Philip Pullman
Sir Philip Nicholas Outram Pullman (born 19 October 1946) is an English writer. His books include the fantasy trilogy ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ'', a fictionalised biography of Jesus. In 2008, ''The ...
trilogies, ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
'' and ''
The Book of Dust
''The Book of Dust'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman, which expands his trilogy ''His Dark Materials''. The books further chronicle the adventures of Lyra Belacqua and her battle against the theocratic organisation known as the ...
''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights''
Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ''His Dark Materials'' and a key character in ''The Book of Dust''. Together with her dæmon Pantalaimon, she is introduced in ''
La Belle Sauvage
''La Belle Sauvage'' is a fantasy novel by Philip Pullman published in 2017. It is the first volume of a planned trilogy titled ''The Book of Dust'' and is set twelve years before Pullman's ''His Dark Materials''. It presents events prior to the ...
'', where she is being protected from the Magisterium. Initially, as a baby, by the nuns of the Priory of Saint Rosamund, and later she is brought up by the scholars of Jordan College. In '' Northern Lights'', as she leaves Jordan in the company of her mother, Mrs Coulter, the Master of the college gives her an alethiometer, which allows her to find answers on any subject. Searching for a kidnapped friend of hers, she ends up travelling to the far north of her world, and then across the multiverse, where she plays a part in a cosmic war between forces led by an angel named The Authority and her father, Lord Asriel. Lyra is prophesied by the witches to play the part of
Eve
Eve (; ; ar, حَوَّاء, Ḥawwāʾ; el, Εὕα, Heúa; la, Eva, Heva; Syriac: romanized: ) is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the ...
, bringing about a second
fall
Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southe ...
; this is accomplished when she reaches maturity and starts attracting
Dust
Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in homes ...
, halting its loss from the multiverse.
By the events of ''
Lyra's Oxford
''Lyra's Oxford'' is a 2003 novella by Philip Pullman depicting an episode involving the heroine of ''His Dark Materials'', Pullman's best-selling trilogy. ''Lyra's Oxford'' is set when Lyra Belacqua is 15, two years after the end of the trilog ...
'', Lyra is living in Jordan college and studying at St Sophie's. Pantalaimon has settled into the form of a
pine marten
The European pine marten (''Martes martes''), also known as the pine marten, is a mustelid native to and widespread in most of Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus and parts of Iran, Iraq and Syria. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. ...
. In ''
The Secret Commonwealth
''The Secret Commonwealth'' is a 2019 fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, the second volume of his planned trilogy ''The Book of Dust''. The story is set twenty years or so after the events of ''La Belle Sauvage'' and ten years after the conclusio ...
'', Lyra is 20 and an undergraduate.
In the unabridged audiobooks, Lyra is voiced by Joanna Wyatt, and in the BBC Radio dramatisation she is voiced by
Lulu Popplewell
Lulu Popplewell is an English comedian and actress.
She was a finalist in the Leicester Square New Comedian Of the Year Award and the Chortle Student Comedy Award 2018.
She is the daughter of Lord Justice Andrew Popplewell and Dr. Debra Loma ...
.Pullman, Philip, Northern Lights, 2003, BBC Audio, 9781408409411 In the 2003 stage production at the
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...
, the character was played by
Anna Maxwell Martin
Anna Maxwell Martin (born Anna Charlotte Martin; 27 May 1977),Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1984–2006 listed birth name as ''Anna Charlotte Martin''; Registration year 1977; Registration District Beverley, Yorkshire som ...
. In the 2007 movie adaption, she is played by
Dakota Blue Richards
Dakota Blue Richards (born 11 April 1994) is an English actress. Her film debut at the age of 13 was in ''The Golden Compass'', as the lead character Lyra Belacqua. Other lead roles include the wayward teenager April in ''Dustbin Baby'' and Mar ...
Dafne Keen
Dafne María Keen Fernández (born 4 January 2005) is a British-Spanish actress. She made her debut starring as Ana "Ani" Cruz Oliver on the television series '' The Refugees'' from 2014 to 2015, before her breakthrough starring as Laura in t ...
plays the character in the ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
'' TV series.
Lord Asriel
Lord Asriel is a member of the English
aristocracy
Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'.
At t ...
and Lyra's father. His dæmon Stelmaria is a
snow leopard
The snow leopard (''Panthera uncia''), also known as the ounce, is a Felidae, felid in the genus ''Panthera'' native to the mountain ranges of Central Asia, Central and South Asia. It is listed as Vulnerable species, Vulnerable on the IUCN Red ...
.
Asriel had an affair with Marisa Coulter, a married woman, leading to Lyra's birth. Asriel kills Mrs Coulter's husband after he finds out, but is spared imprisonment because of laws allowing self-defence. As a part of his punishment, he is barred from seeing Lyra, but he takes an interest in her raising, delivering her to Jordan College and visiting her. Lyra grows up believing Asriel to be her uncle rather than her father.
Asriel is described as being "a tall man with powerful shoulders, a fierce dark face, and eyes that seem to flash and glitter with savage laughter". Possessed of enormous determination and willpower, he is fierce in nature and commands great respect in both the political and academic spheres, being a military leader and a fellow of Jordan College. In ''Northern Lights'', he is able to build a bridge to another world, where he assembles an army to oppose The Authority, an angel that claims to be God. Asriel dies alongside Mrs Coulter killing Metatron, the Authority's regent.
In the unabridged audiobooks, Lord Asriel is voiced by Sean Barrett; on stage in the UK's
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...
production
Production may refer to:
Economics and business
* Production (economics)
* Production, the act of manufacturing goods
* Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services)
* Production as a stati ...
, he was played by
Timothy Dalton
Timothy Leonard Dalton Leggett (; born 21 March 1946) is a British actor. Beginning his career on stage, he made his film debut as Philip II of France in the 1968 historical drama ''The Lion in Winter''. He gained international prominence as ...
; in the BBC Radio dramatisation, he is voiced by
Terence Stamp
Terence Henry Stamp (born 22 July 1938) is an English actor. Stamp is known for his sophisticated villain roles. He was named by ''Empire Magazine'' as one of the 100 Sexiest Film Stars of All Time in 1995. He has received various accolades inc ...
. In the film adaptation, he is played by
Daniel Craig
Daniel Wroughton Craig (born 2 March 1968) is an English-American actor who gained international fame playing the secret agent James Bond in the film series, beginning with '' Casino Royale'' (2006) and in four further instalments, up to '' ...
while
Chris Edgerly
Chris Edgerly (born August 6, 1969) is an American voice actor, comedian and singer.
Life and career
Edgerly provided the voice of Peter Potamus on the Adult Swim animated series, ''Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law'', in addition to several g ...
voices him in the video game adaption.
James McAvoy
James McAvoy (; born 21 April 1979) is a Scottish actor. He made his acting debut as a teen in '' The Near Room'' (1995) and appeared mostly on television until 2003, when his feature film career began. His notable television work includes ...
plays the character in the ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
'' TV series.
Marisa Coulter
Marisa Coulter (
née
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
Van Zee; ordinarily called Mrs Coulter in the books) is Lyra's mother and a powerful figure in the Magisterium, the organisation of the Church. She founds the League of St Alexander in ''La Belle Sauvage'', and later heads the General Oblation Board, referred to colloquially as the Gobblers. Her dæmon is a golden-coloured monkey, who, in the books, is never named and only speaks once (he is called Ozymandias in the BBC Radio adaptations and in the subtitles for the 2019 TV series, and the character Malcolm Polstead notes in ''La Belle Sauvage'' that, "if that monkey had a name it might be 'Malice'").
