Colin Creevey

> I'm — I'm Colin Creevey. I'm in Gryffindor, too. D'you think — would it be all right if — can I have a picture?... So I can prove I've met you. I know all about you. Everyone's told me. About how you survived when You-Know-Who tried to kill you, and how he disappeared and everything and how you've still got a lightning scar on your forehead... It's amazing here, isn't it? I never knew all the odd stuff I could do was magic till I got the letter from Hogwarts.
>
> Colin introducing himself to Harry Potter, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

**Colin Creevey** (1981–***2 May*** ***1998***) was a ***Muggle-born*** ***wizard***, son of ***Mr Creevey*** and Mrs Creevey, and older brother of ***Dennis***. He was a big fan of the famous Harry Potter, who was a year ahead of him in school.

## Biographical information

### Date of birth

Between ***3 May*** and ***31 August*** 1981

## Physical description

### Gender

Male

During his ***first year*** at ***Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry***, he was ***sorted*** into Gryffindor House. He was known for taking several pictures of Harry and other students.

## Biography

### Early life Template:C

Colin Creevey grew up in an ordinary ***Muggle*** family. He was the son of a milkman and was amazed to find out he was a wizard who could attend Hogwarts. Colin was continually awestruck at everything to do with the wizarding world. Colin had a younger brother named Dennis, who was also a wizard, an unusual thing to occur for two magical offspring to come from Muggle parents.

### Hogwarts years Template:C

#### First year

Template:Dialogue a-b

 File:Colin camera.gif  Colin started attending Hogwarts in ***1992***. He was ***sorted*** into Gryffindor. He was very frequently seen in Hogwarts with a ***camera***, worshipping the ground that Harry Potter walked on. At one point he asked for an autographed photo of Harry, prompting Draco Malfoy to tell everyone Harry was giving out signed photos. Colin responded by accusing Malfoy of being jealous. He was also amazed that he could take moving pictures.
He got his photo with the celebrity ***Defence Against the Dark Arts*** teacher Gilderoy Lockhart. However, the photographic Harry had refused to appear on the photo, but Lockhart just about managed to drag him into view. When he went to Harry to have the photo signed, Harry was in a rush to get to ***Quidditch*** practice, which prompted Colin to say he would go with him, as he had never watched a game before. Harry tried to stop him by claiming it was "boring" but Colin went along nevertheless.

 File:Colin bludger.gif  As they walked to the pitch, Colin kept asking Harry questions about Quidditch. He asked Harry about flying, whether the ***Nimbus 2000*** was ***Harry's broomstick***, whether it was the best ***broom*** there was (in reality at the time it was the ***Nimbus 2001***, but would later be replaced by the ***Firebolt***) and finally, the rules of ***Quidditch*** which Harry resigned to explaining. Colin kept asking more questions the whole way, until Harry managed to shake him off at the changing rooms.
Colin sat in the stands taking pictures of the training session, asking Harry at one point to look at him while he took a photo. When Colin saw Ron protecting Hermione from Malfoy and self ***curse*** himself, he went up to them and upon seeing the state of Ron's condition, he eagerly and inappropriately asked Harry to turn him around.

 File:Dumbledore visiting Colin in the Hospital Wing.jpg  After ***Mrs Norris*** was petrified, Colin tried to tell Harry what one of the boys in his class had been saying, but he got lost in the crowd before he could say what it was. Presumably, it was that Harry was the Heir of Slytherin, as Harry heard it many times before during the school year.

 File:Gryffindors in the Great Hall COSF.PNG  Colin later attended the Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Slytherin, where he clicked his camera non-stop. He inappropriately took photos of Harry, while he was lying injured in the mud even though Harry told him not to. When Colin saw Harry lose the bones in his broken arm thanks to Lockhart, he began taking even more pictures excitedly.

 File:Petrification.jpg  Colin decided to sneak up to the Hospital Wing to give Harry grapes, but was ***petrified*** by Salazar Slytherin's Basilisk. Fortunately, he only looked at the snake's eye through the lens of his camera, which saved his life, although the film of his camera was destroyed. His body (along with Penelope Clearwater's) was seen in the Hospital Wing when Harry and Ron were visiting Hermione. He was later revived by a ***Mandrake Draught***.

## Physical description

Colin was described as being much shorter than Harry Potter, with mousy brown hair.

## Personality and traits

> Oh, wow! Wait for me! I've never watched a ***Quidditch*** game before!
>
> Colin's excitement for all things ***magic***al, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

 File:Colin Creevey.jpg
Colin was a person who was very easily excited. When he first came into Hogwarts, he was excited about everything. He was also a fan of some wizarding "celebrities", such as Harry Potter and Gilderoy Lockhart. It is possible he had a bit of hero worship for Harry, as he was constantly in awe of anything Harry said or did in their first year together. The night he was attacked by the basilisk he was presumed to be trying to sneak into the hospital wing to visit Harry.
During the Triwizard Tournament he and his brother tried to bewitch a number of "Potter Stinks" badges to support Harry, which backfired as they only made the badges say "Potter Really Stinks". This hero worship may have reached its peak when he returned to Hogwarts despite not being a student anymore to help defend it against the forces of Lord Voldemort.
He always took pictures in his first year, which could lead to him being often annoying. This was partly due to him taking pictures at inopportune moments, such as when Ron was belching slugs, and Harry lost the bones in his arm. It was due to this behaviour that some assumed he had been chosen for an attack by the monster in the Chamber of Secrets.

