Dennis the Menace Annual facts for kids

The Dennis and Gnasher Annual is a special book that used to come out every year. It was linked to the famous British comic book called The Beano, especially the adventures of Dennis the Menace and his dog, Gnasher. These annuals were usually published in the autumn, just in time for Christmas.

Since 1965, the annuals have had the date of the next year on their cover. For example, a book published in autumn 1965 would say "1966" on it. Before that, they didn't have a date at all.

For many years, until the 2009 edition, these annuals mostly featured stories that had already appeared in The Beano comic. These were usually reprints from about 14 or 15 years before the annual's cover date. They included strips like Dennis the Menace, Gnasher and Gnipper, and sometimes older ones like Gnasher's Tale and Rasher. However, there was always some new material too! The annuals from 2010 and 2011 were different; they had all-new stories that matched the updated style of the Dennis & Gnasher cartoon series shown on CBBC.

The History of Dennis Annuals

At first, a new annual was only published every two years. But after the 1987 annual came out, the publishers decided to make it a yearly tradition. So, the next annual was released in 1988, and they've been coming out every year since then.

How the Name Changed Over Time

The very first annuals were simply called "Dennis the Menace," with the year added later. This name continued until the 1978 book. There was a short break, and the next annual wasn't published until 1982 (for the 1983 edition). From then on, the words "from The Beano" were printed somewhere else on the cover. This was similar to what The Bash Street Kids Annual had been doing for a few years.

The name of the annual changed a few times after that. Sometimes it included "and Gnasher," like on the 1988, 1989, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2007, 2008, and 2009 books. Other times, it had "Book" in the title, such as on the 1991, 1996, 1999, 2001, and 2002 editions.

The annual officially changed its name to Dennis the Menace Annual starting with the 2003 book. It still showed the following year and "from The Beano." However, the 2010 edition was renamed the Dennis & Gnasher Annual to match the new CBBC cartoon. This edition then said "as seen on CBBC" instead of "from The Beano." Sadly, there was no Dennis and Gnasher annual published for 2012.

Looking Back at Early Annuals

It can be tricky to know the exact publication dates for some of the very old annuals because they didn't have dates printed on them. However, we know that the 1956 annual was actually published in the autumn of 1955. Here are some descriptions of what the covers of these early annuals looked like:

• 1956 Annual: The cover showed a big picture of Dennis holding a tin of paint.
• 1958 Annual: Dennis was shown zooming downhill on a go-cart, accidentally knocking over a policeman, a chimney sweep, and a painter!
• 1960 Annual: This cover featured Dennis wearing flippers and swimming underwater. He was using pincers to playfully pinch a swimmer's foot.
• 1962 Annual: Dennis was holding a large cartoon head of himself above his own head. Next to him were five smaller figures, including a policeman and a school teacher.
• 1964 Annual: The cover showed Dennis's head bursting through a black and red paper sheet.