| “ | Better is no good either! I demand maximum results! | „ |
| ~ The Grand High Witch to her followers. |
| “ | A stupid witch who answers back must BURN UNTIL HER BONES ARE BLACK! A foolish witch without a brain, must sizzle into fire and flame! An idiotic witch like you must roast upon the barbecue! A witch who dares to say I'm wrong, will not be with us... VERY LONG! | „ |
| ~ The Grand High Witch, before zapping and killing another witch who questioned her. |
| “ | Y-you're doomed, old woman! You're doomed forever! | „ |
| ~ Eva Ernst (Grand High Witch) pointing her spoon at Helga as her witches turn into mice. |
The Grand High Witch is the main antagonist of the 1983 children's book The Witches by Roald Dahl and the 1990 fantasy film adaptation of the same name.
She is portrayed by Anjelica Huston (who also plays Miss Battle-Axe) in the film adaptation.
History
As one of the most influential and powerful sorceresses on Earth, she leads a secret society of like-minded witches in their never-ending quest to kill and torture children: depiction of witches in this story was considerably dark for a children's book and they were all guilty of child-abuse and murder. In the film she also has an assistant named Susan Irvine, who, unlike the other witches, didn't seem enthusiastic about killing children.
During each and every single meeting she ever attended, she would murder one of her own followers simply to keep the other witches focused. This was considered to be her ultimate punishment, and the other witches were terrified of her.
The Grand High Witch especially had a plan that would climax in turning all the children of the world into mice, to be disposed of either by the witches themselves, or by their unsuspecting parents. She demonstrates her formula by inviting a boy called Bruno, who had been previously given a chocolate with the formula, as he slowly turns into a mouse. However, the meeting was being eavesdropped by Luke, a boy who was in the hotel with his grandmother Helga, who warned him about witches and is implied to have faced the Grand High Witch before.
One of the witches catches the scent of Luke, so the Grand High Witch tracks him down and force-feeds him her formula, turning him into a mouse as well. He manages to escape and meet with Bruno, the two going after Helga's room, where they plan to stop the witches plan. Luke manages to steal the formula and slip it on the witches soup. In the end, the Grand High Witch suffered a somewhat fitting demise when her own magic was used against her and she (along with all of her followers, except Susan Irvine) is transformed into a mouse. While the mice-transformed witches run rampant around the hotel and are killed by the staff, the Grand High Witch is killed by the hotel manager, who uses a cleaver to slice her in half.
Gallery
Trivia
- According to Luke's Grandmother, the Grand High Witch is "the most evil woman in creation". Unlike the other witches, she wishes to kill all the children in England.
- It should be noted that while in the book, the Grand High Witch is the first witch to transform into a mouse, in the movie she is the last (unless you count Susan Irvine, who didn't transform at all).
- Unlike the other witches, who at least show a little concern for adults, she has no results for collateral damage in her schemes, shown when a witch asks what would happen if an adult consumed their formula and the Grand High Witch replies "then that's just too bad for the grownup".
- In the book, the Grand High Witch doesn't take off her gloves, wig or shoes, implying she has more to hide, but in the film, she does.
- In the book, it is revealed that the Grand High Witch is Norwegian, and she is also a famous baroness in Norway.
- In a Google Hangout, Lucy Dahl revealed that the Grand High Witch was in part based on her stepmother. Lucy stated it wasn't her stepmother's personality, but look and social status that was the inspiring factor.
- Lucy also seriously stated she wasn't entirely convinced witches were fiction, citing a neighbor who, "If Witches are real, she's one of them."
- The Grand High Witch has countless subordinates, including The Woman in Black and Lois Leffour.