Oor Wullie facts for kids

Oor Wullie (which means "Our Willie" in Scots) is a super popular Scottish comic strip. You can find it in The Sunday Post newspaper. The main character is a boy named Wullie. "Wullie" is a common nickname for boys called William in Scotland.

Wullie is easy to spot! He has spiky hair, wears dungarees, and always has an upturned bucket. He uses this bucket as his favorite seat. Most of the comic strips, especially since 1937, begin and end with Wullie sitting on his bucket. The comic's art style has stayed pretty much the same since 1940. A famous saying about him is: "Oor Wullie! Your Wullie! A'body's Wullie!" This means "Our Willie! Your Willie! Everybody's Willie!"

The comic was created by Thomson editor R. D. Low. It was first drawn by cartoonist Dudley D. Watkins. The very first Oor Wullie strip appeared on March 8, 1936. Dudley D. Watkins drew the comic until he passed away in 1969. After that, new artists like Tom Lavery, Peter Davidson, and Robert Nixon took over. Ken H. Harrison drew the strip from 1989 to 1997, then Peter Davidson returned. Today, the writer is Morris Heggie, who used to edit Dandy comic.

Meet Oor Wullie and His Friends

Wullie's hometown was not named at first, but since the late 1990s, it's been called Auchenshoogle. Wullie and his friends love to explore the streets of their town. Sometimes, Wullie is shown at school, which he finds a bit boring! His teacher calls him "William," and any praise from her makes him feel super embarrassed.

Wullie's adventures often involve silly plans to get rich quick. These plans usually lead to some kind of trouble! This often makes his parents, Ma and Pa, feel a bit worried. It also causes problems for the local policeman, P.C. Murdoch, who is often Wullie's "arch-nemesis."

Wullie's gang includes himself, Fat Boab (which means Fat Bob), Wee Eck (Little Alex), 'Soapy' Soutar, and Primrose Paterson. Primrose is a girl who likes Wullie, but Wullie often doesn't want her in the gang. However, she's usually much better than him at games like football or climbing trees! Wullie says he's the leader, but the others often disagree. The gang used to meet in a wooden shed. Now, they meet in an old caravan called Holly Rude. Wullie also has a pet mouse named Jeemy and a pet dog named Harry.

Wullie's age changes a bit in the comics. In the early strips, he looked about 5 or 6. Later, he looked around 10 or 11. More recently, he seems a little younger again.

Oor Wullie Christmas Annuals

Since 1940, Oor Wullie strips have also been published in special Christmas books called annuals. These annuals came out every other year, switching with "The Broons," another comic from D. C. Thomson. No annuals were published during World War II, between 1943 and 1946. Since 2015, both Oor Wullie and The Broons annuals are published every year.

In 2006, a copy of the very first The Broons annual was released. The next year, a copy of the first Oor Wullie annual came out. This celebrated the comic strip's 70th birthday! Since 1996, which was the comic's 60th anniversary, D.C. Thomson has also published books that combine strips from both The Broons and Oor Wullie. Sometimes, older stories are used again in newer annuals. For example, a "twin cousin" story from the 2018 annual was first seen in the 1950s!

Oor Wullie's Bucket Trails

To celebrate Oor Wullie's 80th birthday in 2016, a huge public art project took place! Fifty-five large, decorated sculptures of Oor Wullie were placed around Dundee. Another 13 sculptures traveled around Scotland for eight weeks. School children in Dundee also designed 29 smaller sculptures as part of an education program. There were also two smaller community sculptures.

This "Bucket Trail" was the biggest public art project ever in Scotland at that time. It ran for two months, starting on June 27. In September, the sculptures were sold at an auction, raising £883,000! This money went to the Archie Foundation, a charity raising funds for a new children's hospital. The event brought many visitors to Dundee, and local people loved the project. Before the auction, a special farewell event in Dundee showed 95 Oor Wullie statues. About 20,000 people came to see them! Each statue had a unique design. For example, one was called "Oor Bowie," inspired by David Bowie. Another was a spaceman, inspired by Tim Peake. Famous artists, like John Lowrie Morrison, also designed statues.

In 2019, "Oor Wullie's BIG Bucket Trail 2019" was launched. Two hundred artistic statues were placed in cities across Scotland until August 30. For example, a statue wearing Willie Miller's football kit was in Aberdeen. This trail helped raise money for children's hospitals in Edinburgh and Glasgow, and for the Archie Foundation.

Images for kids

• 

  Oor Wullie-themed graffiti in Glasgow

• 

  Oor Wullie statue in Dundee

• 

  An Oor Wullie costume as part of The Big Walk