Who was that masked man?

[davewitley]

I feel my previous post covered this in essence, but just to be 
absolutely clear:

Heidi wrote:

> and we  know now from jkr's talk in Edinburgh last month that the 
> Hog's Head informant is Dumbledore's brother Aberforth.

Pippin supplies the canon:

> >>Ooh—you are getting good. Why do you think that it is 
> Aberforth? [Audience member: Various clues. He smells of 
> goats and he looks a bit like Dumbledore]. I was quite proud of 
> that clue. That is all that I am going to say. [Laughter]. Well 
yes, 
> obviously. I like the goat clue—I sniggered to myself about that 
> one.<<

Pippin, that is indeed canon, but it does not support Heidi's 
claim.  The Hog's Head informant (and, in the context of this 
thread, putative Acromantula egg salesman) is the person who told 
Voldemort part of the prophecy, and, while we can't be sure 
(Voldemort may have captured and interrogated an innocent), is 
presumably a DE or at least a sympathiser.  For Aberforth, a known 
Order member, to be revealed as such would be a major major 
revelation - fandom would be buzzing with it: "Dumbledore's brother 
a Death Eater - wow!"  It seems out of keeping with JKR's approach 
to pre-publication teasers, too.

Hence my desire to pin Heidi down on this one.

I think that the identification of Aberforth as the barman, however, 
is pretty well accepted by everyone by now.

David