Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids (often nicknamed ''Grizzly Tales'') is the
generic trademark
A generic trademark, also known as a genericized trademark or proprietary eponym, is a trademark or brand name that, because of its popularity or significance, has become the generic term for, or synonymous with, a general class of products or ...
ed title for a series of award-winning children's books by British author
Jamie Rix
Jamie Rix (born 27 April 1958) is an English children's author, television comedy writer, and media producer. He is best known for the book series ''Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'' and '' The War Diaries of Alistair Fury''; both were adapted i ...
which were later adapted into an animated television series of the same name produced for
ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
. Known for its
surreal
Surreal may refer to:
*Anything related to or characteristic of Surrealism, a movement in philosophy and art
* "Surreal" (song), a 2000 song by Ayumi Hamasaki
* ''Surreal'' (album), an album by Man Raze
*Surreal humour, a common aspect of humor
...
black comedy
Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...
and horror, the franchise was immensely popular with children and adults, and the cartoon became one of the most-watched programmes on
CITV
CITV (short for Children's ITV, also known as the CITV Channel) is a British free-to-air children's television channel owned by ITV plc. It broadcasts content from the CITV archive and acquisitions, every day from 6 am to 9 pm which ...
in the 2000s; a reboot of the cartoon series was produced for
Nickelodeon UK
Nickelodeon (commonly shortened to Nick) is a British pay television network aimed at children aged under 13.
On 1 September 1993, a localised version of the US channel launched in the United Kingdom and launched at a later date in Ireland. I ...
and
NickToons UK
Nicktoons is a collective name used by Nickelodeon for their original animated series. All Nicktoons are produced partly at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio and list Nickelodeon's parent company (Viacom, now known as Paramount Global) in their ...
in 2011 with 26 episodes (split into 2 series) with the added tagline of ''Cautionary Tales for Lovers of Squeam!''. The first four books in the series were published between 1990 and 2001 by a variety of publishers (such as
Hodder Children's Books
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette.
History
Early history
The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged 14, with Messrs Jackson and Walford, the official publisher ...
,
Puffin
Puffins are any of three species of small alcids (auks) in the bird genus ''Fratercula''. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crev ...
, and
Scholastic) and have since gone
out of print
__NOTOC__
An out-of-print (OOP) or out-of-commerce item or work is something that is no longer being published. The term applies to all types of printed matter, visual media, sound recordings, and video recordings. An out-of-print book is a book ...
but are available as audio adaptations through
Audible
Audible may refer to:
* Audible (service), an online audiobook store
* Audible (American football), a tactic used by quarterbacks
* ''Audible'' (film), a short documentary film featuring a deaf high school football player
* Audible finish or rush ...
and
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
. The ITV cartoon was produced by Honeycomb Animation and aired between 2000 and 2006 with 6 series; reruns aired on the Nickelodeon channels along with the 2011 series.
Each book in the franchise contained several
cautionary tale
A cautionary tale is a tale told in folklore to warn its listener of a danger. There are three essential parts to a cautionary tale, though they can be introduced in a large variety of ways. First, a taboo or prohibition is stated: some act, lo ...
s about children of many ages and the consequences of their antisocial actions. Due to how far-fetched and fantastical the stories could become, it is up to the reader whether they found the series frightening or amusing, but the franchise is usually categorised as children's horror. When the series was adapted for the CITV/Nickelodeon cartoons, the book chapters became ten-minute episodes that were narrated by comic actor
Nigel Planer
Nigel George Planer (born 22 February 1953) is a British actor, comedian, musician, novelist and playwright. He played Neil in the BBC comedy '' The Young Ones'' and Ralph Filthy in ''Filthy Rich & Catflap''. He has appeared in many West End mu ...
, and created by Honeycomb Animation, with author Rix as co-director.
The franchise received critical acclaim, noted by the themes of horror surrealism and adult paranoia blended with common children's book absurdity. ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' said of the CITV cartoon, "Mix
Dahl with
Belloc and you can anticipate with glee these animated tales of Jamie Rix. Even
William Brown's antics pale..."
and ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' wrote: "They are superior morality stories and Nigel Planer reads them with a delight that borders on the fiendish."
