The Lost Diaries of Nigel Molesworth

by Willans, Geoffrey; Meyer, Uli; Brandreth, Gyles

• ISBN13: 9781912740161
• ISBN10: 1912740168
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2023-01-01
• Publisher: Korero Press

Summary

Nigel Molesworth, the curse of St. Custard’s school, is known to his huge army of fans through Geoffrey Willans' four books Down with Skool!, How to be Topp, Whizz for Atomms and Back in the Jug Agane, first published between 1953 and 1958, and illustrated by Ronald Searle.

Much less famous are the Molesworth diaries that appeared in the magazine Punch between August 1939 and December 1942.

This volume is an opportunity to discover a slightly different Molesworth – less philosophical than the boy portrayed in the books, but equally as sardonic, knowing and cynical. The diaries are an introduction to the world and mind of Molesworth, and as such are essential reading for Molesworth fans – all of whom are, of course, “conoisuers of prose and luvers of literature”.

Author Biography

Geoffrey Willans was a former schoolmaster who served in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve during World War II, after which he became a full-time author and journalist before his death at the tragically early age of 47. He is best remembered for his books about Nigel Molesworth, the curse of St. Custard, which were illustrated by Ronald Searle.

Uli Meyer, a life-long fan of Ronald Searle, is a filmmaker, designer and animator. With the master’s blessing he has animated several of Searle’s characters and, together with Lupus Film London, has developed a feature adaptation of Molesworth.

Gyles Daubeney Brandreth is an English writer, broadcaster, actor, and former politician. After an education at the University of Oxford, he began a career in the media and has worked as a theatre producer, journalist, author and publisher, as well as becoming a television presenter.

Robert J. Kirkpatrick was educated during the 1960s at a boarding school in Staffordshire before embarking on a long career as a social worker and then a welfare rights adviser. He is also the author of several books – on boys' school stories, the history of penny dreadfuls and boys' story papers, and the publishers and authors of cheap Victorian literature.

Table of Contents

Foreword Introduction The Author The Diaries What Happen Next Readership Two Schools Criticism Editor’s Note THE DIARIES OF NIGEL MOLESWORTH As published in Punch, 1939–1942 1939 9 August: My Sumer Diary 27 December: My Diary of the War 1940 21 February: Molesworth the Good 10 April: Molesworth Detective 15 May: Molesworth and the Wicked Grandmother 3 July: Molesworth the Problem Child 20 November: Molesworth and the Battle of Britain 5 February: Another Slice of Molesworth 1941 2 July: Molesworth Excelsior 6 August: Molesworth Madcap 27 August: Molesworth: Man or Beast? 24 September: Molesworth at Goste Grange 22 October: Molesworth of Red Gulch 10 December: Molesworth the Fashionplate 24 December: Molesworth of the Remove 1942 18 March: Molesworth the Dog Fancier 20 May: Molesworth and the Domestic Problem 29 July: Molesworth’s Jolliest Term 21 October: Molesworth Goes Rustic 9 December: Molesworth or Little by Little