Fred and George Weasley

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Template:HP Character Fred and George Weasley (both born April 1, 1978)[1][2] are fictional characters in the Harry Potter series of novels, created by J. K. Rowling. They are the twin sons of Arthur and Molly Weasley. They are younger brothers of Bill, Charlie and Percy. They are older brothers of Ron and Ginny, who are both members of Harry Potter's close group of friends. The twins are also good friends with Harry, and generally treat Harry better than they treat Ron, whom they love to torment along with Percy. As the rest of the Weasleys, they have flaming red hair. They are generally considered to be very funny, and seem to be quite popular among the Gryffindors.

Fred and George, who attended Hogwarts from 1989 to around the start of the 1995-96 Summer Term, were the school clowns, more interested in making new jokes than studying, although they show a high degree of knowledge and skill in creating magical jokes and tricks. It is, therefore, not surprising that their birthday is April 1st, April Fool's Day. They are supremely popular characters among fans and many of their jokes and pranks are legendary both in the stories and in the real world. Fred at times appears to be the more dominant twin, but they generally work as a team. They were the beaters on the Gryffindor Quidditch team before they were banned by Dolores Umbridge and consequently quit Hogwarts. They now own a joke shop on Diagon Alley. Much to their mother's disappointment, they are her only sons who weren't made prefects (though it is important to note that neither was their younger sister, Ginny). Their appearance and personality are so indistinguishable that they can fool even their mother, who once sent them jumpers monogrammed "G" and "F." The twins swapped jumpers and called themselves "Gred" and "Forge."

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Fred and George begin selling their own jokes by mail order, under the name "Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes". They play a prank on Harry's first cousin, the fat and idiotic Dudley Dursley by "accidentally" dropping several Ton Tongue Toffees—Dudley, a glutton on a forced diet, soon has a foot-long tongue protruding from his mouth; at the Quidditch World Cup they impress Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports at the Ministry of Magic with their fake wands.

Despite their mother's wish that they should follow their father in working at the Ministry of Magic, their ambition in life has always been to run their own joke shop. Harry (who had inherited more than enough money for his needs) makes this possible by giving them his winnings from the Triwizard Tournament.

The pair provide Harry with useful assistance throughout the series; in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets they and Ron help him escape from his arrest at Privet Drive, in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban they give him the Marauder's Map, and in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix they provide distractions so that Harry can use the Floo system unmonitored in Dolores Umbridge's office. They were also members of Dumbledore's Army, a group started by Harry, Ron, and Hermione to provide the practical instruction in Defence Against the Dark Arts, which Umbridge had removed from that course's curriculum. Later in that year, they are banned from Quidditch and decide to give up formal education; they do not, however, leave before paying tribute to Dumbledore by waging a virtual war against Umbridge. Eventually threatened with flogging for conjuring a "portable swamp" in a corridor, they depart on broomsticks, yelling to Peeves in the process, "Give her hell from us, Peeves." This can be taken as the only instance in the entire Harry Potter series that Peeves can be said to have done what he was told to do. As they leave, they inform their fellow students of their new shop in Diagon Alley and offer discounts to students who will likewise harass Umbridge. Their departure is widely regarded as one of the emotional high points of Book 5. The swamp, meanwhile, remains for some time, since Umbridge is unable to remove it and no other teacher particularly wishes to. After Professor Umbridge is driven from the school, Professor Flitwick removes almost all of it, leaving a bit as a tribute to the Weasley twins.

In The Half-Blood Prince, Fred and George continue to run their very successful joke shop out of Diagon Alley, with at least one employee ("Verity"). At the beginning of the school year, they have a large advertisement for a potion called "U-No-Poo," poking fun at the common euphemism for Lord Voldemort in the wizarding community. Their import item, Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder, plays a (negative) role in the Battle of Hogwarts in that book, being used by Draco Malfoy to escape the detection of the former DA members. It is unclear if Fred and George have joined the Order of the Phoenix like they wished to during the previous book, although their absence from the battle at Hogwarts suggests they have not. However, many speculate that, although they may not be official members of the Order, they probably still lend it occasional support and information in or around Diagon Alley.

Though Mrs. Weasley initially disapproved of their enterprises, she realized they had a natural gift and passion for their business and has since raised no objections. In fact, she is now rather impressed with how successful the twins have become since leaving school.

Though they always seem to be berating and insulting their younger brother Ron, it seems that they are really very considerate to him, which is evident in the Order of the Phoenix where they didn't mock Ron at his poor performance, and in the Half Blood Prince, where they were visibly distressed when Ron was poisoned.

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Trivia

  • The twins each share a first initial with their deceased uncles, Fabian and Gideon Prewett.
  • The naming of the twins as Fred and George has an interesting parallel. In the film Gone with the Wind, there are two red-headed twins named Stuart and Brent Tarleton, who are played by George Reeves and Fred Crane. When this was brought to J.K. Rowling's attention, she remarked that she hadn't noticed until it was brought up, so it is most likely a coincidence.
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See also

J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series
Philosopher's Stone book film game
Chamber of Secrets book film game
Prisoner of Azkaban book film game
Goblet of Fire book film game
Order of the Phoenix book (film)  
Half-Blood Prince book (film)  
Unnamed Seventh Book (book)    
Other books Other games
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup
Quidditch Through the Ages  
Plot – Characters – Places – Translations – Wizarding world - Related articles
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References

it:Fred e George Weasley no:Fred og Frank Wiltersen pl:Fred i George Weasleyowie pt:Fred e George Weasley

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