Plot
The ''Grizzly Tales'' series features short stories about
cautionary tale
A cautionary tale is a tale told in folklore to warn its listener of a danger. There are three essential parts to a cautionary tale, though they can be introduced in a large variety of ways. First, a taboo or prohibition is stated: some act, lo ...
s and imitates an episodic anthology horror (similar to ''
The Twilight Zone
''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, su ...
'' or ''
Tales from the Darkside
''Tales from the Darkside'' is an American anthology horror TV series created by George A. Romero. Debuting in October 1983 with a pilot episode and then being picked up for syndication in September 1984, the show ran for 4 seasons through July ...
'') with each book chapter a different short story. The typical structure would be a brief glance at a main character's typical day in their life, followed by a change in their routine (e.g. a new possession comes their way or a decision made by them/a supporting character) which eventually goes wrong in a
hoisted with their own petard way, with the story ending with the main character either being killed,
mutilated
Mutilation or maiming (from the Latin: ''mutilus'') refers to severe damage to the body that has a ruinous effect on an individual's quality of life. It can also refer to alterations that render something inferior, ugly, dysfunctional, or imper ...
, involuntarily
shapeshifting
In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shape-shifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through an inherently superhuman ability, divine intervention, demonic manipulation, Magic (paranormal), sorcery, Incantation, ...
, or kidnapped by something/someone
supernatural
Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...
. They usually star children whose misbehaviour (laziness, greediness, vanity, lying, etc.) is failed to be reined in by their parents or guardians, who vary from encouraging it, ignoring it, failing to be firm with their punishments, or do nothing because they are used to being submissive (and are sometimes the
victims of their child's abuse). There are exceptions, however, as some stories are about adults, or set in the past, or are
pastiches
A pastiche is a work of visual art, literature, theatre, music, or architecture that imitates the style or character of the work of one or more other artists. Unlike parody, pastiche pays homage to the work it imitates, rather than mocking it ...
.
Book series
Development
The first story Rix ever created was ''The Spaghetti Man'', after using this new cautionary tale as a
white lie
A lie is an assertion that is believed to be false, typically used with the purpose of deception, deceiving or Deception, misleading someone. The practice of communicating lies is called lying. A person who communicates a lie may be termed a l ...
to his first son.
It was about a little boy who refused to behave at the kitchen table and is kidnapped by an invisible force, that takes him to a factory to turn him into
lasagne
Lasagna (, also , also known as lasagne, ) is a type of pasta, possibly one of the oldest types, made of very wide, flat sheets. Either term can also refer to an Italian dish made of stacked layers of lasagna alternating with fillings such as ...
. Rix took note of how the lie had made his four-year-old eat every meal without hesitations, which would inspire a series that could scare children into behaving themselves.
The story of the Spaghetti Man would be included in the franchise debut's ''
Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids
Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids (often nicknamed ''Grizzly Tales'') is the generic trademarked title for a series of award-winning children's books by British author Jamie Rix which were later adapted into an animated television series of the s ...
'',
which was published in 1990 by
André Deutsch
André Deutsch (15 November 1917 – 11 April 2000) was a Hungarian-born British publisher who founded an eponymous publishing company in 1951.
Biography
Deutsch was born on 15 November 1917 in Budapest, Hungary, the son of a Jewish dentis ...
's
eponymous
An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''.
Usage of the word
The term ''epon ...
publishing house. Its popularity led to three sequels: ''
Ghostly Tales for Ghastly Kids
''Ghostly Tales for Ghastly Kids'' is a 1992 children's fantasy horror book of cautionary tales written by British author Jamie Rix and is the second book in the ''Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'' series. It was published by André Deutsch and ...
'' (1992), ''
Fearsome Tales for Fiendish Kids
''Fearsome Tales for Fiendish Kids'' is a 1996 children's black comedy horror literature, horror book written by British author Jamie Rix. It is the third book in the ''Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'' series. It was published by Hodder Children ...
'' (1996), and ''
More Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids
''More Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'' is a 2001 children's horror short-story collection from Scholastic UK by British author Jamie Rix and is the fourth book in the ''Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'' book series. It was the first book to b ...
