The Knight Bus

• Type: Transportation, Emergency Transport
• Owners: Ministry of Magic (Pottermore)
• Maker: Idea conceived by Minister for Magic Dugald McPhail (Pottermore)

The Knight Bus is a violent purple, triple-decker bus that serves as emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard. The name “The Knight Bus” is inscribed in gold letters over its windscreen. It appears to be a relatively modern invention in the wizarding world, providing a method of public transport for those who cannot or prefer not to use other means like Apparition or the Floo Network. The interior of the bus is not furnished with seats as a Muggle bus would be. By night, it is equipped with half a dozen brass bedsteads on each level. By day, the beds are replaced by mismatched armchairs, which slide around the floor when the bus is in motion. A large, ornate chandelier hangs from the ceiling, swaying violently with the bus's erratic movements. The bus is crewed by a conductor, Stan Shunpike, and a driver, Ernie Prang. Stan is responsible for greeting passengers, collecting fares, and assisting with luggage, while Ernie, an elderly wizard with very thick glasses, pilots the vehicle.

The Knight Bus is summoned when a witch or wizard in need of urgent transport stands at a curb and holds out their wand arm. It appears with a deafening BANG! and can be hailed from anywhere, provided it is on a street.

• Supernatural Speed and Maneuverability: The bus travels at an incredible speed, causing objects in its path—such as lampposts, mailboxes, and bins—to leap out of the way. It is capable of making sudden, hundred-mile jumps, appearing and disappearing with a BANG! to cover vast distances in moments.
• Muggle-Repelling Charms: Despite its loud and disruptive nature, the Knight Bus is enchanted to be largely invisible to Muggles, who do not see it even when it screeches to a halt right in front of them.
• Passenger Services: For a fare of eleven Sickles, a passenger can travel a significant distance, such as from Little Whinging to London. For an additional two Sickles, passengers can receive a cup of hot chocolate, and for fifteen Sickles total, they can also have a hot-water bottle and a toothbrush in the color of their choice.

While the novels present the Knight Bus as an established service, its specific origins are not detailed. It is first introduced as a “service for the stranded witch or wizard.” According to additional material released by J.K. Rowling, the Knight Bus was first commissioned in 1865. The idea was put forward by then-Minister for Magic, Dugald McPhail, who took inspiration from the newly established Muggle bus services as a discreet way for underage or infirm members of the magical community to travel. The proposal was met with criticism from pure-blood purists in the Wizengamot who were opposed to adopting a Muggle invention (Pottermore).

The Knight Bus appears at several key moments in the series, primarily as a mode of transportation and a source of information about the wider wizarding world.

• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: Harry Potter inadvertently summons the bus for the first time after fleeing the Dursleys' house upon inflating Aunt Marge. It transports him safely to the Leaky Cauldron. During this journey, he first learns the full details of Sirius Black's escape from Azkaban by reading Stan Shunpike's copy of the Daily Prophet.
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: Harry, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Fred Weasley, George Weasley, and Ginny Weasley ride the bus from Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place to King's Cross Station to catch the Hogwarts Express. They are escorted by Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks, and they share the bus with other magical passengers, including an old witch named Madam Marsh.
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: During the Battle of the Seven Potters, Harry Potter recognizes Stan Shunpike among a group of pursuing Death Eaters. Harry stuns him rather than causing serious harm, believing him to be under the Imperius Curse, a belief later proven correct.

• Etymology: J.K. Rowling has stated that the name is a pun. It is a “knight bus” in the sense of a “night bus”—a form of public transport that runs late at night in many cities. It also evokes the image of a knight, as in a “knight in shining armour,” coming to the rescue of a person in distress.
• Film Adaptation: In the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban*, the bus features a garrulous shrunken head named Dre Head hanging from the rearview mirror, who offers commentary and jokes. This character was created for the film and does not appear in the novel. The bus's ability to compress itself to squeeze between two oncoming double-decker buses is also a memorable visual from the film (film).
• Battle of Hogwarts: In the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows*, the Knight Bus is shown transporting members of Dumbledore's Army and the Order of the Phoenix to the Battle of Hogwarts. This is a deviation from the novel, where reinforcements arrive through the Hog's Head passage into the Room of Requirement (film).