She is cruel and merciless at times, stopping at nothing to obtain what she wants. She is deceptive, full of grace and beauty, and uses these qualities to get her way. However, when she finds her daughter in peril at Bolvangar, she experiences a sudden realisation of intense maternal love and a wish to care for Lyra which outweighs her previous loyalty to the Church, and thereafter she goes to great lengths to shield her from the events around her. She dies alongside Asriel while killing Metatron, the regent of the Authority.
In the unabridged audiobooks, Mrs Coulter is voiced by Alison Dowling; in the BBC Radio dramatisation she is voiced by
Emma Fielding
Emma Georgina Annalies Fielding (born 07 October 1964 in Catterick, North Riding of Yorkshire) is an English actress.
Biography
The daughter of a British Army officer, Colonel Johnny Fielding, and Sheila Fielding, she was raised Catholic and ...
; in the film, ''
The Golden Compass
''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...
'', she is played by
Nicole Kidman
Nicole Mary Kidman (born 20 June 1967) is an American and Australian actress and producer. Known for her work across various film and television productions from several genres, she has consistently ranked among the world's highest-paid act ...
while
Erin Matthews
Erin is a Hiberno-English word for Ireland originating from the Irish language, Irish word ''"Éirinn"''. "Éirinn" is the dative case of the Irish word for Ireland, "Éire", genitive "Éireann", the dative being used in prepositional phrases ...
voices her in the video game adaption. For the
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...
production in 2003,
Patricia Hodge
Patricia Ann Hodge, OBE (born 29 September 1946) is an English actor. She is known on-screen for playing Phyllida Erskine-Brown in ''Rumpole of the Bailey'' (1978–1992), Jemima Shore in ''Jemima Shore Investigates'' (1983), Penny in '' Mirand ...
created the role.
Ruth Wilson
Ruth Wilson (born 13 January 1982) is an English actress. She is known for her performances as the eponymous protagonist in ''Jane Eyre'' (2006), as Alice Morgan in the BBC psychological crime drama ''Luther'' (2010–2013, 2019), as Alison L ...
plays the character in the ''
His Dark Materials (TV series)
''His Dark Materials'' is a fantasy drama television series based on the trilogy of novels of the same name by Philip Pullman. It is produced by Bad Wolf and New Line Productions, for BBC One and HBO, with the latter handling international d ...
(2019).
Iorek Byrnison
Iorek Byrnison is an armoured bear and companion of Lyra's. Armoured bears, known as panserbjørne in Danish, are a race of
polar bear
The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...
-like creatures with human-level intelligence and opposable thumbs; they have no dæmons and consider their armour, which is made of meteoric iron, to be their soul.
Before the events of ''His Dark Materials'', Iorek meets and befriends Lee Scoresby. Iorek was king of the armoured bears in Svalbard, but was exiled after killing another bear in a fight. Normally, when a bear realises that they are outmatched, they will surrender, but Iorek's opponent had been drugged by Iofur Raknison, second in line for the throne, to prevent this. Following his exile, the humans of an Arctic port town deceived him by giving him spirits and stealing his armour while he was intoxicated. Lyra finds him in ''Northern Lights'' working in a scrap yard for food and board and proceeds to use her alethiometer to help him retrieve his armour. Following this, he helps Lyra, naming her Silvertongue. When Lyra ends up imprisoned by Iofur Raknison, she arranges a fight between Iorek and Iofur for the throne, which Iorek wins.
After the opening of a gate to
Cittàgazze
This article covers the fictional locations in the ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy and related works by Philip Pullman.
Locations Jordan College
Jordan College is a fictional college. It exists in Oxford in a universe parallel to our own and is ...
changes the climate of Svalbard, Iorek is forced to take his fellow armoured bears on a voyage down to the Himalayas, where he meets Will Parry. When Will breaks the Subtle Knife, Iorek is able to repair it without the aid of specialist equipment. He and a regiment of his subjects fight on Lord Asriel's side in the battle on the plains; as part of this he takes Lyra and Will to find their lost dæmons. At the end of ''The Amber Spyglass'', it is revealed that he returns to Svalbard and reigns as king of the armoured bears.
In the film, he is voiced by
Ian McKellen
Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. His career spans seven decades, having performed in genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. Regarded as a British cultural i ...
while
Fred Tatasciore
Fred Tatasciore (; ) is an American voice actor who has provided voices in animated and live-action films, television shows, and video games. He is known for voicing the Hulk and Beast (comics), Beast in various Marvel media and Solomon Grundy ( ...
voices him in the video game adaption. In the unabridged audiobooks, Iorek is voiced by Sean Barrett. Joe Tandberg voices and motion-captures Iorek in the
TV series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...
.
John Faa
John Faa, sometimes known as Lord Faa, is the Lord of the western
Gyptians
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995) (published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). This is a lis ...
. Despite his advancing age, he is a brave warrior, respected by all his followers, open to advice, and considerate of all. He is a good friend of the elderly
Farder Coram
This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies, ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Book of Dust''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...
. His dæmon is a black crow.
When the Oblation Board starts kidnapping children, he leads 170 of his men to save them. He is wounded in an ambush but carries out his mission successfully, retrieving the children Lyra helped rescue, and taking them back to England. Faa re-appears briefly at the conclusion of ''
The Amber Spyglass
''The Amber Spyglass'' is the third novel in the '' His Dark Materials'' trilogy by Philip Pullman. Published in 2000, it won the 2001 Whitbread Book of the Year award, the first children's novel to do so. It was named Children's Book of the Y ...
'' when he and other Gyptians are briefly drawn into the world of the
Mulefa
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995) (published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). This is a lis ...
to bring Lyra home before the worlds separate once again.
In the film ''
The Golden Compass
''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...
Michael Gough
Francis Michael Gough ( ; 23 November 1916 – 17 March 2011) was a British character actor who made more than 150 film and television appearances. He is known for his roles in the Hammer Horror Films from 1958, with his first role as Sir Arthu ...
voices him in the video game adaption.
Lucian Msamati
Lucian Gabriel Wiina Msamati (born 5 March 1976) is a British-Tanzanian actor. He played Salladhor Saan in HBO series ''Game of Thrones'', and was the first black actor to play Iago in the Royal Shakespeare Company's 2015 production of ''Othel ...
plays the character in the ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
'' TV series, and
Douglas Blackwell
Douglas Blackwell (17 May 1924 – 17 October 2009) was an English actor. Douglas Blackwell was born in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England, but brought up in Port Talbot, Wales, where he attended the local county grammar school. He narrated ...
voiced him in the audiobooks.
Ma Costa
Ma Costa is a Gyptian woman whose son, Billy Costa, is abducted by the "Gobblers" early in '' Northern Lights''. A year before the beginning of the book, Lyra and her friends had "hijacked" her family's boat and sailed it to Abingdon, the next town downriver. In spite of this, Ma Costa rescues Lyra and takes her to John Faa.
When Lyra is hiding with the Gyptians, she discovers that Ma Costa had in fact nursed her, when she was a baby. Ma Costa's dæmon is a hawk.
Anne-Marie Duff
Anne-Marie Duff (born 8 October 1970) is an Irish actress and narrator. She is an accomplished theatre actress and has been nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award. She has also received acclaim and awards for her television and film work.