'' (2001); the latter book was released as the first cartoon aired on CITV. Possibly due to the franchise gaining popularity, the first four books have been re-released numerous times amongst Puffin and Orion. A variety of illustrators designed the front covers, but the success of the CITV cartoon led to the front covers being redesigned by Honeycomb Productions to look like screencaps of the cartoon characters.
After an unspecified number of years, the books went
out of print
__NOTOC__
An out-of-print (OOP) or out-of-commerce item or work is something that is no longer being published. The term applies to all types of printed matter, visual media, sound recordings, and video recordings. An out-of-print book is a book ...
.
Six years later, Rix created a new series for the franchise, now named ''Grizzly Tales: Cautionary Tales for Lovers of Squeam!''; eight books were published between 2007 and 2008, the ninth a compilation full of 12 previously-published stories from the first and second in the brand.
This series borrowed heavily from the CITV cartoon's format by imitating its
framing device
Framing may refer to:
* Framing (construction), common carpentry work
* Framing (law), providing false evidence or testimony to prove someone guilty of a crime
* Framing (social sciences)
* Framing (visual arts), a technique used to bring the focus ...
style of a character telling the stories to the audience, whereas the previous book series was only a collection of short stories. This new character was The Night Night Porter,
a creepy owner of a hotel (named The Hot
Hell
In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...
Darkness)
that used vague anecdotes and proverbs to show the reader how they would relate to the stories he was about to tell, and would open his check-in book where the stories have been placed. After telling the stories, he would punish the misbehaving kids to
spend eternity in one of his hotel rooms.
Recurring features
Locations of stories varied. Some took place in fictionalised versions of English towns (e.g.
Colchester
Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian.
Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...
)
and others did not (Saucy by Sea).
Not all took place in the country of the franchise's origin: "It's Only a Game, Sport!" was set in Australia, for example. "The Chipper Chums Go Scrumping" is a
pastiche of the works of Enid Blyton
Enid Mary Blyton (11 August 1897 – 28 November 1968) was an English children's writer, whose books have been worldwide bestsellers since the 1930s, selling more than 600 million copies. Her books are still enormously popular and have be ...
and is set in the
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
ish countryside in 1952.
Naming conventions highlighted the humour. The ''
Independent on Sunday
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' pointed out, "Jamie Rix’s splendidly nasty short stories can be genuinely scary, but as the protagonists are obnoxious brats with names like Peregrine and Tristram, you may find yourself cheering as they meet their sticky ends."
Some of the characters'
surname
In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community.
Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...
s implied their roles in the story (Mr. and Mrs. Frightfully-Busy were
workaholic
A workaholic is a person who works compulsively. A workaholic experiences an inability to limit the amount of time they spend on work despite negative consequences such as damage to their relationships or health.
There is no generally accepted ...
s, Johnny Bullneck is an aggressive school bully, and Serena Slurp is greedy)
whereas the more ridiculous the family name is, the more unpleasant they are in the story: Fedora Funkelfink the
con artist
A confidence trick is an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. Confidence tricks exploit victims using their credulity, naïveté, compassion, vanity, confidence, irresponsibility, and greed. Researchers have def ...
; and the
upper-middle-class
In sociology, the upper middle class is the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class. This is in contrast to the term ''lower middle class'', which is used for the group at the opposite end of the middle-class strat ...
Crumpdump family, who
trophy hunt to impress their
spoilt child
A spoiled child or spoiled brat is a derogatory term aimed at children who exhibit behavioral problems from being overindulged by their parents or other caregivers. Children and teens who are perceived as spoiled may be described as "overindulged ...
ren.
"Knock Down Ginger", meanwhile, is set in a fictional town called
Nimby
NIMBY (or nimby), an acronym for the phrase "not in my back yard", is a characterization of opposition by residents to proposed developments in their local area, as well as support for strict land use regulations. It carries the connotation that ...
, a notorious home for
middle-class
The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Comm ...
snobs.
