The horrible side to York
Lauren Carter speaks to children’s author Terry Deary about his new book and finds out all the details about his run-ins with the History department
The Horrible Histories series is unlikely to be found in the JB Morrell. Terry Deary’s work is more of an acquired taste and he readily admits: “‘proper’ historians in universities despise my sort of popular approach.” Nonetheless, outside of the academic environment and away from the watchful eyes of tutors, History students share a secret passion for these children’s books. Most probably wouldn’t have got through the GCSE years without them, and Deary’s latest offering, Horrible Histories of York, will no doubt help with one or two dissertations.
Having already completed the Horrible Histories of London and Glasgow, Deary saw York as “a natural choice”. He explains: “As a kid in Sunderland schools I used to be taken to York and bored senseless with the dross my teachers fed me. I never realised quite how fascinating and gruesome the tales about York really are - if I’d been told some of them then the trips wouldn’t have been so grim. This is my gift to today’s children in the hope they don’t have to suffer as I did.”
The book crams in nearly two thousand years of York’s history, from the Roman and Viking invasions to the War of the Roses, as well as noting infamous York residents such as Guy Fawkes and Dick Turpin. According to Deary, this is “History with the nasty bits left in” and York’s past certainly provides some good material.
“If I have a favourite period I guess it’s the Georgian era of Dick Turpin and lots of filth, cruelty, crime and misery.” He quickly adds: “Not that I enjoy filth, cruelty, crime and misery myself, but it makes good reading.”
However, some of York’s past is a bit too horrible, even for the Horrible Histories. Deary explains that his version of the goings-on in Bedlam school - which recalls how a Victorian school master massacred all his pupils and hid their bodies in cupboards - had to be toned down to avoid giving his younger readers a break-down before the age of ten.
Nonetheless, Deary was careful not to bring anything dull into the book, hence no mention of the University. When asked why it was left out, Deary pondered the question and swiftly replied: “The University probably isn’t horrible at all. It is only the students that are horrible - judging from the one I’ve met anyway” (charming).
The University did, however, have some involvement in the book, much to the frustration of Deary: “The publishers use an ‘expert’ to check my text and I think they used a York specialist on this one. His comments showed an utter lack of understanding of what I am trying to do. They were nit-picking and banal and clearly I exposed some of his nasty little prejudices. Generally I avoid the establishment and their narrow views”.
Still, despite the scorn Deary is subjected to from academics, his books practically invented the genre of popular History. The Horrible Histories series started to grace bookshelves in 1993, long before the ‘lets-make-history-accessible’ style of TV programmes. But Deary is quick to argue this point: “I am far too modest, unassuming and shy to ever make such a claim. I’m not trying to influence and invent genres. I simply want to a) entertain people, and b) change the world.”
Although he couldn’t say exactly how he’d change the world, Deary was more than happy to reveal his true opinion of the popular TV History that followed his work: “Sorry but television History is appalling. It is a bunch of posh, supercilious know-alls giving a lecture to the ignorant and unwashed peasants like me. Their authorial voice is ‘I know something you don’t - sit there and listen while I tell you these facts.’ Yawn! Yawn! Yawn! I always hope my authorial voice is ‘hey! You’ll never guess what I found out about this…’”
It is this desire to entertain which Deary stresses throughout the interview. He continually reiterates that he is not an academic but a children’s author and professional actor, and any educational value in his books is simply a by-product of what he’s really trying to do: “My skill is in the re-telling, not the unearthing of stories”.
In actual fact, Deary has a rather dim view of the educational system, and makes every effort in his books to have a dig at school teachers (much to the amusement of many of his younger readers). His views are apparently based on “personal and bitter experience.” He explains, “I don’t enjoy History because my teachers drained all enjoyment out of the subject. It was dictated notes one week then a test to see if we’d learned it the next. They killed History - maybe their ought to be capital punishment for that crime. Certainly they dealt out enough corporal punishment to me over the years.”
The Horrible Histories certainly weren’t designed to make teachers’ jobs any easier, and one of Deary’s main regrets is their growing popularity within the system: “My only sadness is that they are used in schools. I think schools are a waste of space and want to see my books banned from them.”
However, he does try to hinder school projects in any way he possibly can - on his website he says that he won’t help out with school-related work, on the grounds that it means he does all the work “while the teachers put their fat feet on the desk.”
It is this attitude which has made Deary such a hit with children (or, in my case, low-brow adults). From the outset, Deary recalls: “I wanted to write fresh, entertaining and funny stories that people could really enjoy”. He was also inspired by the “drivel” he had to read as a child: “When I was a kid I read books by a dreadful woman called Enid Blyton. All her character were so posh I thought, ‘I could never be like that! I could never write books about children like that because they are rich and go to private schools!’ Hopefully the books I write can be read by anyone, no matter what sort of homes they have or what schools they go to.”
Deary’s formula seems to have worked, and the Horrible Histories have now been translated into thirty different languages and are consistently in the top ten children’s bookseller charts in the UK. In March 2003, he even held all ten positions in the chart. The Daily Telegraph also recently reported that he outsold Enid Blyton four to one, which probably put a smile on his face.
But, whilst Deary claims to write for children, his real fan base seems to lie with students - especially in York. At his recent book-signing in town, groups of students were seen sneaking into the crowd of under-tens and his appearance was a hotly discussed topic in History seminars the following week. Deary reflects on his iconic status with his usual wryness: “I’ve been told students, for many years now, have been fans. I’ve always said they are seriously sad people and a taste for my books just proves my point.”
However, a quick flick through the Horrible Histories of York shows that Deary revels in his adult audience and to pigeon-hole him as a children’s author just doesn’t seem justified. Besides, how could a pre-pubescent possibly appreciate his numerous quips about American tourists?
Deary’s now focusing his talents in television writing and performance and has advised that the Horrible Histories of York is going to be one of the last books in the series. Despite pressure from a certain York student to write a sequel, Deary declined on the basis that “there’s not a lot more horrible to say about York” and also the revelation that he doesn’t actually enjoy writing books: “I love writing two words. ‘The’ and ‘End’. It’s a great feeling to complete a book, to have a letter from a publisher accepting it and seeing it finally in print. But the work of writing it is hard.”
Instead, he’s now working on several TV programmes, including the Twisted Tales series which he dashed off to begin filming on shortly after the interview. He’s promised that his new projects will continue to be just as charming as his books - loved by students, loathed by academics, and, most importantly, not one bit like Simon Schama.
Terry Deary’s latest book, the Horrible Histories of York, is now available in paperback from all good bookshops, priced £4.99, published by Schooltastic. Details can also be found at the official site www.terry-deary.com (well worth visiting, if only for the games.)
