When was the first Worst Witch published?
Harry Potter influences and analogues
Many critics have noted that Jill Murphy's "The Worst Witch" series (first published in 1974 by Allison & Busby), is set in a school for girls, "Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches", reminiscent of Hogwarts. The story concerns an awkward pupil at a boarding-school for witches, who faces a scheming rival student. Her professors include a kindly and elderly headmistress and a bullying, raven-haired potions teacher. Murphy has commented on her frustration at constant comparisons between her work and "Harry Potter": "It's irritating … everyone asks the same question and I even get children writing to ask me whether I mind about the Hogwarts school of witchcraft and pointing out similarities. Even worse are reviewers who come across my books, or see the TV series, and, without taking the trouble to find out that it's now over quarter of a century since I wrote my first book, make pointed remarks about 'clever timing' – or say things like 'the Worst Witch stories are not a million miles from J K Rowling's books'. The implications are really quite insulting!"
List of The Worst Witch characters
Maud Spellbody is first introduced as Mildred's best friend. She breaks off her friendship with Mildred in "The Worst Witch Strikes Again" after growing jealous of Mildred's apparent friendship with the new girl, Enid Nightshade. She later reverts her friendship to Mildred after Ethel locks them in a store cupboard and makes friends with Enid. She is short and chubby with glasses and hair worn in bunches (in A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch she wore pigtails and in "The Worst Witch Saves the Day" she has curly bunches instead of straight ones). She is fiercely loyal to Mildred and Enid and has stood up to Ethel many times, most notably in "The Worst Witch All at Sea" where she reprimands Ethel about eavesdropping on a conversation between her and Enid about Mildred acting strangely.
Wendy the Good Little Witch
Wendy was introduced as a back-up feature as well as a companion for Casper in "Casper the Friendly Ghost" #20, May 1954. Casper met and befriended her after stopping a major battle between the witches & the ghosts. Soon, she was trialed in Harvey Hits, starting with #7. After a total of six appearances, she received her own title, "Wendy the Good Little Witch", in 1960. Other ancillary titles featuring the pleasant young witch include "Wendy Witch World" (October 1961 to September 1974), and "Casper and Wendy" (September 1972 to November 1973). Another "Wendy the Good Little Witch" comic ran from April 1991 to August 1994, and a three-issue "Wendy the Good Little Witch and New Kids on the Block" saw print in 1991.
Connie Willis
Willis's first published story was "The Secret of Santa Titicaca" in "Worlds of Fantasy", Winter 1970 (December). At least seven stories followed (1978–81) before her debut novel, "Water Witch" by Willis and Cynthia Felice, published by Ace Books in 1982. After receiving a National Endowment for the Arts grant that year, she left her teaching job and became a full-time writer.
The Witch (short story)
"The Witch" was first published on 8 March 1886 by "Novoye Vremya" (Issue No. 3600). It made its way into the 1887 collection "In Twilight" (В сумерках), to be reproduced, unchanged, in all its 13 editions (1888–1899). While revising the story for it, Chekhov omitted some details which many of his correspondents referred to as exceedingly naturalistic. He returned to the original version while preparing the text for the Volume 3 of his Collected Works, published by Adolf Marks in 1899–1901.
The Worst Witch (1998 TV series)
On 2 November 2014, it was announced that a new series was in development with the BBC.
The Witch's Tales
"The Witch's Tale" was a radio program that began on American radio in May 1931. A weekly anthology show, it was the first radio horror program, and soon became quite popular. In 1936, the magazine "The Witch's Tales" appeared as a companion to it, perhaps inspired by "The Shadow", a successful pulp magazine which had also been launched as the companion of a radio program of the same name. "The Witch's Tales" was published by The Carwood Publishing Co., a small and relatively inexperienced firm. The named editor of the magazine was Alonzo Deen Cole, who wrote the radio episodes, but the editorial work was actually done by Tom Chadburn. Having both a pulp magazine and radio show act as vehicles for Cole's work is an early example of the 21st century's media industry's approach, with content tied together across more than one media platform, but although Street & Smith demonstrated that this could be done successfully for "The Shadow", Carwood did little to promote the radio show in the magazine, probably because of their inexperience. Only one more issue appeared, the following month; it is unlikely that the publisher could have received sales data on the first issue by that time, so there may have been reasons other than poor sales for the magazine's short run, perhaps including weak financing and distribution.