Some of the punishments that the horrible characters have are based on
pun
A pun, also known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophonic ...
s: loud-mouthed Dolores from "Silence is Golden" is taken to an
alchemist
Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscience, protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in Chinese alchemy, C ...
and is
turned into a gold statue;
"Kiss and Make Up" was a
double meaning
A double entendre (plural double entendres) is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to have a double meaning, of which one is typically obvious, whereas the other often conveys a message that would be too socially ...
title about a girl who used make up to look prettier so that she could have her first kiss with a handsome boy in her school. Other titles are pop-culture references ("
Fatal Attraction
''Fatal Attraction'' is a 1987 American psychological thriller film directed by Adrian Lyne from a screenplay by James Dearden, based on his 1980 short film '' Diversion''. Starring Michael Douglas, Glenn Close, and Anne Archer, the film centers ...
", "
The Big Sleep
''The Big Sleep'' (1939) is a hardboiled crime novel by American-British writer Raymond Chandler, the first to feature the detective Philip Marlowe. It has been adapted for film twice, The Big Sleep (1946 film), in 1946 and again The Big Sleep ...
", "
The Barber of Civil",
"
Monty's Python",
etc.).
Story issues and morals were relatable to the reader (particularly the parents that would be reading to their children), such as
television addiction,
sibling rivalry
Sibling rivalry is a type of competition or animosity among siblings, whether blood-related or not.
Siblings generally spend more time together during childhood than they do with parents. The sibling bond is often complicated and is influenced ...
,
trying to fit in with their friends,
personal hygiene
Hygiene is a series of practices performed to preserve health.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "Hygiene refers to conditions and practices that help to maintain health and prevent the spread of diseases." Personal hygiene refer ...
,
refusing to eat their dinner,
punctuality
Punctuality is the characteristic of being able to complete a required task or fulfill an obligation before or at a previously designated time. "Punctual" is often used synonymously with "on time".
An opposite personality trait is tardiness. ...
, but others are about
theft
Theft is the act of taking another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it. The word ''theft'' is also used as a synonym or informal shorthand term for some ...
and
deforestation
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated d ...
, as well as an implied
anti hunting message in "An Elephant Never Forgets".
Supernatural characters varied from
witch doctors
A witch doctor (also spelled witch-doctor) was originally a type of healer who treated ailments believed to be caused by witchcraft. The term is now more commonly used to refer to healers, particularly in regions which use traditional healing ...
(Doctor Moribundus,
The Barber of Civil),
poltergeist
In ghostlore, a poltergeist ( or ; German for "rumbling ghost" or "noisy spirit") is a type of ghost or spirit that is responsible for physical disturbances, such as loud noises and objects being moved or destroyed. Most claims or fictional descr ...
s (The Spaghetti Man),
to
snake-oil salesmen. There were also
fairies
A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spirit, o ...
,
talking animals
Talking may refer to:
* Speech, the product of the action of ''to talk''
* Communication by spoken words; conversation or discussion
Other uses
* "Talking" (The Rifles song), 2007
* "Talking" (A Flock of Seagulls song), 1983
* "Talking", a song ...
,
aliens
Alien primarily refers to:
* Alien (law), a person in a country who is not a national of that country
** Enemy alien, the above in times of war
* Extraterrestrial life, life which does not originate from Earth
** Specifically, intelligent extrate ...
,
inanimate objects coming to life (such as drawings), and
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 ...
es, as well as cursed objects, and absurd occurrences (such as piglets travelling across the countryside disguised as a man);
other villains, like Farmer Tregowan,
were regular people with extremely violent methods of punishment. Children could be shapeshifted,
eaten alive,
kidnapped, or
turned into food.
Due to many of the parents'
child neglect
A form of child abuse, child neglect is an act of caregivers (e.g., parents) that results in depriving a child of their basic needs, such as the failure to provide adequate supervision, health care, clothing, or housing, as well as other physica ...
and lack of discipline, many of the outcomes of their children's stories do not appear to affect their lives. Some of the workaholic parents are too busy to notice that their child has either been
maim
Mutilation or maiming (from the Latin: ''mutilus'') refers to Bodily harm, severe damage to the body that has a ruinous effect on an individual's quality of life. It can also refer to alterations that render something inferior, ugly, dysfunction ...
ed or has disappeared
and others are implied to be such insignificance in their children's lives that they do not appear as characters in the story. Meanwhile, happy (or bittersweet) endings were about the character learning from their bad behaviour and turning their lives around before things got worse.
