Horrible Histories

As the Ruthless Romans Horrible Histories and Awful Egyptians invade illustrator Martin Brown at his Dorset studio Poole, Jeremy Miles meets the Blandford Forum artist who helped create this gruesome phenomenon

itting in his studio deep in the Dorset countryside illustrator SMartin Brown tells me he’s a lucky man. He recalls a day, long ago, sitting around an office table with the writer Terry Deary, an editor and art director sketching out plans for a yet to be realised children’s project. It was a bright notion called Horrible Histories. The idea was to package up history in words and drawings in a way that kids would lap-up. How better than to deliver a warts-and-all look at the filth and the fury behind so called civilisation? It would go on to become an astonishing success - first a best-selling series of children’s books and now a BAFTA- laden TV show. This year it won the British Comedy Award for ‘Best Sketch

Show’ – the first time a children’s PHOTO: COURTESY OF SCHOLASTIC comedy show has been nominated, it also “We try to slaughter as many sacred cows as possible.” secured a prime Sunday evening slot on BBC1 with Stephen Fry introducing the pinch myself!” he laughs “When I think million copies worldwide and the best sketches from the first two series. back to how it started. How we said critically acclaimed Birmingham Stage It’s no wonder that Horrible Histories ‘OK, we’ll give it a go and if it works Company productions’ The Ruthless was a big hit at this year’s Proms when maybe we can do some more’. Then Romans and The Awful Egyptians, the show took to the stage Martin was in nearly 20 years later there I am sitting in arrives at Poole’s Lighthouse Arts Centre the 5,000-strong audience loving every the Albert Hall with thousands of people this November. minute of the production. “I had to cheering. It was pretty humbling Like the books they are informing and actually.” Not bad entertaining but tell some thoroughly for a man who unpleasant truths about human beings originally set out to capacity for cruelty in the name of be a cartoonist. advancement. Among those in the Since those early audience at Lighthouse will be Martin days Horrible himself who tells me he’s never actually Histories has seen this particular stage show. “I’ll be become a British there purely as a punter and I’m really institution. The looking forward to seeing them. It’s such books have sold a fun” staggering 20 Australian-born Martin admits his own

58 dorset.greatbritishlife.co.uk Horrible Histories

education in European history was we’re only two hours away “broad but shallow. I’ve learnt so much from London and we’ve got doing this.” Living in the 21st-century some of the best beaches in the amid the delights of rural Dorset is, he country. I’m sure one of these days agrees, a fairly safe position from which the penny’s going to drop and you to view the horrors of the past. He won’t be able to move around moved to the county from North here.” London many years ago “swapping a Martin says that when he first shoebox for a three-bedroom house near moved to Dorset he thought Blandford Forum” to accommodate a he’d be returning to the growing family. It has been home to capital regularly. But it Martin, his wife Sally and two daughters never happened. “I go up Emmy and Bella ever since. for a meeting now and then, He has absolutely no regrets. “I think but I can’t wait to get on this area is one of the best kept secrets in the train and come home. the country, I honestly do. People go past We’re in such an enviable us on the way to Devon and Cornwall. position. People save up all year to come That’s fine, they can just keep going. But on holiday to places like this and we get to live here all year round.” Happily the success of Horrible Histories has ensured that the rural idyll enjoyed by the Brown family continues. Better still, Martin loves the work. “Let’s the books almost as much as the kids. just say I can think of worse ways to earn “They’re very popular with a lot of a living,” he chuckles, admitting that his teachers which is a little dismaying, hopes of being something of a rebel tend particularly for Terry, as we really do try to to be dashed by the fact that teachers love slaughter as many sacred cows as possible.”

The Ruthless Romans intimidating the grotty Celts

dorset.greatbritishlife.co.uk 59 The Awful Egyptians take centre stage

However he agrees that while Horrible Roman’s wiped their bums with a sponge Histories sets out to be “fairly on a stick, but the kids love that kind of disrespectful” the facts are not a million thing. It opens the door to understanding miles from what you get at school, the way these people lived.” they’re just delivered in a slightly Commentating on current debate about different way. “If you were to try and how behaviour in present day society is design a National Curriculum - given the gradually disintegrating, Martin is in no broad strokes of history that you have to doubt that we are living in a very much try and impart - you wouldn’t have a more enlightened society than the one section on the way the Tudors hung their endured by the Romans. backsides over the edge of a bridge to “The fact that riots and looting on our poo into a river or the fact that the streets cause such shock is an indication of how rare such things are. We might marvel at the achievements of the Romans HORRIBLE HISTORIES AT but the fact is they got there by pretty POOLE holastic Entertainment Inc 2011. Artwork © Martin Brown. dubious means. Roman society was built on slavery and the way they treated what Horrible Histories is at Lighthouse in Poole from 22 – 26 November. There are two they called their ‘undesirables’ was different shows: absolutely horrible. Cruelty was normal. Awful Egyptians The Christians were quite literally thrown Learn the real truth behind Tutankhamun to the lions. At least in our society people and his creepy curse and find out the have human rights.” 2 fearsome facts about phabulous pharaohs, mean mummies and gruesome grave robbers. Dare you enter through the Gates of the Afterlife? Beware the Evil Eye of Horus - has it got its eye on you? Tues 22, Thurs 24 & Sat 26 at 7.00pm Weds 23 and Fri 25 at 10.30am Sat 26 at 2.30pm Ruthless Romans Find out how the Romans made murder into a sport in the Colosseum with more fouls than a Premiership football match! Meet evil emperors, killer kings and gory gladiators. Feel what it was like to be a Roman soldier, fighting fierce battles against hordes of grotty Celts – but watch out for those flaming arrows whizzing past your head! Weds 23 and Fri 25 at 7.00pm Horrible History of Britain and Ireland Thurs 24 and Sat 26 at 10.30am is published by Scholastic at £12.99 For tickets call 0844 406 8666 or go to Find out more at lighthousepoole.co.uk

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