The Worst Witch
"A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch" () was published in 1982. It features Ethel Hallow's little sister, Sybil Hallow, and her friend Clarice Crow.
Two Witches
Two Witches is a gothic rock band from Finland, formed in 1987. As with several other late 1980s bands (like Dream Theater and Nosferatu), Two Witches started basing the main part of their appearances and lyrics on the vampire imagery. The group was founded by Jyrki Witch and Anne Nurmi, who in 1993 left the band to start a professional relationship with Tilo Wolff and his group Lacrimosa. Their last work is the album "Goodevil", published in 2014.
The Worst Witch
"The Worst Witch and the Wishing Star" (Scholastic UK, ; another(?), ) was released by Scholastic UK on 3 October 2013.
The Worst Witch
The novel begins with Mildred Hubble and the upcoming traditional assembly where all of the first-years are given their own black cats that they will teach to ride on their broomsticks with them. Unlike the other girls, who receive black kittens, Mildred receives a tabby cat, which she simply calls Tabby. The kitten is unable to sit on a broomstick, so Mildred carries Tabby in her bag. Miss Hardbroom disapproves and Mildred has to stop. Afterwards, another witch called Ethel Hallow teases Mildred about it, and dares her to turn her into a frog. Mildred loses her temper and turns Ethel into a pig instead.
A Wizard of Earthsea
"A Wizard of Earthsea" was first published in 1968 by Parnassus Press in Berkeley, a year before "The Left Hand of Darkness", Le Guin's watershed work. It was a personal landmark for Le Guin, as it represented her first attempt at writing for children; she had written only a handful of other novels and short stories prior to its publication. The book was also her first attempt at writing fantasy, rather than science-fiction. "A Wizard of Earthsea" was the first of Le Guin's books to receive widespread critical attention, and has been described as her best known work, as part of the Earthsea series. The book has been released in numerous editions, including an illustrated Folio Society edition released in 2015. It was also translated into a number of other languages. An omnibus edition of all of Le Guin's Earthsea works was released on the 50th anniversary of the publication of "A Wizard of Earthsea" in 2018.
The Worst Witch
The school year is divided into two terms: the Winter term (September–January) and the Summer term (March–July), with a month's holiday between them. Students starts at Cackle's at the age of 12, and finish at the age of 17, for a total of five school years. The students arrive at the start of the term by flying broomsticks, except for the new first years, who walk through walker’s gate as they can’t fly yet. Halfway through the first term, the first years are each presented with a black kitten- Mildred receives a grey-and-black tabby cat as they apparently ran out of purely black cats- which they teach to ride the broomstick. The first book postulates that the cats weren't for any practical purpose except to keep tradition going, and in "Wishing Star", a group of elder witches note that there is no restriction on what animal a witch must have as her flight companion, with cats only being traditional as they are discreet and easy to care for, which leads to Mildred being permitted to fly with her dog, Star, after he shows greater broom aptitude than her cat Tabby. At the end of the first year, each pupil receives a copy of "The Popular Book of Spells", a three-inch thick volume bound in black leather. This was not really to be used, as they already had paperback editions for the classroom, but like the cats, it's another piece of tradition. At the end of the fifth and final year, students sit the exams for the W.H.C. (Witches' Higher Certificate), and most pupils were awarded with the certificate.
The Worst Witch
In the later books Miss Hardbroom's humanity comes through on occasion, in incidents such as her accident in "The Worst Witch All at Sea", the restoring of Mildred's hair to its rightful length in "The Worst Witch Saves the Day", and her admitting of her error of judgment at the end of "The Worst Witch to the Rescue".
The Worst Witch
Miss Cackle has an evil twin sister named Agatha Cackle, who is bitterly jealous of her position of authority at the Academy. In the first of the series, Agatha and her coven of rebellious witches plotted to overthrow Miss Cackle and turn her, the staff, and students into frogs as they slept. Mildred caught them as they brewed their invisibility potion, by turning them into snails and taking them to the school to show Miss Cackle. Ashamed that her own sister would break the Witches' Code, she ordered Agatha to accept defeat and live the code like all decent witches. Agatha reluctantly co-operated. She tries to take over again at the end of series 1, by pretending to be Miss Cackle and dragging Mildred out of the classroom by her ear.
The Worst Journey in the World
In 1994 "The Worst Journey in the World" was published as the first numerical entry in the Picador Travel Classics. The July/August 2001 issue of "National Geographic Adventure" listed "The 100 Best Adventure Books of All Time", with "The Worst Journey in the World" named first.