Book list
Television series
Between 2000 and 2012, two animated adaptations were made for CITV and NickToons. Both were produced and animated by Honeycomb Animation as well as Rix's own television company Elephant (later renamed Little Brother). Producing partner
Nigel Planer
Nigel George Planer (born 22 February 1953) is a British actor, comedian, musician, novelist and playwright. He played Neil in the BBC comedy '' The Young Ones'' and Ralph Filthy in ''Filthy Rich & Catflap''. He has appeared in many West End mu ...
performed in the cartoons as the narrator of the stories during each episodes'
framing device
Framing may refer to:
* Framing (construction), common carpentry work
* Framing (law), providing false evidence or testimony to prove someone guilty of a crime
* Framing (social sciences)
* Framing (visual arts), a technique used to bring the focus ...
s. The first animated adaptation aired on CITV between January 2000 and October 2006, and the second aired on
Nicktoons
Nicktoons is a collective name used by Nickelodeon for their original animated series. All Nicktoons are produced partly at the Nickelodeon Animation Studio and list Nickelodeon's parent company (Viacom, now known as Paramount Global) in their ...
between May 2011 and November 2012.
Merchandise
Kindle versions of the first four books were briefly available to buy in 2011.
Nigel Planer was the narrator for this series and played Uncle Grizzly. He also narrated ''Fearsome Tales for Fiendish Kids'' on audiobook.
Bill Wallis
William Wallis (20 November 1936 – 6 September 2013) was a British character actor and comedian who appeared in numerous radio and television roles, as well as in the theatre.
Biography
Wallis was born in Guildford in Surrey, the only son of A ...
narrated ''More Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'', and ''Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'' and ''Ghostly Tales for Ghastly Kids'' were both read by
Andrew Sachs
Andreas Siegfried Sachs (7 April 1930 – 23 November 2016), known professionally as Andrew Sachs, was a German-born British actor and writer. He made his name on British television and found his greatest fame for his portrayal of the comical Sp ...
.
Orion Audiobooks have also released full CD recordings of the books,
read by
Rupert Degas
Rupert Joel Degas (born 17 August 1970) is an Anglo-Australian actor. He is best known for his voice work in animation and audiobooks. Since the 1980s, he has worked in audiobooks, film, podcasts, radio productions, television, theatre, and vid ...
.
Audio Go have re-released the original Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids audiobook on CD and download.
Reception
The franchise received a positive reaction from critics, and audiences of many ages. The second cartoon programme frequently appeared on audience-rated "favourite programme" lists on Nickelodeon. A reporter for ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...
'' noted "I played all five
udiobook adaptationsto my own junior jury aged 12, 7 and 5. They sat spellbound for 75 minutes, a rare event."
''Books for Your Children'' predicted that the series would be entertaining for everyone: "An excellent book of stories for all but the most timid ... the accumulation of grimness is also part of the effect, so older children can enjoy this collection by themselves and adults can have a marvellous time reading them to younger ones",
whereas ''The Evening Standard'' encouraged it: "It may be a children's story, but many a modern-day trendy parent could watch and learn."
''The School Librarian'' added: "Jamie Rix tells us that bad ghosts always stay that way but bad children can improve, which is reassuring because his stories are full of unpleasant children."
Honeycomb producer Susan Bor explained: "What really appealed to me about adapting these wonderful stories for TV was that they were new and fresh, there was nothing out there like it and I particularly wanted the design and look of the series to have that originality."
When the CITV cartoon debuted, Carol McDaid of ''
The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'' referred to it as "a quirky new animated series". Reviews noted a connection between the franchise and other respected children's media: "This beautifully conceived and executed series follows in the centuries-old
Grimm
Grimm may refer to:
People
* Grimm (surname)
* Brothers Grimm, German linguists
** Jacob Grimm (1785–1863), German philologist, jurist and mythologist
** Wilhelm Grimm (1786–1859), German author, the younger of the Brothers Grimm
* Christian ...
tradition of sadistic fairy-tale fantasy," wrote
Victor Lewis-Smith
Victor Lewis-Smith (12 May 1957 – 10 December 2022) was a British film, television and radio producer, a television and restaurant critic, a satirist and newspaper columnist. He was executive producer of the ITV1 Annual National Food & Drin ...
in ''
The Evening Standard
The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format.
