Do you adore a boogie? Or do you prefer staying in the corner, spying on all the shenanigans? Do you love meeting new people – or would you much rather seek out gossip with your best friend? At the Yule Ball, we got to see new sides to the Hogwarts staff and student as they ‘let their hair down’ (McGonagall’s words!) and enjoyed an unconventional school dance. So, which character that attended the Yule Ball do you most relate to?
We’ll be including character moments that occurred in both the book of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and the accompanying film!
If you always stick by your best friend... you would be Ron
If you’re going to a glitzy shindig – chances are you’ll either end up engaging in small talk with scary new people or gluing yourself to your best friend who just so happens to be with you. This is precisely what Ron did at the Yule Ball, sticking firmly by Harry’s side throughout the whole night. This was of great annoyance to his date, Padma, of course, and things didn’t get much better when he took out his jealousy on Hermione in a display of emotional fireworks at the end of the evening. However, we’re not saying you would do any of those things.
Sometimes, parties can just be a bit overwhelming, especially if the person you fancy is at the party too – and attending it with someone else. Although Ron didn’t handle that situation very well, at least he got to be distracted with Harry for a while, especially when they accidentally eavesdropped on quite a personal conversation between Hagrid and Madame Maxime.
If you’re just in it for the buffet... you would be Dumbledore
What separates a good party from a great party? The answer is easy: a good spread. And if anyone knows how to do food well, it’s Hogwarts. For the Yule Ball, things really stepped up a notch, with the celebration featuring enchanted plates that would conjure up any food you wished, simply by saying its name. Albus Dumbledore, a man who often professes his love for snacks, kicked off proceedings by wishing for pork chops. So, if you enjoy playing a stealth mission at parties, such as hunting down buffet items or canapés, we suspect Dumbledore would be right there with you.
If you like to dress up... you would be Hermione
The usually frizzy-haired Hermione surprised her peers at the Yule Ball by appearing in a beautiful dress with especially sleek hair, not to mention turning up arm in arm with the Durmstrang Triwizard Champion and Quidditch ace, Viktor Krum. A party can be an opportunity to transform and simply feel good about yourself, which is precisely what Hermione did after years of stressful studying and dedication to being the top student of her year. Perhaps you love to turn heads at your parties too – and if so, good! Hermione certainly deserved the self-esteem boost after instances of being bullied by Malfoy and even Ron ‘forgetting’ she was a girl. But we especially loved that she gave herself this big glamour moment for herself rather than anyone else.
If you like to make the most out of a not-great situation... you would be Parvati
Attending the Yule Ball with the Hogwarts champion (well, one of them) was obviously a huge moment for Parvati Patil, who relished the opportunity to dress up to the nines and dance in front of the whole school. Alas, Harry had asked her last minute after getting turned down by Cho – and nobody loves being the second choice. To make things worse, after an awkward dance with Harry, he immediately descended from the dance floor to be grumpy alongside Ron! No matter, though. Parvati quickly found a new dance partner – and we admired her greatly for brushing herself down after Harry ignored her.
If you are also good at overcoming setbacks and rescuing your night, then you and Parvati have that in common.
If you love to dance the night away... you would be Neville
Some people go to parties to meet people, some go to hopefully find a bit of romance, but some people just want to dance! And Neville Longbottom was very much the latter. The usually shy and nervous Neville really came out of his shell at the Yule Ball, not returning back to his dormitory until the dying embers of the night. And good for him! Why overcomplicate things? Sometimes, all you need is to quite literally dance the night away.
If you’re an over-sharer... you would be Hagrid
Bless lovely Hagrid. After finding a kindred spirit in Madame Maxime, Hagrid revealed that he is a half-giant to her in Hogwarts’ rose garden. Unfortunately, the way that Hagrid tells Madame Maxime this information, inferring that she must be one too, doesn’t go down too well, ending with her storming off, announcing she was not the same: just big-boned. Poor Hagrid. He really was just trying to seek a connection – and we’ve all been guilty of putting our foot in our mouth at one social occasion or another. Hagrid, we’ve all been there.
If you don’t really like parties... you would be Harry
You know what? Parties aren’t for everyone, and that’s completely fine. For our hero, our Boy Who Lived, our Chosen One, Harry simply had too much on his plate to enjoy the extravagances of The Yule Ball, and we're not talking about the delicious dinner.
For a start, there was the ever-looming Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament to look forward to, with a mysterious egg-clue that Harry had yet to figure out. Then there was the small matter of him still not knowing how he was a Hogwarts Champion in the first place. How about the fact that his crush Cho Chang was going with the other, more legitimate Hogwarts Champion? And then there was smaller party admin to deal with, such as learning how to dance without falling on his face and contending with Ron’s seething jealousy of Hermione. Oh, and this was on top of his own jealousy for Cho and Cedric. There was just a lot going on, and it mostly just led to Harry surviving the evening with Ron – where he could find a scrap of comfort. Parties can be stressful for all sorts of reasons, so we're glad Harry had Ron by his side to navigate it with.
