Marge Dursley

Marge Dursley is Vernon Dursley's sister, a large, beefy, purple-faced woman who breeds bulldogs and embodies the Dursley family's cruelty toward Harry Potter. She is not a blood relative of Harry's—his mother was Petunia Dursley's sister—but Harry has been forced to call her 'Aunt' all his life. Her visits are a source of dread for Harry, marked by physical and emotional abuse: at Dudley's fifth birthday party she whacked Harry around the shins with her walking stick to stop him from beating Dudley at musical statues, and on a later Christmas she gave Dudley a computerized robot while Harry received a box of dog biscuits. On her last visit before Harry started at Hogwarts, her bulldog Ripper chased Harry up a tree, and she refused to call the dog off until past midnight, a memory that still brought tears of laughter to Dudley's eyes.

Visit to Privet Drive and Cruelty Toward Harry

Marge arrives at Number Four, Privet Drive for a weeklong stay, bringing her bulldog Ripper and an enormous suitcase. She immediately thrusts the suitcase into Harry's stomach, knocking the wind out of him, and lavishes attention on Dudley, giving him a crisp twenty-pound note. Throughout her visit, she delights in comparing Harry unfavorably to Dudley, buying Dudley expensive presents while glaring at Harry, and constantly suggesting ways to improve him. She insists Harry attend St. Brutus's Secure Center for Incurably Criminal Boys, a lie the Dursleys have concocted to hide his wizarding education, and Harry is forced to play along, claiming he is beaten "all the time" to satisfy her approval of corporal punishment. She keeps Harry under her eye at all times, booming out suggestions for his improvement and throwing out dark hints about what makes him such an unsatisfactory person.

The Explosion and Harry's Flight

On the final evening of her stay, after consuming considerable wine and brandy, Marge turns her verbal assault on Harry's parents. She declares that Harry's mother Lily was "a bad egg" who ran off with a "wastrel," and when Uncle Vernon claims James Potter was unemployed, Marge calls him "a no-account, good-for-nothing, lazy scrounger." Harry, shaking with rage, denies this, and Marge escalates, accusing his parents of dying drunk in a car crash. At this, Harry loses control of his magic, and Marge begins to inflate like a monstrous balloon, rising off her chair toward the ceiling, entirely round, her hands and feet sticking out weirdly. Uncle Vernon tries to pull her down but is nearly lifted from the floor himself, and Ripper bites his leg. Harry seizes the opportunity to flee, grabbing his trunk and wand, and escapes into the night, eventually flagging down the Knight Bus.

Aftermath and Legacy

The Ministry of Magic dispatches two members of the Accidental Magic Reversal Department to Privet Drive, who puncture Marge and modify her memory so she has no recollection of the incident. Harry later learns that Marge's son, Dudley, is also a source of pride for her, and that she has influence over the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures through her connections. Marge's visit serves as the catalyst for Harry's decision to run away, setting in motion the events that lead to his encounter with Sirius Black and the revelation of the truth about his parents' deaths. Her cruelty also underscores the Dursleys' systematic abuse of Harry and his desperate desire to escape them, a desire that is finally fulfilled when Sirius Black offers him a new home.