After ...
plays the character in the ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
'' TV series. and Jill Shilling voiced her in the audiobooks of ''Northern Lights''.
Bernie Johansen
A minor character whose dæmon has the rare quality of being the same gender as himself. Half-gyptian, he was tasked with watching Lyra for Lord Faa while working as a
pastry chef
A pastry chef or pâtissier (; the French female version of the word is pâtissière ), is a station chef in a professional kitchen, skilled in the making of pastries, desserts, breads and other baked goods. They are employed in large hotels, bi ...
at Jordan College.
Serafina Pekkala
Serafina Pekkala is a clan queen of the witches of Lake Enara who, along with her snow goose dæmon Kaisa, is closely associated with Lyra and her journey. She assists Lyra in her fight at Bolvangar and throughout ''His Dark Materials'', travelling into other worlds and attempting to heal Will Parry. At the end of ''The Amber Spyglass'', she names Will's dæmon, and encourages Will and Lyra's dæmons to return to them.
Serafina claims to be three hundred years old or more. Before the events of ''La Belle Sauvage'', Farder Coram saved her life from an attack by another witch's dæmon, and they became lovers. They had a son who died from a disease from the East.
Pullman claimed on the
BBC World Service
The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...
programme ''
World Book Club
''World Book Club'' is a radio programme on the BBC World Service. Each edition of the programme, which is broadcast on the first Saturday of the month with repeats into the following Monday, features a famous author discussing one of his or her ...
'' in December 2005, that Serafina's name came from a
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
telephone directory. In context, Pullman was teasing the audience, however the claim has since been repeated on several fan-sites. Later in the same programme and in a speech made in
Dundee
Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
, he said that the name came from a list of politicians living in
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
.
In the film ''
The Golden Compass
''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...
'', Serafina Pekkala is played by
Eva Green
Eva Gaëlle Green (, ; born ) is a French actress and model. The daughter of actress Marlène Jobert, she began her career in theatre before making her film debut in Bernardo Bertolucci's '' The Dreamers'' (2003). She achieved international reco ...
while
Hellena Taylor
is a 2022 action-adventure game developed by PlatinumGames and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Switch. It was directed by Yusuke Miyata and produced by Yuji Nakao, with the ''Bayonetta'' creator Hideki Kamiya as supervising director. It ...
voices her in the video game adaptation. In the 2003
Royal National Theatre
The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...
production of ''His Dark Materials'' she is played by
Niamh Cusack
Niamh Cusack ( ; born 20 October 1959) is an Irish actress. Born to a family with deep roots in the performing arts, Cusack has been involved as a performer since a young age. She has served with the UK's two leading theatre companies, the Ro ...
. In the TV series ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
'',
Ruta Gedmintas
Ruta Gedmintas ( lt, Rūta Gedmintas; ) is a British actress known for her work on television, primarily in ''The Strain'', '' Spooks: Code 9'', '' The Borgias'', ''The Tudors'', ''Lip Service'' and ''His Dark Materials''.
Early life
Gedmintas ...
plays the character, and in the audiobooks she is played by
Susan Sheridan
Susan Haydn Thomas (18 March 1947 – 8 August 2015) better known as Susan Sheridan, was an English voice actress. Her roles included Noddy in '' Noddy's Toyland Adventures'', Princess Sylvia in '' Muzzy in Gondoland'', Trillian in the BBC rad ...
.
Lee Scoresby
Lee Scoresby is a skilled "aëronaut"
balloonist
In aeronautics, a balloon is an unpowered aerostat, which remains aloft or floats due to its buoyancy. A balloon may be free, moving with the wind, or tethered to a fixed point. It is distinct from an airship, which is a powered aerostat that ...
from the country of Texas with an
arctic hare
The Arctic hare (''Lepus arcticus'') is a species of hare highly adapted to living in the Arctic tundra and other icy biomes. The Arctic hare survives with shortened ears and limbs, a small nose, fat that makes up close to 20% of its body, and ...
dæmon named Hester.
Lee meets Iorek Byrnison in ''Once Upon a Time in the North'' when he is twenty-four. In ''Northern Lights'', Lee is hired by John Faa and the Gyptians to aid in their mission to save the kidnapped children; following the rescue, he helps transport Lyra to Svalbard. In ''The Subtle Knife'', he pledges to help the witches in their fight against the Magisterium and sets out to find Stanislaus Grumman. Grumman, also known as Jopari or John Parry, is a shaman and travels with Lee into the world of Cittàgazze. Lee gives his life fighting Magisterium soldiers, allowing John Parry to reach his goal.
Following their deaths, Lee and Parry fight Spectres after they are released from the Land of the Dead in ''The Amber Spyglass''. After this task is done, Lee allows himself to dissolve so that his atoms can be mixed with the atoms of Hester and his other loved ones.
Phillip Pullman said of Scoresby's name that "''the Lee part comes from the actor
Lee Van Cleef
Clarence LeRoy Van Cleef Jr. (January 9, 1925 – December 16, 1989) was an American actor. He appeared in over 170 film and television roles in a career spanning nearly 40 years, but is best known as a star of Italian Spaghetti Westerns, partic ...
... because I thought my Lee would look like him, and the Scoresby comes from
William Scoresby
William Scoresby (5 October 178921 March 1857) was an English whaler, Arctic explorer, scientist and clergyman.
Early years
Scoresby was born in the village of Cropton near Pickering south-west of Whitby in Yorkshire. His father, William ...
, who was a real Arctic explorer.''"
American actor
Sam Elliott
Samuel Pack Elliott (born August 9, 1944) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a National Board of Review Award, and has been nominated for an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, two Primetime Emmy Aw ...
plays Lee Scoresby in the film ''
The Golden Compass
''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...
'' while
James Horan James Horan may refer to:
* James Horan (actor) (born 1954), American character actor
* James Horan (cricketer) (1880–1945), Australian cricketer
* James Horan (Gaelic footballer)
James Horan (born 1972) is a Gaelic football manager and f ...
voices him in the video game adaption.
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, actor, playwright and filmmaker. He is known for creating the Broadway musicals ''Hamilton'' (2015) and ''In the Heights'' (2005), and the soundtracks for the Disney animate ...
plays the character in the ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
'' TV series. In the audiobooks Lee is played by
Garrick Hagon
Garrick Hagon (; born September 27, 1939) is a British-Canadian actor in film, stage, television and radio, known for his role as Biggs Darklighter in '' Star Wars: A New Hope''. His many films include ''Batman'', ''Spy Game'', ''Me and Orson ...
, who also directed the productions.
Iofur Raknison
Iofur Raknison is an armoured bear who wishes to be equal to a human. After usurping Iorek Byrnison as king of the armoured bears, he commands his subjects to build a palace of stone and wear ornamentation of gold and silver, which had been traditionally despised. He had dealings with the Magisterium and Mrs Coulter, allowing them access to his kingdom in exchange for the ability to be baptised as a Christian. Lyra is able to trick him into fighting Iorek Byrnison by convincing him that she is herself a dæmon and that she could become his dæmon. Traditionally, armoured bears are unable to be tricked but in his behaving like a human, he loses this ability; Iorek is able to exploit this by feigning injury. After Iofur's defeat, Iorek is proclaimed the king, and his first command is that the bears discard their pseudo-human trinkets and tear down Iofur's palace.
In the 2007 film adaptation, ''
The Golden Compass
''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...
