Magical Novelty Items

• Type: Magical Item (Joke/Prank Products)
• Owners: N/A (Sold commercially to the general wizarding public)
• Makers: Various, most notably Fred and George Weasley

Magical Novelty Items are a class of enchanted objects created primarily for amusement, pranks, and practical jokes. They are highly popular among younger witches and wizards, particularly students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While many items are designed for harmless fun, some possess more complex enchantments that can be used for strategic purposes, such as creating diversions or aiding in eavesdropping. The creation of such items requires a significant degree of magical skill and ingenuity, often blending Charms with Transfiguration. Notable examples of magical novelty items include:

• Belch Powder: A powder that causes the victim to belch loudly.
• Canary Creams: A type of biscuit that temporarily transfigures the eater into a large canary. After a minute, the person moults their feathers and returns to normal.
• Decoy Detonators: Black, horn-like objects that, when dropped, scurry away and emit a loud bang and clouds of smoke, creating a powerful diversion.
• Dungbombs: Magical stink bombs that release a foul and potent odour upon impact.
• Extendable Ears: Long, flesh-coloured strings with a human ear at the end, used for surreptitiously listening to conversations from a distance. The user simply inserts one end into their own ear.
• Fanged Frisbees: Flying discs that are enchanted to snarl and attempt to bite anything they come near. They are a banned item at Hogwarts.
• Headless Hats: Hats that create a field of invisibility around the wearer's head, making them appear headless.
• Nose-Biting Teacups: Prank teacups that bite the nose of the person attempting to drink from them.
• Patented Daydream Charms: A kit that allows the user to enter a highly realistic thirty-minute daydream. These were particularly popular among Hogwarts students.
• Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder: A substance imported from Peru that, when deployed, creates a sphere of magical darkness that cannot be penetrated by light or most light-creating spells.
• Pygmy Puffs: Miniature Puffskeins, bred by Fred and George Weasley to be sold as pets.
• Skiving Snackboxes: A range of sweets developed by Fred and George Weasley designed to make the eater temporarily ill with specific, believable symptoms to get them out of class or work. Each sweet has a corresponding antidote on the opposite end. The range includes:
  • Fainting Fancies: Cause the user to faint.
  • Fever Fudge: Induces a high fever.
  • Nosebleed Nougat: Causes a profuse nosebleed.
  • Puking Pastilles: Induce vomiting.
• Stink Pellets: Similar to Dungbombs, these pellets release a malodorous scent when thrown.
• Ton-Tongue Toffee: A sweet that causes the eater's tongue to swell to an enormous size.
• Wildfire Whiz-bangs: Spectacular and chaotic enchanted fireworks that cannot be stopped with a simple Stunning Spell or Freezing Charm. They multiply and become more disruptive when hit with such magic.

While many novelty items are available, certain individuals and establishments are famous for their creation and sale.

• Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes: Founded by Fred and George Weasley, this joke shop, located at Number 93, Diagon Alley, became the most famous purveyor of magical novelty items in Great Britain. The twins developed and sold most of the items listed above, including the Skiving Snackboxes, WonderWitch beauty products, and a line of defensive magic items like Shield Hats and Shield Cloaks. Their business was a testament to their exceptional magical talent and entrepreneurial spirit.
• Zonko's Joke Shop: A legendary joke shop located in the village of Hogsmeade. It was a favorite destination for Hogwarts students during their weekend visits. Before it closed during the height of the Second Wizarding War, it sold classic items like Dungbombs, Hiccup Sweets, Frog Spawn Soap, and Nose-Biting Teacups. Fred and George Weasley later considered buying the premises to expand their own business.
• Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke Shop: A shop in Diagon Alley that sold a variety of magical joke products, including Dr. Filibuster's Fabulous Wet-Start, No-Heat Fireworks.

Magical novelty items serve several roles throughout the series. Initially, they represent the mischievous and fun-loving side of the wizarding world and are central to the characters of Fred and George Weasley, whose ambition to open a joke shop is a long-running subplot. Their significance deepens as the story progresses. During the tyrannical reign of Dolores Umbridge at Hogwarts, Fred and George use their Wildfire Whiz-bangs in an act of spectacular rebellion, inspiring fellow students. Items like the Extendable Ears become crucial tools for the Order of the Phoenix to gather intelligence. In the latter half of the series, these objects demonstrate that even seemingly frivolous magic can have serious applications. Harry Potter uses a Decoy Detonator to create a diversion to break into Umbridge's office at the Ministry of Magic. More sinisterly, Draco Malfoy uses Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder to help Death Eaters infiltrate Hogwarts, directly leading to the death of Albus Dumbledore. The success of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, even in wartime, serves as a symbol of defiance and morale in a darkening world.

In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the set for Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes is depicted as a vibrant, chaotic, and brightly-lit marvel, standing in stark contrast to the dark and boarded-up shops surrounding it in Diagon Alley. This visual choice emphasizes the shop's role as a beacon of hope and normality during Voldemort's second rise to power. (film)