''Snugglepot and Cuddlepie'' is a series of books written by Australian author May Gibbs. The books chronicle the adventures of the

eponym 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 ...

ous Snugglepot and Cuddlepie. The central story arc concerns Snugglepot and Cuddlepie (who are essentially homunculi) and their adventures along with troubles with the

villain A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction. ''Random House Unabridged Dictionary'' defines such a character a ...

s of the story, the "Banksia Men". The first

book A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...

of the series, ''Tales of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie: their wonderful adventures'' was published in 1918.

Description

Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, the gumnut babies, are the

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

s of the story and are modelled on the appearance of young

Eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as euca ...

(gum tree) nuts. The female gumnut babies, however, have their hair, hats and skirts modelled on Eucalyptus flowers. May Gibbs based some of the characters and scenery on the plants found in the

bushland In Australia, bushland is a blanket term for land which supports remnant vegetation or land which is disturbed but still retains a predominance of the original floristics and structure. Human survival in bushland has a whole mythology evolving ...

Harvey, Western Australia Harvey is a town located in the South West of Western Australia along the South Western Highway, south of Perth, between Pinjarra and Bunbury. It has a population of 2,750. Harvey Town is known for its dairy industry and oranges. History Har ...

, where she played as a child. The "big bad" Banksia Men are the

s of the story and are modelled on the appearance of aged '' Banksia'' "cones", with follicles for eyes and other facial features.

We came to a grove of Banksia trees and sitting on almost every branch were these ugly little, wicked little men that I discovered and that's how the Banksia Men were thought of.

Books

May Gibbs wrote a number of titles based on her creations. The first publication was in 1918, ''Tales of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie: their adventures wonderful'', and the set of works was first collected in 1940 as, ''The Complete Adventures of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie'', with the cover declaring ''Including Little Ragged Blossom and Little Obelia''. ;Others are:''Snugglepot and Cuddlepie find Ragged Blossom''. :''Little Ragged Blossom and more about Snugglepot and Cuddlepie''. :''Little Obelia and further adventures of ragged Blossom, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie''. : ''Snugglepot and Cuddlepie on Board the Snag''/the Original Characters Created By May Gibbs; Redrawn By Noela Young; Adapted By David Harris. (1975) :''Snugglepot and Cuddlepie meet Mr Lizard'' (1970).

Productions and creative works

Richard Mills composed a

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

of the same name in 1987, which was produced for television. Peter Combe adapted Snugglepot and Cuddlepie into a musical, which was first performed in 1992 at the Adelaide Festival of Arts. It was recorded the following year at the

Adelaide Festival Centre Adelaide Festival Centre, Australia's first multi-purpose arts centre and the home of South Australia's performing arts, was built in the 1970s, designed by Hassell Architects. The Festival Theatre opened in June 1973 with the rest of the centr ...

with the

Adelaide Symphony Orchestra The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra (ASO) is a South Australian performing arts organisation comprising 75 full-time musicians, established in 1936. Based in Adelaide, South Australia, the orchestra's primary performance venue is the Adelaide Town Ha ...

. Ruth Cracknell was a special guest, playing the part of May Gibbs. '' The Adventures of Snugglepot & Cuddlepie and Little Ragged Blossom'' is a

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

adapted by John Clarke and Doug MacLeod, with a

by Clarke and

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

and

lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a "libretto" and their writer, a ...

Alan John Alan John (born 7 May 1958 in Sydney) is an Australian composer. He studied music at the University of Sydney, graduating in 1980. His compositions include original music for various plays, films (such as '' Holding the Man'', ''Three Dollars'' an ...

. It premiered at the Theatre Royal on 9 January 2007. Adult actors played the parts of the gumnut babies – Darren Gilshenan (Cuddlepie), Tim Richards (Snugglepot) and

Ursula Yovich Ursula Yovich is an Aboriginal Australian actress and singer. Early life and education Yovich was born and grew up in Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. Her father, Slobodan Jović, was a Serbian immigrant who anglicised his name to Stan ...

(Ragged Blossom). The story centres on the two characters of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, who befriend a Blossom and search the unknown land of Australia. Unlike Combe's musical, the 2007 version is a political satire. The

spoken word Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...

recording ''Australian classic children's collection'' includes the story as one of four works of

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. Modern children's literature is classified in two different ways: genre or the intended age of the reader. Children's ...

. ''Tibby's Leaf'' by Ursula Dubosarsky, the story of child who sees gumnut babies in the bush at the outbreak of World War One, was inspired by Gibbs' World War One gumnut baby postcards which are held in the collection of the National Museum of Australia. retrieved 3 July 2012

Honours

In 1985 a

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...

honouring the protagonists or their creator was issued by

Australia Post Australia Post, formally the Australian Postal Corporation, is the government business enterprise that provides postal services in Australia. The head office of Australia Post is located in Bourke Street, Melbourne, which also serves as a post o ...

as part of a set of five commemorating children's books.

Northcott and Cerebral Palsy Alliance

On 27 November 1969 May Gibbs died. On passing she bequeathed royalties of her Snugglepot and Cuddlepie creations jointly to the Northcott Society and

Cerebral Palsy Alliance Cerebral Palsy Alliance (formerly The Spastic Centre) is an Australian nonprofit organisation helping babies, children, teenagers and adults living with cerebral palsy and other neurological and physical disabilities. Its therapy teams work ...

(formerly known as The Spastic Centre). Since then both charitable organisations have been able to use these royalties to further their respective programmes helping children and adults with disabilities.

References

{{Portal , Children's literature 1918 children's books Australian children's books Series of children's books Australian fantasy Angus & Robertson books