'', the character is renamed Ragnar Sturlusson to prevent confusion with Iorek Byrnison and is voiced by
Ian McShane
Ian David McShane (born 29 September 1942) is an English actor, producer and director. He is known for his television performances, particularly as the title role in the BBC series ''Lovejoy'' (1986–1994), Al Swearengen in '' Deadwood'' (2004 ...
while
JB Blanc
Jean-Benoît Blanc is a French-British actor and director of film and television who has worked on animations and video games in Los Angeles.
Early life
Blanc was born in Paris, the son of an English people, English mother and a French people, ...
voices him the video game adaption. In the TV series, Iofur is motion-captured by Joi Johannsson and voiced by
Peter Serafinowicz
Peter Szymon Serafinowicz ( ; born 10 July 1972) is an English actor, comedian, director and screenwriter, best known for his roles as the title character in the 2016 live-action series of ''The Tick'', Pete in ''Shaun of the Dead'' (2004) and ...
. In the audiobook of ''Northern Lights'', he is voiced by
Douglas Blackwell
Douglas Blackwell (17 May 1924 – 17 October 2009) was an English actor. Douglas Blackwell was born in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England, but brought up in Port Talbot, Wales, where he attended the local county grammar school. He narrated ...
.
Roger Parslow
Roger Parslow, a young kitchen boy and youngest of the Parslow family – who had long been employed as masons for Jordan College – was the best friend of Lyra Belacqua during her early life in Jordan College. Roger's dæmon, named Salcilia, often appears as a terrier.
Roger is kidnapped by the General Oblation Board ("the Gobblers") and taken to their experimental centre in
Bolvangar
This article covers the fictional locations in the ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy and related works by Philip Pullman.
Locations Jordan College
Jordan College is a fictional college. It exists in Oxford in a universe parallel to our own and is ...
. When Lyra arrives there he assists her in helping the children escape and goes on with her to see
Lord Asriel
Lord Asriel is a character in Philip Pullman's ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy. Asriel is a member of the aristocracy in a parallel universe dominated by the Church. He is described as being "a tall man with powerful shoulders, a fierce dark fac ...
in Svalbard. Asriel uses Roger to create a bridge between worlds by severing him from Salcilia, killing him in the process of channelling the energy from the severing to create the bridge.
In ''
The Amber Spyglass
''The Amber Spyglass'' is the third novel in the '' His Dark Materials'' trilogy by Philip Pullman. Published in 2000, it won the 2001 Whitbread Book of the Year award, the first children's novel to do so. It was named Children's Book of the Y ...
'', he appears trapped in the Land of the Dead. Lyra is eventually able to free him and all the other dead souls to merge with the
Dust
Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in homes ...
in the living worlds.
In the movie, Roger is played by Ben Walker. In the TV series, Roger is played by Lewin Lloyd. In the audiobooks, he is voiced by Susan Sheridan.
Lord Boreal
Lord Carlo Boreal, or Sir Charles Latrom,
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
as he is known as in Will Parry's world, serves as a minor character in ''Northern Lights'', but is a main antagonist in ''
The Subtle Knife
''The Subtle Knife'' is a young-adult fantasy novel published in 1997 and the second book in Philip Pullman's ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy. The novel continues the adventures of Lyra Belacqua (now known as Lyra Silvertongue) recounted in the ...
''. He is an old Englishman, appearing to be in his sixties. He normally wears pale suits and is described as smelling sweetly.
Lord Boreal is first seen in Lyra Belacqua's world at the cocktail party of
Mrs Coulter
Marisa Coulter ( née Delamare) is a fictional character in Philip Pullman's ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy and one of the main antagonists of '' Northern Lights''. She is the former lover of Lord Asriel and is usually called "Mrs Coulter".
De ...
. He interacts shortly with Lyra. He is also mentioned just before Lord Asriel crosses the bridge to
Cittàgazze
This article covers the fictional locations in the ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy and related works by Philip Pullman.
Locations Jordan College
Jordan College is a fictional college. It exists in Oxford in a universe parallel to our own and is ...
in ''Northern Lights'' as being a lover of
Mrs Coulter
Marisa Coulter ( née Delamare) is a fictional character in Philip Pullman's ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy and one of the main antagonists of '' Northern Lights''. She is the former lover of Lord Asriel and is usually called "Mrs Coulter".
De ...
's.
In ''The Subtle Knife'', Boreal watches Lyra exploring a museum in Will's world and approaches her, appearing to be a kindly old man whose only interest in her is to discuss the skulls. Lyra remembers seeing him previously, but is unsure of his identity. Later, when Lyra is being chased by the men who are after John Parry's notes, Latrom is in a chauffeured limousine and offers her a lift, at which time he steals her alethiometer. Lord Boreal tells them that they must get the
Subtle Knife
''The Subtle Knife'' is a young-adult fantasy novel published in 1997 and the second book in Philip Pullman's ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy. The novel continues the adventures of Lyra Belacqua (now known as Lyra Silvertongue) recounted in the ...
for him from
Cittàgazze
This article covers the fictional locations in the ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy and related works by Philip Pullman.
Locations Jordan College
Jordan College is a fictional college. It exists in Oxford in a universe parallel to our own and is ...
and he will return to them the alethiometer. After retrieving the knife, Lyra and Will steal back the alethiometer by cutting through from Cittàgazze into Will's world directly within Boreal's study. During this, they overhear a conversation between Coulter and Boreal, where he explains how he was able to set up a life in that world. Later, Boreal attempts to learn what Mary Malone knows about Dust by offering to continue funding her and her colleague's work.
In a tent in the mountains of Cittàgazze, Mrs Coulter 'spikes' Boreal's drink in order to make him tell her about the Subtle Knife; he dies shortly thereafter from the poisoned drink.
Boreal's
name
A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. The entity identified by a name is called its referent. A personal ...
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
, Latrom, is "mortal" spelled backwards.
Ariyon Bakare
Ariyon Bakare () is an English actor. He has appeared in the BBC soap opera ''Doctors'' (2001–2005) as Ben Kwarme, the Amazon Prime series ''Good Omens'' and ''Carnival Row'' (2019), and the BBC series ''His Dark Materials''. Prior to this, ...
plays this character in the
TV series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...
, in which the role is expanded, including that he is assigned to look for John Parry and enlists a pale-faced contact on earth to help search for him while spying on Parry's family. In the audiobooks, he is voiced by Stephen Thorne.
Farder Coram
Coram Van Texel is a
gyptian
Windel Beneto Edwards (born 25 October 1983), better known by his stage name Gyptian (), is a Jamaican reggae singer. He often appears with roots reggae songs within the reggae subgenre dancehall.
Early life
Born to a Seventh-day Adventist mo ...
with a large, unusually beautiful, golden-brown cat dæmon named Sophonax. His voice is described as ''"rich and musical, with as many tones in it as there were colours in his dæmon’s fur."'' By ''Northern Lights'', he is known as Farder Coram and is a respected, elderly, adviser to the Gyptian King John Faa.
More than fifty years prior to the start of the trilogy, Coram travelled to the north, where he witnessed a
witch
Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...
,
Serafina Pekkala
This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies, ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Book of Dust''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...
