William and his 'Outlaws', (Ginger, Henry and Douglas, and the only acceptable female almost-outlaw, Joan Clive, along with the regularly recurring doggy hero Jumble), inhabit a lost era, where children could roam without coming to harm, or doing any real damage. Whilst you may feel that William did not change over the years, a closer look at the illustrations will show that he followed the fashions of the times, and in later reprints the pictures were updated. Henry was not the first to illustrate William though - the first published story 'Rice Mould' was illustrated by Louise Hocknell but her pictures just did not do justice to the disreputable character of William and Thomas Henry took over. He is instantly recognisable thanks to the artist, Thomas Henry, who drew the pictures from the beginning until his death in 1964, although he did not meet the author until 1954.

Eternally 11 years old, living in a 1920-30's period, but managing to meet up with the likes of pop stars and gangsters and to encounter everything from space travel to fascism, he remains strangely real. She penned in excess of 40 non-William books but that recognition had still eluded her when she died in January 1969. William was her big success and the character she is famous for, but she desperately wanted to be recognised as a serious author. Miss Lamburn taught until 1923 when she contracted polio, and, as a result, left teaching and took up writing full time.

A further 40 stories appeared, until October 1922 when William transferred to 'Happy Magazine', where he appeared in nearly every edition until February 1934. Be that as it may, 'William' was a great success, boosting the circulation of Home Magazine. Why it should have been such a success is really rather a mystery, as the magazine was aimed at women, offering a mix of romantic short stories and serials.

degree at London University and then followed in her father's footsteps, becoming a Senior Classics Mistress at her old school, and then moving to Bromley High School for Girls, where she taught until 1923.ĭuring her spare time, and during the school holidays, she started to write, and created eleven year old William Brown, whose escapades first appeared in Home Magazine in February 1919. Born Richmal Crompton Lamburn in Bury, Lancashire in November 1890, she took a B.A. The daughter of a curate hardly seems the most likely candidate to write about a young scallywag, roaming the countryside with his band of 'Outlaws', but that is what Richmal Crompton found herself doing.

Just william and richmal