Mary Poppins (novel)

''Mary Poppins'' is a series of eight children's books written by Australian-British writer P. L. Travers and published over the period 1934 to 1988. Mary Shepard was the illustrator throughout the series.

The books centre on the magical English nanny Mary Poppins, who is blown by the East wind to Number 17 Cherry Tree Lane, London, and into the Banks' household to care for their children. Encounters with pavement-painters and shopkeepers, and various adventures ensue, until Mary Poppins abruptly leaves, i.e., "pops out". Only the first three of the eight books feature Mary Poppins arriving and leaving. The later five books recount previously unrecorded adventures from her original three visits. As Travers explains in her introduction to ''Mary Poppins in the Park'', "She cannot forever arrive and depart."

The books were adapted by Walt Disney into a musical film titled ''Mary Poppins'' (1964), starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. The film ''Saving Mr. Banks'' (2013) depicted the making of the 1964 film. Disney’s sequel to the 1964 film, ''Mary Poppins Returns'', was released in 2018, and stars Emily Blunt as Poppins.

In 2004, Disney Theatrical in collaboration with Sir Cameron Mackintosh (who had previously acquired the stage rights from Travers) produced a stage musical also called ''Mary Poppins'' in London's West End theatre. The stage musical was transferred to Broadway, in New York, in 2006, where it ran until its closing on 3 March 2013.

Books

''Mary Poppins'', published 1934

The first book introduces the Banks family from Number Seventeen Cherry Tree Lane, London, consisting of Mr and Mrs Banks, their children Jane and Michael, and baby twins John and Barbara. When the children's nanny, Katie Nanna, storms out in a huff, Mary Poppins arrives at their home, complete with her travelling carpet bag, blown in by a very strong East wind. She accepts the job (agreeing to stay "till the wind changes"), and the children soon learn that their nanny, though stern, vain and usually cross, has a magical touch that makes her wonderful. Among the things Jane and Michael experience are a tea party on a ceiling with Mr Wigg, a trip around the world with a compass, the purchase of gingerbread stars from the extremely old Mrs Corry, a meeting with the Bird Woman, a birthday party at the zoo among the animals, and a Christmas shopping trip with a star named Maia from the Pleiades cluster in the constellation Taurus. In the end, in what is perhaps the most iconic image associated with Mary Poppins, she opens her umbrella and the West wind carries her away.

Original and revised versions of the "Bad Tuesday" chapter

''Mary Poppins'' contained a version of the chapter "Bad Tuesday" in which Mary and the children use a compass to visit places all over the world in a remarkably short period of time. The original story in the 1934 edition contained a variety of cultural and ethnic types of Chinese, Native Alaskan or Inuit, sub-Saharan Africans, and Native Americans. Travers responded to criticism by revising the chapter twice. A 1967 revision removed offensive words and stereotypical descriptions and dialogue, but kept the plot of visiting foreign people, and retained drawings of ethnic stereotypes standing at the compass-points. In 1981 a second revision replaced people with animals; original illustrator Mary Shepard altered the four compass points in the accompanying drawing to show a polar bear at the north, a macaw at the south, a panda at the east, and a dolphin at the west. ''Mary Poppins'' had been banned from circulation in the San Francisco Public Library system in 1980 due to the negative stereotyping. The 1981 revised version was included in BBC Radio 4's 2004 adaptation of ''Mary Poppins'' starring Juliet Stevenson.

''Mary Poppins Comes Back'', published 1935

Nothing has been right since Mary Poppins left Number Seventeen Cherry Tree Lane. One day, when Mrs. Banks sends the children out to the park, Michael flies his kite up into the clouds. Everyone is surprised, when Michael reels his kite in, to find that Mary Poppins is at the end of the string. She takes charge of the children once again (though she'll only stay til the chain of her locket breaks"). This time, Jane and Michael meet the fearsome Miss Andrew, experience an upside-down tea party, and visit a circus in the sky.
In the chapter "The New One" a girl, Annabel, is born into the Banks family, and concludes the family of now five children; three daughters and two sons. As in ''Mary Poppins'', Mary leaves at the end (via an enchanted merry-go-round, throwing her locket towards the children as she disappears), but this time with a "return ticket, just in case" she needs to return.

''Mary Poppins Opens the Door'', published 1943

When Mary last left the Banks children in Cherry Tree Lane, she took a "return ticket, just in case". In the third book, she returns to the park in front of Cherry Tree Lane the way she came, falling with fireworks. Once again she takes up nanny duties in the Banks household and leads Jane, Michael, the toddler twins John and Barbara (as well as the new baby girl Annabel) on various magical adventures. This time, they visit her cousin Fred Twigley, befriend a statue that has come to life, go riding on peppermint horses, and experience a garden party under the sea.