, being attacked by another witch's dæmon. Farder Coram shot the rogue dæmon and rescued Serafina, thereafter they became lovers and had a son, who was killed in his youth by a disease from the east. After the son's death, Serafina Pekkala returned to her people as the clan-queen, and Coram returned to the Gyptians. In ''La Belle Sauvage'', Coram is working for Oakley Street, a secret society opposing the influence of the Church. He obtains information about Mrs Coulter, fights Gerard Bonneville, and warns Malcolm Polstead of the upcoming flood.
He accompanies
Lyra
Lyra (; Latin for lyre, from Greek ''λύρα'') is a small constellation. It is one of the 48 listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and is one of the modern 88 constellations recognized by the International Astronomical Union. Lyra was ...
to
Bolvangar
This article covers the fictional locations in the ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy and related works by Philip Pullman.
Locations Jordan College
Jordan College is a fictional college. It exists in Oxford in a universe parallel to our own and is ...
to rescue the captured children and guides her in mastering the alethiometer.
Coram re-appears briefly at the conclusion of ''The Amber Spyglass'' when he and other Gyptians are drawn into the world of the
Mulefa
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995) (published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). This is a lis ...
to meet Lyra and bring her home before the worlds separate once again.
'Farder' is possibly a dialect variant of 'Father', honouring his role as 'Elder' to the Gyptians. He is played by
Tom Courtenay
Sir Thomas Daniel Courtenay (; born 25 February 1937) is an English actor. After studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Courtenay achieved prominence in the 1960s with a series of acclaimed film roles, including ''The Loneliness of t ...
in the film ''
The Golden Compass
''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...
''. In the film ''The Golden Compass'', his dæmon is a
caracal
The caracal (''Caracal caracal'') () is a medium-sized wild cat native to Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and arid areas of Pakistan and northwestern India. It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long tufted e ...
, an African,
lynx
A lynx is a type of wild cat.
Lynx may also refer to:
Astronomy
* Lynx (constellation)
* Lynx (Chinese astronomy)
* Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory
Places Canada
* Lynx, Ontar ...
-like
wildcat
The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while the ...
.
James Cosmo
James Ronald Gordon Copeland , known professionally as James Cosmo (b. 1947), is a Scottish film and television actor known for his appearances in films including '' Highlander'', ''Braveheart'', ''Trainspotting'', ''Jagame Thandhiram'', ''Tro ...
plays the character in the ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
'' TV series, whilst
Stephen Thorne
Stephen John Thorne (2 March 1935 – 26 May 2019) was a British actor of radio, film, stage, and television. He was best known for his regular BBC Radio 4 work and audiobook recordings, and for his portrayals of several ''Doctor Who'' villains ...
provides his voice in the audiobooks.
The Master of Jordan College
The Master of Jordan heads Jordan College, part of Oxford University in Lyra's world. Helped by other Jordan College employees, he is raising the supposedly orphaned Lyra. In ''La Belle Sauvage'', he offers scholastic refuge to Lyra. In ''Northern Lights'', he tries unsuccessfully to poison Lord Asriel, hoping that it will protect Lyra and prevent conflict. In ''The Amber Spyglass'', he offers Lyra a place to live at Jordan, and funding for her education.
In the film ''
The Golden Compass
''Northern Lights'' (titled ''The Golden Compass'' in North America and some other countries) is a young-adult fantasy novel by Philip Pullman, published in 1995 by Scholastic UK. Set in a parallel universe, it follows the journey of Lyra Be ...
Clarke Peters
Peter Clarke (born April 7, 1952), known professionally as Clarke Peters, is an American-British actor, writer, and director. He is best known for his roles as Lester Freamon in the television series ''The Wire'' (2002–2008) and Albert Lambrea ...
, and in the audiobooks he is voiced by Stephen Thorne.
Dame Hannah Relf
Dame Hannah Relf and her marmoset dæmon Jesper are scholars at St Sophia's college. In ''La Belle Sauvage'', she is an alethiometrist and a member of Oakley street, a secret society opposing the Magisterium. By the time of ''Northern Lights'', she is the Mistress of St Sophia's college.
In ''The Amber Spyglass'', she invites Lyra to study at St Sophia's and learn to read the alethiometer from her.
Introduced in ''The Subtle Knife''
Will Parry
Will Parry is the bearer of the Subtle Knife and a point of view protagonist of ''The Subtle Knife'' and ''The Amber Spyglass''. He is the son of John Parry, an explorer, and of Elaine Parry, a woman who suffers from mental health problems. Will does not remember his father, a former
Royal Marine
The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...
, who has not been heard of since he vanished on an expedition to the
Arctic
The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
when Will was an infant. It is later revealed that John Parry has wandered into another world and is unable to find his way back. Will becomes the companion of, and ultimately falls in love with, Lyra Belacqua, and also becomes the bearer of the Subtle Knife by winning a fight, in which he loses two fingers on his left hand. At the end of the third book, he must leave Lyra Belacqua and live entirely in his own world, where he is taken care of by
Mary Malone
This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies, ''His Dark Materials'' and '' The Book of Dust''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...
and his cat dæmon, Kirjava (''which means ''mottled'' in
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
'').
In the unabridged audiobooks, Will was voiced by
Steven Webb
Steven Michael Webb (born 8 November 1984 in Wirral, Merseyside, England) is an English actor in theatre, television and film.
for ''The Subtle Knife'' and by Peter England for ''The Amber Spyglass''. In the TV series, he is played by
Amir Wilson
Amir Ahmad Wilson (born 6 February 2004) is an English actor. He played Will Parry in the HBO and BBC One series ''His Dark Materials'', Tiuri in the Netflix series '' The Letter for the King'', and Dickon in the 2020 film adaptation of '' The ...
.
Dr Mary Malone
Dr Mary Malone is a physicist from
Will
Will may refer to:
Common meanings
* Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death
* Will (philosophy), or willpower
* Will (sociology)
* Will, volition (psychology)
* Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will
...
's world investigating
dark matter
Dark matter is a hypothetical form of matter thought to account for approximately 85% of the matter in the universe. Dark matter is called "dark" because it does not appear to interact with the electromagnetic field, which means it does not ab ...
, which is equated with
Dust
Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in homes ...
, and is a point of view protagonist in ''The Subtle Knife'' and ''The Amber Spyglass''. She is a former nun, and in the witches' prophecy involving Lyra, she plays the part of the
serpent
Serpent or The Serpent may refer to:
* Snake, a carnivorous reptile of the suborder Serpentes
Mythology and religion
* Sea serpent, a monstrous ocean creature
* Serpent (symbolism), the snake in religious rites and mythological contexts
* Serp ...
to Lyra's
Eve
Eve (; ; ar, حَوَّاء, Ḥawwāʾ; el, Εὕα, Heúa; la, Eva, Heva; Syriac: romanized: ) is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the ...
.
In ''The Subtle Knife'', Lyra meets her and tells her about her world's research into Dust, which Mary equates with dark matter and refers to as Shadows. Lyra demonstrates the use of her alethiometer, and Mary is able to program her dark matter detector to function similarly. The detector instructs her to go through the window into Cittàgazze, which she does, eventually arriving at the world of the
Mulefa
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995) (published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). This is a lis ...
. There she builds the titular Amber Spyglass, allowing her to see Dust, and investigates the death of the trees that are essential to the Mulefa's environment. She discovers that the Dust is no longer falling from the sky to pollinate the trees, but is instead flowing sideways. When Lyra arrives, a conversation with Mary begins to inspire in her a sexual awakening, leading to her dæmon's shape settling and to her beginning to attract Dust; this action is enough to arrest the loss of Dust and to save the trees, and as such she fulfils the prophecy.