In October 2009, after be ...
'', "and there's something reminiscent of
Heinrich Hoffman
Heinrich Hoffman was born on December 23, 1836. He served in the American Civil War, and was a Medal of Honor Recipient. He served as a Corporal in the Union Army in Company M, 2nd Ohio Cavalry. He received the Medal of Honor for action on April ...
's ''
Shockheaded Peter
''Der Struwwelpeter'' ("shock-headed Peter" or "Shaggy Peter") is an 1845 German children's literature, children's book by Heinrich Hoffmann (author), Heinrich Hoffmann. It comprises ten illustrated and rhymed stories, mostly about children. Ea ...
'' about the fiendishly cruel (yet satisfyingly appropriate) fates that befall badly behaved children..."
''The Daily Telegraph'' compared the series to Roald Dahl,
William Browne, and
Hilaire Belloc
Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc (, ; 27 July 187016 July 1953) was a Franco-English writer and historian of the early twentieth century. Belloc was also an orator, poet, sailor, satirist, writer of letters, soldier, and political activist. H ...
,
a possible reference to Belloc's poetry book ''
Cautionary Tales for Children
''Cautionary Tales for Children: Designed for the Admonition of Children between the ages of eight and fourteen years'' is a 1907 children's book written by Hilaire Belloc. It is a parody of the cautionary tales that were popular in the 19th centu ...
''.
Stories from the books were read by Nigel Planer on radio throughout the 1990s.
From 1990, the show appeared on
BBC Radio 5,
and in 1994, it appeared on
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
.
Awards and nominations
Both the books and the two television adaptations have received awards and nominations for their work.
Books
Television
List of published short stories
''Grizzly Tales for Gruesome Kids'' (1990)
''Ghostly Tales for Ghastly Kids'' (1992)
''Fearsome Tales for Fiendish Kids'' (1996)
''More Grizzly Tales For Gruesome Kids'' (2001)
''Nasty Little Beasts'' (April 2007)
''Gruesome Grown Ups'' (April 2007)
''The "Me!" Monsters'' (July 2007)
''Freaks of Nature'' (July 2007)
''Terror Time Toys'' (February 2008)
''Blubbers and Sicksters'' (February 2008)
''The Gnaughty Gnomes of "NO!"'' (July 2008)
''Superzeroes'' (July 2008)
''A Grizzly Dozen'' (2009)
This was a compilation book containing stories from the previous books in the ''Grizzly Tales: Cautionary Tales for Lovers of Squeam!'' series.
#The Grub A Blub Blub
#Monty's Python
#The Lobster's Scream
#Wolf Child
#The Fruit Bat
#The Clothes Pigs
#Jamie's School Dinners
#Silence Is Golden
#The Old Tailor of Pelting Moor
#Her Majesty's Moley
#The Soul Stealer
#Nobby's Nightmare
See also
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Struwwelpeter
''Der Struwwelpeter'' ("shock-headed Peter" or "Shaggy Peter") is an 1845 German children's book by Heinrich Hoffmann. It comprises ten illustrated and rhymed stories, mostly about children. Each has a clear moral that demonstrates the disastr ...
'' — possible inspiration for the franchise debut
*''
Cautionary Tales for Children
''Cautionary Tales for Children: Designed for the Admonition of Children between the ages of eight and fourteen years'' is a 1907 children's book written by Hilaire Belloc. It is a parody of the cautionary tales that were popular in the 19th centu ...
'' — poetry book that has been compared to the book
*''
Goosebumps
''Goosebumps'' is a series of children's horror fiction novels by American author R. L. Stine, published by Scholastic Publishing. The protagonists in these stories are tweens or young teens who find themselves in scary circumstances usually i ...
'' — American speculative book series for children
References
Notes
Citations
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Grizzly Tales For Gruesome Kids
British children's books
Horror anthologies
Series of children's books
Book series introduced in 1990
BBC Radio 4 programmes
Works by Jamie Rix
2000s British children's television series