Horrid Henry's 20th Birthday, Hay Festival

Little boys get older, but do they get any less horrid? As literature’s favourite boisterous terror Horrid Henry celebrates his 20th year, author Francesca Simon is hosting a mega birthday celebration at the Hay Festival.

The cheeky comic hero has captured the heart of adults and children alike. Selling over 20 million books since 1994, Francesca Simon created a boyish world that is rather more modern than ‘slugs and snails and puppy dog tails’. Instead, Henry inhabits a literary minefield of numbskulls, stink-bombs and food fights. Just like little boys everywhere, he must negotiate the challenges of growing up: yukky girls, like Moody Margaret; crabby class teachers like Miss Battle-Axe; and pretentious siblings like Perfect Peter. Our hero’s high-jinks show no sign of stopping, as the latest novel, Horrid Henry’s Krazy Ketchup, is due to come out this June. So, for kids who are sick of insipid good manners, clamber into the birthday celebrations and cause some havoc that would make Horrid Henry proud.