly Nasty", said Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling. "I particularly enjoyed your desription of me as a obsolete dingbat."
Rita then interviews Hagrid, but rather than talking to him about his creatures, which he had been led to believe she would be interested in, she asks for information about Harry. Hagrid commented after the interview that she seemed disappointed when he said that he had never had to reprimand Harry. Not long afterwards, Dumbledore bans her from Hogwarts.
[edit] Animagus form
Rita Skeeter is an unregistered Animagus, capable of transforming into a beetle to spy on unsuspecting victims for her stories. During the Yule Ball, she overhears Hagrid telling Madame Maxime that he is half-giant. Skeeter prints a story about it and includes Malfoy's hippogriff incident, during which Draco was "wounded." In the article, Hagrid is portrayed as dangerous, prompting letters from parents concerned over having a "ferocious" giant teach their children. Afterwards, Hagrid becomes severely depressed and tries to resign; however, Dumbledore refuses to accept his resignation and persuades him to remain.
During the situations where Rita overhears information, the book subtly makes reference to her presence, during the second task Viktor Krum mentions Hermione has a water beetle in her hair and during the talk between Madam Maxime and Hagrid, Harry notices a beetle on a nearby statue.
When Skeeter encounters Harry, Ron, and Hermione in Hogsmeade, Hermione insults her. Skeeter then writes a nasty story about Hermione, making her out to be an ugly but conniving witch who uses illegal love potions to "satisfy her taste for celebrity wizards," including Harry Potter and Viktor Krum. The article prompts more ridicule towards Harry by Hogwarts students.
Rita's last defaming article states that Harry is "disturbed and dangerous," and uses comments from Draco Malfoy and his Slytherin cronies (who are aware Skeeter uses her animagus form to gain information). Skeeter also reports that Harry knows Parseltongue (the ability to speak with serpents) and about the pain from his scar that was inflicted by Lord Voldemort.
Hermione discovers just how Skeeter spies on others and forces her to "keep her quill to herself for a full year." Otherwise, she will report her to the authorities as an unregistered (and illegal) Animagus.
[edit] Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
Hermione blackmails Skeeter to interview Harry about Lord Voldemort returning and to submit the story to The Quibbler. Otherwise she will inform the Ministry that Rita is an unregistered Animagus.
Until the article is published, few believed Voldemort had arisen because Harry and Dumbledore have been heavily smeared in The Daily Prophet. The article gains support for Harry; Dolores Umbridge, a Ministry employee sent to Hogwarts as the new High Inquisitor, bans the magazine. But the attempt backfires, and the story quickly spreads throughout the school.
[edit] Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
At the end of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, much to Harry's fury, Rita is spotted in attendance at Dumbledore's funeral, clutching a notebook. Her role in the book is minor.
[edit] Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
At the Edinburgh Book Festival in 2004, Rowling revealed that Rita will appear in the final book of the series.
[edit] Behind the name
"Skeeter" is a slang term for mosquito, which correlates to her annoying personality and her Animagus insect form.
[edit] Portrayal in the film
In the Goblet of Fire film, she was played by Miranda Richardson as something of a sugary gossip journalist in contrast to the character of the original novel, who was more catty and malicious. In the film she had a column entitled Me, Myself & I, which was not mentioned in the book.
In the film, the size of her role is dramatically reduced, her status as an illegal Animagus is not revealed and, unlike in the book, she is not shown to overtly lie in her news reports. Also, the book implies that she frequently creates stories in order to defame people who have been unkind to her, but there is no such implication in the film.
[edit] Character background
J. K. Rowling considered putting Rita, who was then called Bridget, in the first book for the scene where Harry enters The Leaky Cauldron on his way to Diagon Alley.[2] Rowling cut the character and decided to move her to the fourth book. She said part of the reason for this was to fill the role of a character named Mafalda who was cut out (see Weasley family).[3]
However, Rowling notes she was reluctant to write the character when the time came, fearing people would believe it to be a response to her own fame. However, she did write the character and has noted that meeting with real journalists did make it more fun.[4]
[edit] Notes
In Quidditch Through the Ages, Rita, who has apparently read the book, gives it fictional praise by saying, I've read worse.
[edit] See also
| J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philosopher's Stone | book | film | game | soundtrack |
| Chamber of Secrets | book | film | game | soundtrack |
| Prisoner of Azkaban | book | film | game | soundtrack |
| Goblet of Fire | book | film | game | soundtrack |
| Order of the Phoenix | book | (film) | (game) | |
| Half-Blood Prince | book | (film) | ||
| Deathly Hallows | (book) | |||
| Other books | Other games | |||
| Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them | Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup | |||
| Quidditch Through the Ages | ||||
|
Characters • Places • Spells • Translations • Quidditch • Timeline Films • Fandom • Controversy • Money |
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