Last week’s Famous Friday was about Crookshanks, a cat from the Harry Potter series. This week’s famous cat is also from the series, though she is far less beloved.
Mrs Norris is a thin, ill-tempered cat who patrols the hallways of Hogwarts looking for students who are breaking the rules. She is the companion of the grumpy school caretaker Argus Filch. Though Mrs Norris possesses no magical abilities nor the ability to speak, she has a close connection with Filch and alerts him whenever she finds trouble. Seeing her large, lamp-like eyes at the end of the hallway is a bad sign for students who are up to no good, as it means they’re about to get caught.
Mrs Norris is vastly unpopular among the students of Hogwarts for her uncanny ability to sniff out rule breaking. Filch seems to be the only person who Mrs Norris likes, and likewise, Mrs Norris is the only friend of Filch. When Mrs Norris is found magically ‘Petrified’ (frozen in an immobile, unconscious state, as if turned to stone) by an unknown monster, Filch is inconsolable. He vigilantly guards the spot where she was attacked and refuses to rest until justice is found for his beloved pet. Eventually Mrs Norris is restored to her normal state and she is soon back to patrolling the hallways with Filch, much to the disappointment of the students.
Though she is a ‘villain’ character, Mrs Norris still shows us the importance that an animal’s friendship can have in our lives. Cat lovers (like Filch) will agree that a cat can be just as treasured as a companion as a person can. Perhaps Mrs Norris is also an example of how even the grumpiest of people (like Filch) can be won over by certain animals.
Mrs Norris appears in the Harry Potter book series, so check them out if you want to read more about her. She also appears in the Harry Potter movies, where she is portrayed as a Maine Coon cat.
Congratulations to one of our past Black Cat Contest winners - Bandit! Click 