At the end of ''The Amber Spyglass'', Serafina Pekkala reveals to Mary both how to see her dæmon and also its form – that of an
alpine chough
The Alpine chough (), or yellow-billed chough (''Pyrrhocorax graculus'') is a bird in the crow family, one of only two species in the genus '' Pyrrhocorax''. Its two subspecies breed in high mountains from Spain eastwards through southern Europ ...
. She offers to help Will upon their return to their own world.
Mary Malone does not appear in Nicholas Wright's stage adaptation of the novels due to the difficulty of representing Mulefa onstage. The role of the tempter was given to Serafina Pekkala, who was also the bearer of the spyglass, which had been created by Jopari (John Parry) as a device to view Dust.
In the TV series, she is introduced in the second series and played by
Simone Kirby
Simone Kirby (born 28 October 1976) is an Irish people, Irish actress. She is probably best known for playing Oonagh in the Ken Loach film ''Jimmy's Hall''. Other credits include Irene O'Donnell in ''Peaky Blinders (TV series), Peaky Blinders'' ...
. In the audiobooks, she is played by Kate Lock.
John Parry
Colonel John Parry, also known as Dr Stanislaus Grumman and Jopari, is the father of Will Parry and the husband of Elaine Parry.
Prior to the start of the trilogy, John Parry had been a famous English explorer and a major in the
Royal Marines
The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...
in Will's world. When Will was a small child, he went on an archaeological exploration of
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
, hoping to find a portal to a different world. He eventually found it during a blizzard, entering the world of
Cittàgazze
This article covers the fictional locations in the ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy and related works by Philip Pullman.
Locations Jordan College
Jordan College is a fictional college. It exists in Oxford in a universe parallel to our own and is ...
, where his two companions were killed by the Spectres. He continued his travels, arriving in the home world of Lyra Belacqua. There he met his dæmon Sayan Kötör, an osprey, and assumed the name Stanislaus Grumman. He attended the Berlin Academy, becoming a well-known explorer, and studied
Dust
Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in homes ...
trepanation
Trepanning, also known as trepanation, trephination, trephining or making a burr hole (the verb ''trepan'' derives from Old French from Medieval Latin from Greek , literally "borer, auger"), is a surgical intervention in which a hole is drille ...
of his skull, becoming a shaman of the tribe and taking the name Jopari. He spurned the love of the witch Juta Kamainen because of his continued love for his wife.
In ''
The Subtle Knife
''The Subtle Knife'' is a young-adult fantasy novel published in 1997 and the second book in Philip Pullman's ''His Dark Materials'' trilogy. The novel continues the adventures of Lyra Belacqua (now known as Lyra Silvertongue) recounted in the ...
'',
Lee Scoresby
This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies, ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Book of Dust''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...
is sent to find Grumman. He eventually finds him among the Yenisei tribe, although Grumman claims that it was he who called Lee to find him. Lee takes Grumman to Cittàgazze as Grumman wishes to find the bearer of the Æsahættr (''"God-destroyer" in Old Norse''). Grumman finds the bearer, Will, on top of a mountain and fights with him after Will attacks him in the darkness. Grumman uses some bloodmoss (a
lichen
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.Andrew Scott.
Julian Glover
Julian Wyatt Glover (born 27 March 1935) is an English classical actor with many stage, television, and film roles since commencing his career in the 1950s. He is a recipient of the Laurence Olivier Award and has performed many times for th ...
provides his voice in the audiobooks of ''The Subtle Knife'', and James Greene in ''The Amber Spyglass''.
Balthamos and Baruch
Balthamos and his partner Baruch are both
angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...
s in rebellion from the Kingdom of Heaven. They seek to become part of Lord Asriel's army of angels and overthrow
Metatron
Metatron ( ''Meṭāṭrōn'', ''Məṭaṭrōn'', ''Mēṭaṭrōn'', ''Mīṭaṭrōn'', ''Meṭaṭrōn'', ''Mīṭṭaṭrōn'') or Mattatron ( ''Maṭṭaṭrōn'') is an angel in Judaism mentioned three times in the Talmud in a few br ...
, the acting Regent of The Authority. Balthamos is sarcastic, and his relations with Will are conducted with an air of ironic contempt. When he was human, Baruch was brother to Enoch, who later became the angel Metatron.
Both angels find Will Parry at the end of ''The Subtle Knife''; because Will is the bearer of the subtle knife, they hope to take him to Lord Asriel. However, Will's companion Lyra Belacqua has been kidnapped and Will refuses to go to Asriel until Lyra is found. The angels agree to accompany Will until she is found. Baruch is killed while taking important information to Lord Asriel in ''The Amber Spyglass'', and Balthamos, stricken with grief, promises to aid Will in every way possible to honour Baruch's sacrifice. When Balthamos is unable to do so, he runs away, grieving over Baruch's death and feeling guilty about abandoning Will. At the end of the book, Balthamos confronts and kills Father Gomez, an assassin hoping to kill Lyra, and dies himself.
As angels of low rank, Balthamos and Baruch's abilities are limited. They appear as luminous humanlike forms, which are barely visible to
human eyes
The human eye is a sensory organ, part of the sensory nervous system, that reacts to visible light and allows humans to use visual information for various purposes including seeing things, keeping balance, and maintaining circadian rhythm.
...
even at night. The angels also possess the power to transform, which Balthamos uses to masquerade as Will's dæmon when travelling in Lyra's world. They are capable of flight though their wings do not have a corporeal form.
In Arabic-Christian legends, the name Baruch is identified with Zoroaster. The prophecy of the birth of Jesus from a virgin, and of his adoration by the Magi, is also ascribed to this Baruch.http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2562-baruch
In the TV series, Balthamos and Baruch are played by
Kobna Holdbrook-Smith
Kobna Kuttah Holdbrook-Smith (born 23 August 1977) is a Ghanaian-British actor known for his film, television, theatre and voice work.
Early life
Holdbrook-Smith was born in Accra, Ghana. He grew up in Frimley, Surrey, England, where he li ...
and Simon Harrison. In the audiobook of ''The Amber Spyglass,'' Balthamos is played by Alec McCowan and Baruch is played by Nigel Carrington.
Chevalier Tialys and Lady Salmakia
The Chevalier Tialys and The Lady Salmakia are Gallivespians, spies, and companions of Lyra and Will. Gallivespians are a race of small humanoid beings about as tall as the length of a human hand from a world where humans, tending to side with the Church, are at war with them, and they serve as spies in Lord Asriel's army. Tialys and Salmakia in particular spy on the Magisterium in Lyra's world, and when the Magisterium sends soldiers to capture and kill Lyra, they are ordered to stow away and follow them. Gallivespians have poison spurs on their feet that can incapacitate a human, and they ride specially bred dragonflies.
They first encounter the children when, along with Lord Asriel's forces, they arrive at Mrs Coulter's cave, under orders to take the children to Lord Asriel. The Gallivespians are forced to go with Lyra and Will when it becomes apparent that they will not go directly to Lord Asriel willingly. They travel together to the land of the dead, helping bargain with the harpies.
Tialys dies when attacking a cliff-ghast, having dug his spurs deep into her neck. Lady Salmakia dies shortly thereafter, her short lifespan having reached its natural end.
