Nigel Molesworth facts for kids
Nigel Molesworth is a funny fictional character. He is supposedly the author of a series of books about life at an English prep school called St Custard's. These books were written by Geoffrey Willans, and they feature amazing cartoon drawings by Ronald Searle.
The idea for the Molesworth books came from Geoffrey Willans. He asked Ronald Searle to draw pictures for a series of books. Willans had been writing a column for Punch magazine. The stories first appeared in a children's magazine called The Young Elizabethan. Ronald Searle wasn't sure about doing another school-based project at first. But he loved the examples Willans showed him. The first book, Down with Skool!, came out in 1953. It became a huge success very quickly!
Contents
Welcome to St Custard's School
Nigel Molesworth is a schoolboy at St Custard's. This is a made-up and very unusual prep school somewhere in England. The school is run by Headmaster Grimes. He is very strict and always looking for ways to make more money. He even has a part-time business selling whelks! Another teacher is Sigismund Arbuthnot, the crazy maths teacher. He often appears as Nigel's enemy in his daydreams.
Who Goes to St Custard's?
Molesworth says St Custard's "was built by a madman in 1836." His classmates include Grabber, the head boy. Grabber's rich father owns a publishing business. There's also Peason, Molesworth's "grate frend." They go on many imaginary space adventures together. Fotherington-Tomas is the school's "sissy." Molesworth 2 is Nigel's annoying younger brother. The school's rivals are Porridge Court. They always beat St Custard's in sports.
Nigel's Unique Spelling
Nigel's spelling is always quite bad in the books. He often spells words the way they sound. Fans find this very charming! His famous phrase, "as any fule kno," is added to many of his statements. This phrase has become well-known even outside the books. You can sometimes see it in British newspapers, usually in a funny way. Even Joanne Rowling, the author of Harry Potter, used this phrase in an essay. She mentioned that she had read the Molesworth books.
The Molesworth Book Series
Here are the books in the series, in the order they were first published:
- Down with Skool! A Guide to School Life for Tiny Pupils and their Parents (1953)
- How to be Topp: A Guide to Sukcess for Tiny Pupils, Including All There is to Kno about Space (1954)
- Whizz for Atomms: A Guide to Survival in the 20th Century for Fellow Pupils, their Doting Maters, Pompous Paters and Any Others who are Interested (1956)
- This book was called Molesworth's Guide to the Atommic Age in the US.
- Back in the Jug Agane (1959)
- The Compleet Molesworth (1958)
- Molesworth (2000 Penguin reprint), ISBN: 0-14-118600-3
These books are part of a British tradition of school stories. These are children's books set in boarding schools. Other famous examples include the Billy Bunter stories and the Harry Potter books. However, the Molesworth books are different. They don't have a continuous story. Instead, they share Molesworth's funny thoughts on many topics. These include school life and reflections on 1950s Britain. He talks about television, space travel, and the atomic age. He also covers timeless topics like Christmas, the French, and "Gurls."
Simon Brett later wrote two more books about an adult Nigel Molesworth:
- Molesworth Rites Again (1983)
- How To Stay Topp (1987)
Main Characters at St Custard's
Here are some of the students and staff you'll meet at St Custard's:
Students
- Nigel Molesworth: He calls himself the "curse of st custards" and the "goriller of 3b."
- Molesworth 2: Nigel's younger brother. Nigel describes him as "uterly wet and a weed."
- Peason: Molesworth's "grate frend." They often invent things together.
- Gillibrand: Another classmate. It's often mentioned that his father is a General.
- Grabber: The school's head boy. He is "captane of everything" and his parents are very rich.
- Basil Fotherington-Tomas: A very goodie-goodie boy. He has curly blond hair and likes to skip around saying, "Hullo clouds, hullo sky."
Staff Members
- Headmaster GRIMES: Headmasters "are always very ferce."
- Sigismund Arbuthnot: The mad maths master.
- The Matron: The nurse who looks after the students.
Many other staff members are not named in the books.
Molesworth in Other Media
In 1987, Nigel Molesworth appeared in a four-part BBC Radio 4 series. It was also called Molesworth. This series showed Molesworth as an adult. He was still surrounded by many characters from his school days. Willie Rushton played Molesworth. Penelope Nice played his wife, Louise. Clive Swift played the older ex-headmaster Grimes.
