Furthering The Definition Of The Fat Lady - Meet Lady Darlene My Version Of The Fat Lady

First off, I want to emphasize that the image is my view of the Fat Lady. As I see her in a modern context. Think of her as an updated version. She is based on my late wife, Darlene. Did Dar exhibit some or all of the attributes of the original? Possibly, she was a person who was detailed in her actions, she was loyal, and she could be tough. She definitely liked good food and wine. She had a wit and was not afraid to use it. Many times to my dismay, but overall she was a fair and very likeable woman. In fact, this site is a dedication to her memory. But it is not about her. This site studies the Fat Lady, or Lady Darlene, as I will refer to her and her character, habits, and how they can be seen from the real world. 

Hogwarts is a fictional school in Scotland where students learn magic. The main story revolves around the character of Harry Potter, his coming-of-age story, and his eventual battle with Voldemort. This blog is designed to study the persona in the portrait at the Gryffindor common room entrance. The Fat Lady, or should I say Lady Darlene, why is she of interest? Why a whole blog dedicated to her? Because she represents a segment of society, technology ultimately provides a treasure trove of information that we can use to learn about how to treat people and work with tech. We can also ask questions about various topics related to tech and the human condition. That is what makes her interesting. 

So let's start with the first step: her history. 

The original Gryffindor Fat Lady lived in the 1800s; we know this by one simple fact. Her attire. The picture represents Lady Darlene in the Victorian era. In the films and books she is seen in a pink dress, though in the 3rd book it is white. Lady Darlene is seen in green. H

Here is what she would look like in side-by-side comparisons: 1600s, 1800s, 2010, and 2026

This is what she would look like in comparison: 1800s on the left, 1600s on the right. There is a clear difference. It has been established, as confirmed by those who closely follow canon, that the original Fat Lady would have been alive in the 1800s, not the 1600s, as sometimes mentioned. This is confirmed by the portraits in film, book, and game formats. 

Now let's take a look at what she would have looked like in the modern era vs. the 1800s. Below is another photo.

This photo to our far-right shows the women from the 1800s on the left, and to the right, the lady is seen in styles that were around in 2010. 

The reason for the big jump from Elizabethan to Victorian into figure-hugging bandage dresses, flared skater dresses, tailored peplum dresses, and 1950s-inspired retro prints is because we also know that the Fat Lady was most likely in her 50s. Lady Darlene died in her 60s at age 63, but for the purpose of keeping the timeline in order, we will turn the clock back to the 2010s. Also of note is that today, even in the working world, women do not often wear skirts and blouses and dresses except in jobs that require a specific professional look. They are in positions that are very senior in the organization.

In current mode we are seeing the Nap Dress, blazer dresses, cut-out dresses, and flowing midi dresses, as well as pantsuits. Ok, so let's get away from the fashion show LOL. Though this is cool to conceptualize. The point I am going for here is that we know when the Fat Lady arrived on the scene. So now where do we go next? Well, I want to figure out her backstory. Who was she? As noted in the first paragraph of this post, we are connecting her to my late wife, Darlene. Sort of making her part of the Gryffindor family. In reality, Dar, as I knew her, was Greek; her dad was from Greece, and her mother was from the United Kingdom. That is all I know. You see, she was surrendered at a young age and was brought up in foster care. I will never know until I reach heaven who her parents were. Having said that, I was not and am not impressed with them. However, knowing nothing of them or their reasons for doing what they did, it is not for me to criticize or judge them. 

That ties in with the history of the Fat Lady herself; there is no real history given to her. This does not mean she was not important; she was so much so that she is the guardian of the Gryffindor common room. It's obvious she played such a significant role in the wizarding world that she was granted such an honor. Having been given such an honor is an achievement. 

Lady Darlene also achieved success as an educator, working in daycares in Quebec, Ontario, and Alberta as a frontline worker and team lead for a short time. I am addressing her as Lady Darlene to convey affection and love, not like that of royalty. We do not know if the original Fat Lady was an aristocrat. But we can assume that while she could annoy the heck out of the students, she was a beloved part of the Gryffindor students. Again, this ties in with my version of her as Lady Darlene because she was beloved even if every so often she was a tad annoying, LOL. I will dive deeper into her traits as we go on. For now, let's close by stating that we are talking about a beloved, unique person who is in a living portrait as guardian and teacher in many ways.

I hope you found this post interesting. Please let me know what you think, and just to give you an idea of what the real Darlene looked like, here is a photo of her circa 2016. 

This blog is dedicated in part to my late wife, Darlene (1963-2024).