In the TV series, Salmakia is played by
Sian Clifford
Sian Clifford (born 7 April 1982) is an English actress. She is best known for playing Claire, the older sister of the titular character in the BBC comedy-drama series ''Fleabag'' (2016–2019) and also portrayed Martha Crawley in the ITV/Amazo ...
. In the audiobooks of ''The Amber Spyglass'', Tialys and Salmakia are played by David Timson and Denica Fairman respectively.
Ruta Skadi
Ruta Skadi is the Latvian witch queen, and a lover of Lord Asriel. Her dæmon is a
bluethroat
The bluethroat (''Luscinia svecica'') is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae. It, and similar small Europea ...
named Sergi. She is 416 years old in ''The Subtle Knife'', and makes appearances in ''The Subtle Knife'' and ''The Amber Spyglass''. Her second name, "Skadi", is also that of a Nordic winter goddess.
She accompanies
Serafina Pekkala
This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies, ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Book of Dust''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...
and her companions on part of their journey. She leaves, first to see the angels up above her, and she wants to help them because Lord Asriel is with them. She brings news of a mysterious weapon which turns out to be the Subtle Knife after overhearing tell of it from cliff ghasts. She is described as being very passionate, powerful, pitiless and beautiful, and has
black hair
Black hair is the darkest and most common of all human hair colors globally, due to larger populations with this dominant trait. It is a dominant genetic trait, and it is found in people of all backgrounds and ethnicities. Black hair contains a ...
and large black
eyes
Eyes are organs of the visual system. They provide living organisms with vision, the ability to receive and process visual detail, as well as enabling several photo response functions that are independent of vision. Eyes detect light and conve ...
. She wears a crown made of the teeth of tigers she killed when a tribe that worshipped them offended her. When it is revealed to the witches that Lyra, Lord Asriel and Marisa Coulter's daughter, is to become the second Eve, Ruta laments that as Asriel's lover, she did not become Lyra's mother, reflecting on what Lyra would have been like as a witch.
In the stage adaptation, she kills herself after killing John Parry, who had, in the past, rejected her as a lover. In the book, this is done by a more minor character (Juta Kamainen) who does not appear in the adaptation.
In the TV adaption, Ruta Skadi is played by
Jade Anouka
Jade Anouka (born 12 June 1989) is an English actress. She is known for her various stage roles and for her appearances in ''His Dark Materials'' on BBC One and the ITV dramas ''Trauma'' and '' Cleaning Up''.
Early life and education
Anouka wa ...
. In the audiobooks of ''The Subtle Knife'', she is voiced by
Eve Karpf
Eve Karpf (born 2 August 1947) is a British actress. Among her roles was the voice of Weed for the 2001 ''Bill and Ben'' reboot. She was a voice of Dennis' mum, Matilda in the 1996 '' Dennis the Menace'' television series, Mrs. Bird in ''The ...
.
Father Gomez
Father Gomez is a priest sent by the Magisterium to assassinate Lyra. The Angel
Balthamos
This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies, ''His Dark Materials'' and '' The Book of Dust''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...
kills Gomez before he can reach her. His dæmon is a green-backed beetle. He has spent years doing preemptive penance, allowing the Magisterium to forgive him for his planned crime of killing Lyra.
In the audiobooks of ''The Amber Spyglass'', he is played by Andrew Branch.
Fra Pavel
Fra Pavel Rašek is a representative and alethiometrist of the Consistorial Court of Discipline. He is said to be a thorough but sluggish reader of the truth, requiring weeks or months to take an accurate reading. He was, however, successful in obtaining information useful to the Consistorial Court in a relatively short period of time, according to Marisa Coulter. He appears to be uncomfortable when voicing potentially heretical discoveries. His dæmon takes the form of a
frog
A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...
.
He appears in the 2007 film, where he is played by
Simon McBurney
Simon Montagu McBurney (born 25 August 1957) is an English actor, playwright, and theatrical director. He is the founder and artistic director of the Théâtre de Complicité, London. He has had roles in the films ''The Manchurian Candidate'', ...
while Alan Shearman voices him in the video game adaption. In the TV series, he is played by Frank Bourke. In the audiobooks of ''The Subtle Knife'' he is played by Hayward Morse and in ''The Amber Spyglass'' by Nigel Anthony.
Introduced in ''The Amber Spyglass''
Ogunwe
Ogunwe is an African king who becomes one of the commanders of Lord Asriel's forces. His dæmon takes the form of a cheetah.
Ongunwe is played by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje in the TV series, in which he is a military commander who was sprung from prison by Asriel and his Gallivespian allies.
Roke
Roke is a Gallivesparian lord who serves as Lord Asriel's spy and one of his commanders.
Roke is played by Jonathan Aris in the TV series, in which he is just a commander.
Luis Gomez
Father Luis Gomez is the youngest member of the Constitorial Court of Discipline.
Gomez is played by Jamie Ward in the TV series.
The Authority
The Authority was the first races and creatures in His Dark Materials#Angels, angel to come into existence; he and the angels which formed after him condensed from the substance known as
Dust
Dust is made of fine particles of solid matter. On Earth, it generally consists of particles in the atmosphere that come from various sources such as soil lifted by wind (an aeolian process), volcanic eruptions, and pollution. Dust in homes ...
. He led other angels, and later humanity, to believe that he was in fact the creator of the multiverse: God. This claim legitimised his taking political power in the Kingdom of Heaven.
The angel Xaphania later found out the truth about him, whereupon he banished her from the Kingdom (''a reference to the legend of the fall of Lucifer''). Xaphania and some other angels later started a rebellion against him. The Authority was known by several names, including "Yahweh", the "Lord", "El (god), El", "Adonai", and "the Almighty".
He ruled his various churches, organisations, and universes from the Clouded Mountain, a floating mobile city believed by many in that universe to be Heaven. As the Authority grew older and weaker, the Mountain became more and more obscured by clouds.
In his old age, the Authority appointed the tyrant, tyrannical archangel Characters of His Dark Materials#Metatron, Metatron to act as regent of the Kingdom of Heaven. Eventually Metatron grew more powerful than his master. The two are opposed by Lord Asriel, who allies with "fallen" angels, such as Xaphania, in an attempt to overthrow the divine monarchy and replace it with a Republic of Heaven. During the final battle, the Authority is carried away from the Clouded Mountain on the orders of Metatron. He is imprisoned in a crystal box, which keeps him alive, but trapped. Lyra Belacqua and Will Parry free him with the Subtle Knife, not knowing he is too weak to survive outside his box. He drifts apart and dies, following other characters' precedent, in a moment of happiness by merging with the cosmos.
Metatron
Metatron serves as the Regent of Heaven and is the main antagonist of ''
His Dark Materials
''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...
''. Metatron seeks to supplant the Authority, to destroy Lord Asriel and his army, and to kill the heroine Lyra Belacqua. He has immense personal power, and is shown as descending from the sky at one point to demolish a large area of land. He is betrayed by Mrs Coulter, who promises herself to him as a prize for his victory over Lord Asriel. Coulter is conspiring with Asriel to destroy him; the two sacrifice their lives to drag Metatron into an abyss between the universes to ensure that he can never threaten Lyra again. He is said to have been the Biblical character Enoch (ancestor of Noah), Enoch, who is in the line between Adam and Noah. He appears only in ''The Amber Spyglass''. The name Metatron is that of a medieval Judaic Archangel.
Metatron is portrayed by Alex Hassell in the TV series. In the audiobooks of ''The Amber Spyglass'', Metatron is voiced by Stephen Greif.