''Mary Poppins in the Park'', published 1952

This fourth book contains six adventures of the Banks children with Mary Poppins during their outings in the park along Cherry Tree Lane. Chronologically the events in this book occurred during the second or third book (''Mary Poppins Comes Back'' and ''Mary Poppins Opens the Door'' respectively). Among the adventures they experience are a tea party with the people who live under the dandelions, a visit to cats on a different planet, and a Halloween dance party with their shadows.

''Mary Poppins From A to Z'', published 1962

Twenty-six vignettes (one for each letter of the alphabet) weave unexpected tales of Mary Poppins, the Banks children, and other characters from Travers's previous novels. Each vignette is filled with fun and unusual words that start with the featured letter.

''Mary Poppins in the Kitchen'', published 1975

Mary Poppins comes to the rescue when the Banks's family cook goes on an unexpected leave, teaching the young Banks children the basics of cooking in the process. The book includes recipes.

''Mary Poppins in Cherry Tree Lane'', published 1982

Mary Poppins takes the Banks children on yet another memorable adventure, this time on the magical Midsummer's Eve. All kinds of strange things can happen, and even mythical figures can descend from the heavens. At the back of the book is a list of the herbs that are mentioned in the story, with their botanical, local and Latin names.

''Mary Poppins and the House Next Door'', published 1988

The residents of Cherry Tree Lane are distressed to learn that their beloved Number Eighteen, an empty house for which each neighbour has created an imaginary, wished-for tenant, is about to be occupied by Mr. Banks' childhood governess, Miss Andrew, otherwise known as "the Holy Terror". Her dreaded arrival brings a pleasant surprise as well, for Luti, a boy from the South Seas, has accompanied her as both servant and student. Delighted by the prospect of a new friend, Jane and Michael are frustrated by the restrictions that the hypochondriacal Miss Andrew has placed on Luti, who grows more and more homesick for his family and tropical surroundings. When the call in his heart to return home becomes more than he can bear, it is Mary Poppins who makes the trip possible by means of a visit to the Man in the Moon.

Adaptations

Due to the series' popularity, there were several adaptations of the books to various media.

Main characters

Mary Poppins

Mary Poppins is a magical nanny who sweeps into the Banks home on Cherry Tree Lane and takes charge of the Banks children. She never acknowledges her strange and magical powers, and feigns insult when one of the children refers to her previous adventures. She first arrives with her open umbrella when she is blown to Cherry Tree Lane by the East Wind. At the end of the first book, she opens up her umbrella to the West Wind and lets it lift her up into the air and away from the children. In the 1964 Disney film of the same name, she is portrayed by Julie Andrews; in the 2018 sequel ''Mary Poppins Returns'', she is portrayed by Emily Blunt; in the 2004 BBC Radio 4 drama, she is played by Juliet Stevenson; in the 2004 West End musical adaptation, she is portrayed by Laura Michelle Kelly.

Banks children

In the books there are five Banks children: Jane (the eldest), Michael, fraternal twins John and Barbara, and Annabel. Jane and Michael are the eldest and go on most of the magical adventures with Mary Poppins; they are the most prominent and vocal of the Banks children. John and Barbara are toddler twins who only start going on adventures in the second book. Annabel is the youngest and is born midway through the second book. Though the ages of the children are never made explicit (and, like Mary Poppins, they do not appear to age over the course of the series), Jane is estimated to be around seven years old in ''Mary Poppins'' with Michael being a year or two younger, and John and Barbara have their first birthday in the same book and appear to be around two years old when Annabel is born. Only Jane and Michael appear in the film and stage musical. In the film they are portrayed by Karen Dotrice and Matthew Garber; in the 2018 sequel, they are portrayed as adults by Emily Mortimer and Ben Whishaw; in the 2004 BBC Radio 4 drama, they are played by Sophie Stuckey and Jonathan Bee. John and Annabel appear in the 2018 film ''Mary Poppins Returns'', but are presented as being Michael's children, rather than his siblings. Michael also has a third child in the film named Georgie (most likely named after Michael's father).

Mr Banks

George Banks is Mary Poppins's employer. He works at a bank and lives at 17 Cherry Tree Lane with his wife and their children. In the books, he is rarely present, but is gruffly loving of his wife and children. In the film, he has a more prominent role as a cross man preoccupied with work who wants order and largely ignores his children and wife, but later on his attitude changes for the better, as Bert convinces him that while he focuses on his life at the bank, his whole life, including his children's childhood, is passing him by. Nothing of this is so much as mentioned in the book. His role in the stage musical is similar to the film, but he has an additional back-story drawn from the original books, in which he was ignored by his parents and tormented by a cruel governess during his childhood. In the 1964 Disney film, he is portrayed by David Tomlinson; in the 2004 Radio 4 drama, he is played by David Timson.

