Harry Potter was prophesied to be the downfall of Lord Voldemort and therefore singled out at birth as the Dark Lord's rival. He was known in the wizarding world as 'The Boy Who Lived' after becoming the only known survivor of the Killing Curse, which was attempted by Voldemort when Harry was just a baby, after both his parents were murdered. But despite causing one of the most famous wizarding world events, Harry did not know he was a wizard until his eleventh birthday, due to his Muggle aunt and uncle neglecting to tell him. He would eventually go on to Hogwarts, discover his magical potential, and embark upon several great adventures with his best friends, Ron and Hermione.

Severus Snape was Head of Slytherin House, Potions Master and Harry’s least favourite teacher. From the first moment of meeting, these two never met eye to eye, with Snape often being condescending and cruel to anyone that wasn't his own Slytherin students. However, despite this surly reputation, perhaps Snape wasn't always what he seemed.

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore was Headmaster of Hogwarts and the founder of the Order of the Phoenix, an organisation dedicated to defeating Lord Voldemort. With a penchant for Muggle sweets and a beard long enough to be tucked into his belt, Dumbledore's quirky exterior should not be taken too lightly, for there was nothing that got past this great wizard. Dumbledore was a father figure for Harry Potter, and known to be the only wizard that Voldemort ever feared.

A man of many achievements, Dumbledore helped develop the Philosopher's Stone with his friend, Nicolas Flamel, and was credited with discovering the twelve uses of dragon's blood.

Minerva McGonagall was Head of  House, a  professor and Deputy Headteacher of . Strict but fair, McGonagall took no nonsense from her students but was not afraid to stand up for them in the face of injustice or danger - or on the  pitch, with the wizarding sport being one of her great passions. McGonagall was a talented Animagus, and her animal form was a tabby cat. Fiercely loyal to , she was the Headmaster's trusted confidant, and loyal member of the .

As a student at , Peter Pettigrew had been best friends with fellow  ,  and . As young wizards, they discovered how to transform into Animagi, and Peter made use of  when he disappeared from the wizarding world after the murder of James and his wife, . Pettigrew (or Wormtail) became one of  most loyal servants - a far cry from the company he kept in his Hogwarts days.

Born Tom Marvolo Riddle, Lord Voldemort or He-Who-Must-Not-be-Named was one of the most powerful  wizards of all time. His closest followers, the , were dedicated to establishing a new Voldemort-led supremacy, but were forced into hiding after their leader was mysteriously vanquished when he tried to kill a defenceless infant - a young . Little did anyone know, however, that Voldemort had gone further than any other wizard in his pursuit of immortality, and he would return once more.

Gamekeeper, Keeper of the Keys and Care of Magical Creatures teacher at . Rubeus Hagrid may have been intimidating physically - he was of course, half-man, half-giant - but he was also soft-hearted, especially when it came to looking after the beasts of Hogwarts. From monstrous spiders to feathered , majestic  and Blast-Ended-Skrewts, there was nothing too creepy or crawly that didn't have a place in Hagrid’s heart. Hagrid was the one to deliver the news to Harry that he had a place at Hogwarts with the immortal line, ‘Harry - yer a wizard’, and became something of a father figure to him ever since.

Hermione Granger was Harry's and Ron's bookish best friend, a Muggle-born student and one of the smartest witches of her generation. Though incredibly clever, she proved herself a true Gryffindor time and time again, using her courage as well as problem-solving skills in the face of danger, proving vital in the struggle against Lord Voldemort. As Hermione says herself: “Books! And cleverness! There are more important things - friendship and bravery..."

A  pupil who had a strong rivalry with  and a family loyal to , from the moment Draco and Harry met in  the two didn’t see eye to eye. Harry rejected Draco’s offer of friendship, preferring to choose his friends for their personality rather than their  status. Draco was usually accompanied by his cronies, fellow Slytherins,  and , and enjoyed having power over other students. When the pressure from his family and the rise of Voldemort turned Draco from schoolboy bully to something a lot more dangerous, the cracks began to show and his allegiances waiver.

Coming from one of the oldest (and darkest) of magical families, the rebellious Sirius Black chose not to follow in the footsteps of his other family members, many of whom became . Instead, Black made firm friends with  while at  (they were both ) and was even made godfather of James' son, Harry, in their later years. Framed for a crime he didn't commit, Sirius was taken to  prison, but many years later, he would escape, forge a new relationship with Harry and rejoin the fight against Voldemort with the secret organisation, the order of the phoenix .

One of the most terrifying creatures in the wizarding world, Dementors were wraithlike creatures that fed on human happiness and generated terrible feelings of despair within any person in close proximity. In the worst case scenario, a Dementor's Kiss would allow the Dementor to consume a human's soul, leaving them in a vegetative state. Although they were used as guards for the prison, , Dementors were not known to permanently inhabit any other location. The only way to protect against Dementors was with  and consuming chocolate would also alleviate some of the side effects of their close presence.  was particularly affected by the Dementors due to the murder of his parents, to which his teacher, , assured him was "nothing to do with weakness", and that "the Dementors affect you worse than the others because there are horrors in your past that the others don’t have."

At school, Remus Lupin was a prefect and always the more practical Marauder, often keeping best friends James and Sirius in line. Lupin first met Harry Potter when he returned to Hogwarts as Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. Lupin might have been a little shy, a little shabby and he tended to disappear at certain times of the lunar calendar, but he was a kind and excellent teacher and even taught Harry how to conjure a corporeal Patronus.

The Dark Mark was known as Lord Voldemort's sign: an ominous skull with a snake's tongue. Lord Voldemort's followers (known as Death Eaters) typically had this symbol branded on to their forearm, like a tattoo. When touched with a wand, the Dark Mark would turn red and create a burning sensation, able to be felt by every other Death Eater in unison, keeping them all constantly connected. The Dark Mark could also be cast into the sky using the spell Morsmordre, signifying a murder had taken place or a heinous attack. A famous usage of this happened during the Quidditch World Cup, when Death Eaters invaded the campsite where the event was held.

One half of the notorious Weasley twins, along with his brother George, Fred Weasley was more often than not behind any rule breaking that happened at Hogwarts. It wasn't only pranks that kept Fred entertained, he was also an excellent Quidditch player and both brothers were Beaters on the Gryffindor team. While Fred and George may not have had many O.W.L.s, their natural entrepreneurial skills led them to start their own joke shop, Weasley Wizard Wheezes.

The youngest Weasley child and only daughter, Ginny was an accomplished witch and  player - joining  house alongside her siblings. Ginny might have been a little flustered when she first met  as a young witch, but she soon found her footing at school. The youngest Weasley proved herself a skilled Seeker and Chaser, representing Gryffindor on the house team, but she was just as talented with a wand as she was with a broom, specialising in the Bat-Bogey Hex. She was often by Harry's side as he battled Voldemort during their time at .