Xaphania
Xaphania is the leader of the rebel angels allied with Lord Asriel in the war against The Authority (His Dark Materials), The Authority.
Xaphania first appears in the third book of the trilogy, ''
The Amber Spyglass
''The Amber Spyglass'' is the third novel in the '' His Dark Materials'' trilogy by Philip Pullman. Published in 2000, it won the 2001 Whitbread Book of the Year award, the first children's novel to do so. It was named Children's Book of the Y ...
'', at a council of Asriel's commanders. Like all Pullman's angels, she appears naked, winged, and luminous; due to her high rank and great age, she is clearly visible to corporeal beings. As is the norm with members of the angelic orders in the novels, there is a certain ambiguity surrounding Xaphania's exact appearance. She appears both ancient and young, compassionate and austere. Her simultaneous age and youth are remarked on by the witch
Serafina Pekkala
This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies, ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Book of Dust''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...
, who herself appears that way to shorter-lived people.
The angel
Balthamos
This is a list of characters from the two Philip Pullman trilogies, ''His Dark Materials'' and '' The Book of Dust''.
Introduced in ''Northern Lights'' Lyra Belacqua
Lyra Belacqua, later known as Lyra Silvertongue, is the central character of ...
is the first character to refer explicitly to Xaphania. As he explains to Will Parry, she discovered that the Authority had lied to the other angels regarding his status as God the original Creator deity, Creator and so was banished from the Clouded Mountain. This was the start of the first struggle against the Kingdom, Xaphania being the leader of the rebel angels who intervened in human evolution to give mankind its present consciousness some thirty thousand years ago.
Towards the end of the trilogy, and after the defeat of the Authority's forces, it is Xaphania who instructs Will how to seal all the windows between the worlds, to prevent Dust from leaking away into the abyss, and informs him that the Æsahættr (the Subtle Knife) must be destroyed.
In the TV adaption, Xaphania is voiced by Sophie Okonedo in angel form during season 1 and 2 and played by Chipo Chung in season 3. Her role is expanded in the TV series where she gives the audience information about the Subtle Knife and also speaks to Dr Mary Malone through a machine called the Cave. In the audiobooks of ''The Amber Spyglass'', she is played by Eve Karpf.
Gracious Wings
Gracious Wings, previously called No-Name, is chief of the Races_and_creatures_in_His_Dark_Materials#Harpies, harpies in the Authority's employment in the Land of the Dead. Before Lyra and Will came, she and the other harpies tormented the ghosts with all the mistakes made by those ghosts when they were alive. At first, she is ready to attack Lyra and Will but later confesses that the wickedness of the ghosts was the only nourishment given to her and the other harpies by the Authority. The Chevalier Tialys and the Lady Salmakia bargain with her that instead of wickedness, the ghosts will tell the harpies true stories from their lives and in exchange will be taken by the harpies to the window Will has opened into the world of the mulefa where the ghosts may peacefully dissolve into particles in the air. The harpies agree to this as, along with the nourishment such stories would provide, they would also keep their honour by performing a useful and respected task. After she saves Lyra's life by stopping her from falling, Lyra names her Gracious Wings.
She and her fellow harpies are voiced by Emma Tate in the TV series. In the audiobooks of ''The Amber Spyglass'', she is voiced by Jill Shilling.
Atal
Atal is a Mulefa who befriended Mary Malone.
She is voiced by Kate Ashfield in the TV series.
Introduced in ''La Belle Sauvage''
Malcolm Polstead
Malcolm Polstead and his dæmon Asta are eleven at the start of ''
La Belle Sauvage
''La Belle Sauvage'' is a fantasy novel by Philip Pullman published in 2017. It is the first volume of a planned trilogy titled ''The Book of Dust'' and is set twelve years before Pullman's ''His Dark Materials''. It presents events prior to the ...
''. He is the protagonist of the story and is described as having "an inquisitive, kindly disposition, a stocky build, and ginger hair". His dæmon Asta has not yet settled into her final form. Malcolm is a regular visitor at the Priory of Saint Rosamund.
During ''La Belle Sauvage'', Malcolm is living and working with his parents at their tavern. He attends school locally, and the Magisterium is seen influencing the young children by inviting them into a special club intended to intimidate and inform on people and events viewed unfavourably by the Church; Malcolm manages to avoid participating. Malcolm is viewed as a helpful and friendly boy who frequently visits and helps the nuns who live at the nearby priory. Malcolm becomes fascinated by the infant Lyra and becomes privy to the fact she is being secretly raised by the sisters due to the nature of her birth parents. When Malcolm accidentally stumbles upon Oakley Street operatives, he begins to become involved in some spying due to wanting to protect the infant Lyra whom the Church appears to be after.
Lord Asriel visits the priory and requests Malcolm's help in escaping capture after seeing the infant Lyra. Asriel has Malcolm's canoe upgraded by local Gyptians craftsmen, and leaves his card inviting Malcolm to call on him if help is needed. Gyptian Farder Coram warns Malcolm of the upcoming storm, during which Malcolm goes to the priory to ensure that the infant Lyra and sisters are safe. Malcolm rescues Alice and Lyra from being kidnapped by Gerard Bonneville. Malcolm kills the violent and insane Bonneville. He and Alice take the infant Lyra to Lord Asriel.
By the time of ''Lyra's Oxford'', Malcolm is a scholar at Jordan College.
In ''The Secret Commonwealth'', Dr Malcolm Polstead is a history scholar at Durham College, at Oxford University in Lyra's world. Asta has settled as a large ginger cat. Malcolm has been Lyra's tutor. Now, he realises that he is in love with her. He is sent by Oakley Street to investigate the phenomenon of rose oil allowing for the perception of Dust.
Gerard Bonneville
Dr Gerard Bonneville is a disgraced physicist with a hyena dæmon. He studied the Rusakov field, and at some point became involved with Marisa Coulter. He was cut off from his research on Dust due to his work being labelled as heretical, and seeks to obtain Lyra to trade for the ability to work on his research again.
Although Bonneville is seen as a charming handsome man, his hyena dæmon stands out in stark contrast to his own physical appearance. People find the creature unnerving and it has an aggressive nature. Bonneville has a history of violence, is shown to be going insane, and observed to be abusive towards his own dæmon – cursing, hitting, and mutilating her by cutting off her front legs. Malcolm and other characters witness some of this with revulsion, as harming one's own dæmon is considered an extremely disturbing act of self-mutilation. The text implies that Bonneville has paedophilic inclinations: Oakley Street agents discuss using Malcolm as bait to blackmail him, and he makes advances towards a fifteen-year-old Alice.
In ''La Belle Sauvage'', during the flood, Bonneville follows Malcolm, Alice, and Lyra. Bonneville attacks Alice on the steps of a mausoleum during a storm. Malcolm is forced to beat Bonneville to death with a canoe paddle. Malcolm inherits Bonneville's research notes, and an alethiometer which he gives to the Master of Jordan College, when Lord Asriel seeks academic sanctuary for the infant Lyra.
Alice Parslow (Mrs Lonsdale)
Alice Parslow and her dæmon Ben are 15 in ''La Belle Sauvage''. In ''The Secret Commonwealth'', Alice is revealed to be the same person as Mrs Lonsdale, the housekeeper of Jordan College who is a minor character in ''Northern Lights'', by which time she has been married and widowed, Ben has settled as a terrier.