He is often consumed in his work and, throughout the film, was shown to neglect his children. But he was not a static character; his attitude changed throughout the film to finally becoming the type of affectionate father that most children would wish for, shown most prominently with him fixing his children's kite and taking them to go fly it outside. Though this is not the character specifically created in the books, he is represented well. Though he came across as brash and harsh and remained that way in the books, Disney felt that would be a pessimistic persona to portray.

The title of the film ''Saving Mr. Banks'' (as explained in dialogue at the film's climax) arises from the interpretation that Mary Poppins is actually not there to save the children, but to save their father. The film surmises that P.L. Travers wrote the Mary Poppins novels as a form of atonement for her inability as a child to save her own father from his own flaws. This theme of fatherly salvation notably formed the basis of the major dramatic moments in the 1964 film, including the climax involving Mr Banks's sombre nighttime walk through London.

Mrs Banks

Mrs Banks is married to George Banks and is the mother of Jane, Michael, John, Barbara, and Annabel Banks. Her first name is never revealed in the books, but was given as Winifred in the film and the stage musical. In the books, she is the struggling mistress of the Banks household, and is easily intimidated by Mary Poppins, who treats her with thinly veiled contempt. In the film, she is a strident suffragette (in public; at home, she is the typical Edwardian wife) who is treated somewhat satirically. The reason she was made into a suffragette in the film was to explain why she sometimes did not have time to look after her children. In the stage musical, she is a former actress who is under constant pressure from her husband as she struggles to enter his social circle. In the 1964 Disney film, she is portrayed by Glynis Johns; in the 2004 Radio 4 drama, she is played by Deborah Berlin.

Park Keeper

The Park Keeper is a prominent supporting character in the books. He frequently appears in scenes taking place in the park, one of Mary's favourite places to take the children. He is very particular and obsessive about the Park's Bye-Laws and such. He is very confused and sometimes annoyed by Mary Poppins's magical adventures but has learnt to accept that there are things about her he will never understand. He secretly yearns for his childhood, and finds any opportunity to join in with the Banks children's games such as kite flying and fireworks. His full name is Fred Smith and his mother is the Bird Woman. He does not appear in the 1964 film, but he does appear in the stage musical. In the musical, he sings the song "Let's Go Fly a Kite" with Bert and the children. He appeared in the 2018 sequel, played by Steve Nicolson.

Bert the Matchman

The Matchman or "Bert" is Mary Poppins's friend. In the books, when the weather is fine, he is a screever, but when it rains he instead sells matches and is thus known as the Matchman. Mary Poppins sometimes goes on outings with Bert on her Second Thursday off. Bert is also friendly with the Banks children and the other residents of Cherry Tree Lane. As well as match selling and street art, he has an occasional third occupation – busking with his hurdy-gurdy. In the 1964 Disney film, Bert (portrayed by Dick Van Dyke) is a combination of the Matchman and the Sweep and has a more prominent role in the children's adventures, including taking care of Mary's Uncle Albert and giving Mr. Banks sensible parenting advice. In the stage musical he is a similar role, acting as a narrator and faraway friend of Mary and the Banks children. In the 2018 film, Bert's apprentice Jack says that Bert had earned enough money to leave London and is now off travelling the world.

Miss Lark

Miss Lucinda Lark lives next door to 17 Cherry Tree Lane. She is very rich and lives in a large mansion. She is the owner of two dogs: Andrew and Willoughby. Originally she only had Andrew, who is pure-bred, but the mongrel Willoughby joined the family at Andrew's request (the dog language translated to English by Mary Poppins). Lucinda appears throughout the books and is usually appalled by the magical antics of Mary Poppins. The most iconic thing about her is her obsession with her dogs and has been known to bring them to the hairdresser's and even buy them fur coats and boots. She appears in the film and stage musical as a minor role. In both the film and musical she only has one dog. In the film she only has Andrew, while in the musical she only has Willoughby. Willoughby also appears in the sequel. In the first film, she is portrayed by Marjorie Bennett, while she is played by Sudha Bhuchar in the sequel, and Willoughby is played by animal actor "Ash".

Admiral Boom

Admiral Boom also lives along Cherry Tree Lane. He is a former Naval Officer, but now lives in a house shaped like a ship with his wife Mrs Boom and his assistant, Binnacle, who is a former pirate. He is remarkable for his use of colourful sailor's language, although, as the books are intended for children, he never actually swears; his favourite interjection is "Blast my gizzard!" In the film he is a neighbour of the Banks family who fires his cannon to mark the time; this version of the Admiral is far less salty and more of a proper, "Shipshape and Bristol fashion