 File:Profile - Colin C Creevey on COSF.jpg
Colin was also brave, as he fought at the Battle of Hogwarts against Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters, even though he was outright not allowed by Professor McGonagall, which he defied by sneaking back in, and was killed during the battle.

## Magical abilities and skills

"*... how Colin Creevey had mastered the Impediment Jinx after three meetings’ hard effort...*"
— Harry Potter's pride in Colin's defensive spell casting skills[src]
* **Defence Against the Dark Arts**: Colin had at least some skill in Defence Against the Dark Arts, as he learned how to cast various defensive and offensive spells as a committed member of Dumbledore's Army. He mastered both the Impediment Jinx and the Full Body-Bind Curse while in the D.A., but had trouble disarming.
* **Duelling**: Colin had some skill in duelling and in martial magic, as he fought bravely against the Death Eaters in the Battle of Hogwarts, but he was not strong enough to survive, as he was killed in battle.
* **Charms**: Colin was skilled with charms to an extent, as he could successfully cast simple charms, such as the Levitation Charm, Fire-Making Spell and Summoning Charm.
* **Photography**: Colin was a highly skilful photographer. Despite coming from a Muggle family, he quickly adapted to the wizarding method of producing photographs, with him successfully creating moving photographs in his first year.

## Possessions

* **Wand**: Colin owned a wand, which was of an unknown length, wand wood and core material. Like most British wizards, he most likely bought his wand at Ollivanders in Diagon Alley, London, before beginning the first year of his magical education at Hogwarts in 1992.
* **Camera**: He used this camera during his first year at Hogwarts. He often loved to take pictures of Harry Potter using his camera, along with images of other important people or happenings.
* **Photo album**: Colin owned an album which contained all of his photographs that he took using his camera, so he could look at them all in one book.

## Relationships

### Family

Colin most likely had a good relationship with his family. His father was a milkman. Colin stated that his parents were very excited that their son was a wizard, and Colin wanted to take some photos of Hogwarts, in order to show to his father. Colin was also very close with his brother, Dennis, and was also excited when Dennis came to Hogwarts, too, and was sorted into Gryffindor house. When Colin was killed during the Battle of Hogwarts, his family was likely devastated.

### Harry Potter

Colin was a big fan of Harry Potter, a very famous student. Colin thought Harry was a kind of celebrity, but Harry disliked being considered famous. Harry found Colin extremely annoying, as when he attempted to take a photo of Ron Weasley, who was throwing up slugs. Although he and Harry were not so close, Colin thought that he was Harry's best friend.
During his first year at Hogwarts, he took many pictures of Harry.

## Etymology

* *Colin* is an anglicised form of the Gaelic name *Cailean* or *Coileain*, meaning "whelp," "pup" or "young cub". It can also be derived from the name Nicholas, meaning "victorious people."
* *Creevey* is an English surname of Celtic origin, and is a contraction of *MacCreevey*, meaning "son of Reevey."
* It could also be a surname of Irish origin with variant spellings Creevy and Creavagh, is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic "O'Craoibhe" meaning "descendant of Craobhach", a byname meaning "curly (-headed)" or "prolific" (from "craobh" meaning "branch, bough").

## Behind the scenes

* ***Hugh Mitchell*** played Colin in Template:COS.
* In the cut scene in which Colin is revealed to have been petrified by Slytherin's Monster, in the ***PS1 version*** of Template:COS, he is wearing ***Ravenclaw*** robes. This is both odd and incorrect considering that in gameplay mode he is correctly depicted as a Gryffindor. This is most likely a mistake made by the game's developers.
* shows a full moon when Professor Albus Dumbledore visits Colin in the ***Hospital Wing*** after the Basilisk's attack. In ***1992***, however, the full moon happened on November 10, two days after Colin was petrified.

## Appearances

Template:Imagecat

* Template:COS Template:1st

1. ↑ Based on the fact that he started attending Hogwarts in 1992 and wasn't of age yet during the Battle of Hogwarts on 2nd May 1998.
2. ↑ Template:COS - "It was Colin Creevey. His eyes were wide and his hands were stuck up in front of him, holding his camera." The Basilisk only attacked muggle-borns.
3. ↑ Template:COS - "Looking up, he saw the very small, mousy-haired boy he’d seen trying on the Sorting Hat last night staring at Harry as though transfixed."
4. ↑ Template:COS - "He was clutching what looked like an ordinary Muggle camera, and the moment Harry looked at him, he went bright red."
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Template:COS
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Template:COS
7. ↑ Template:COS
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Template:COS
9. ↑ Template:COS
10. ↑ http://www.behindthename.com/name/colin-1
11. ↑ http://www.searchforancestors.com/surnames/origin/c/creevy.php
12. ↑ http://www.surnamedb.com/Surname/Creevy#ixzz3Ng32Pjd0