Who Created The Little Miss Characters?

Great British Life reports that “Mr. Tickle” was Roger Hargreaves’ first book in the series, and he penned five more in the following years. Adam revealed in an interview that his dad wrote the books very fast, often in a single day, and he wanted them to take just five minutes to read, since he created “bedtime stories for weary daddies.” Mr. Men Little Miss reports that the 1971 book was a smash hit, selling one million copies in the first three years of publication. 

In the 1970s, Hargreaves agreed to license the characters, per Great British Life. The colorful blobs were soon featured on everything from baby bibs to adult footwear. And in 1974, Hargreaves brought his characters to the small screen with a television show — the colorful gang lived in Misterland, and had two seasons’ worth of adventures (via IMDb). They then appeared in British newspaper comic strips, and in 1979, an album called “Mr. Men Songs” was released as well. 

By the 1980s, you could spot the Little Miss and Mr. Men on Glasgow’s red double-decker busses. And Hargreaves was once again inspired by his family when he drew the Little Miss Twins in 1984, after his own twin daughters Sophie and Amelia.

Per The New York Times, the creation of the Little Miss and Mr. characters didn’t stop after Roger Hargreaves tragically died of a stroke in 1988. Instead, the drawings remained a family business. 

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