The New Worst Witch
The New Worst Witch is a British CITV television series about a group of young witches at a Witch Academy. It ran for 2 series from 2004–2007. The series was a spinoff from "The Worst Witch" which ran from 1998 to 2001.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
Appearances in the books:
The Worst Witch All at Sea
The Worst Witch
In 2004, a new series based on the 1998 series was made, entitled "The New Worst Witch". It centred on the adventures of Mildred's equally bungling cousin, Henrietta "Hettie" Hubble, played by Alice Connor, also set at Cackle's Academy.
The Worst Witch
"The Worst Witch Saves the Day" () was published in 2005. It features Agatha Cackle disguised as new teacher Miss Granite.
Deborah Harkness
In 2011, Harkness published her first work of fiction, "A Discovery of Witches". The first novel in the "All Souls" trilogy, "A Discovery of Witches" is a historical fiction novel that tells the story of a modern-day witch who inadvertently calls up an ancient enchanted manuscript at Oxford University's Bodleian Library thereby attracting the unwelcome notice of a host of magical creatures who live among humans, including other witches, daemons, and a 1,500-year-old French vampire. The novel debuted at number two on "The New York Times" Best Seller hardcover fiction list, and has been sold in at least 34 countries. The book was called "a sophisticated fairy tale for adults" by the "San Antonio Express-News". The second novel in the series, "Shadow of Night", was published a year later, becoming a number one success on "The New York Times" Best Seller list. The third novel in the series is called "The Book of Life". The book was published on July 15, 2014 in hardback, e-book, and audiobook in the US, UK, Canada, and Ireland.
Witches (Discworld)
Starting with "Equal Rites" in 1987, the major novels featuring the witches are:
List of The Worst Witch episodes
"The Worst Witch" is a British ITV television series about a group of young witches at a Magic Academy. The series stars Georgina Sherrington and Felicity Jones, and is based on "The Worst Witch" books by Jill Murphy. It aired for a total of three series between 1998 and 2001 before being followed by "Weirdsister College". Most episodes revolved around the school, following the adventures of Mildred and her friends. The series was later followed by "The New Worst Witch", which ran for two series and chronicled the experiences of Mildred's younger cousin Hettie as she attended the school. The series was rebooted in 2017 as "The Worst Witch", a co-production between CBBC, ZDF and Netflix.
A Witch Shall be Born
The story was first published in the December 1934 issue of "Weird Tales". The first reprint followed in 1949, when the story was published in the digest anthology "Avon Fantasy Reader" #10. The novella was the cover story and main feature of both publications.
I Married a Witch
The novel upon which the film is based was mainly written by Thorne Smith, who died in 1934. His papers included an unfinished novel entitled "The Passionate Witch". Then three-quarters complete, its resolution was written by his friend Norman Matson and was published in July 1941. The book became a best seller.
Georgina Sherrington
Georgina Sherrington (born 26 July 1985) is an English actress best known for her portrayal of the character of Mildred Hubble in the children's series "The Worst Witch" (1998–2001), as well as the spin-off series "Weirdsister College - The further Adventures of The Worst Witch (2001)", a British/Canadian co-production between ITV and TV Ontario, screened on HBO in North America, ABC in Australia, and on various other networks worldwide. In 2000 she won a Young Artist Award for "Best Performance in a TV Comedy Series - Leading Young Actress" for her work in "The Worst Witch".
Conjure Wife
"Conjure Wife" was originally published in the April 1943 volume of "Unknown Worlds". An "expanded and revised" version was published by Twayne Publishers in its "Witches Three" anthology in 1952, then issued as a stand-alone novel in 1953. The latter version has been reprinted many times, in both hardcover and paperback editions, by a variety of publishers, including Ace Books, Tom Doherty Associates, Penguin Books, and Award Publications.
Formicarius
The Formicarius, written 1436-1438 by Johannes Nider during the Council of Basel and first printed in 1475, is the second book ever printed to discuss witchcraft (the first book being "Fortalitium Fidei"")". Nider dealt specifically with witchcraft in the fifth section of the book. Unlike his successors, he did not emphasize the idea of the Witches' Sabbath and was skeptical of the claim that witches could fly by night. With over 25 manuscript copies from fifteenth and early sixteenth century editions from the 1470s to 1692, the "Formicarius" is an important work for the study of the origins of the witch trials in Early Modern Europe, as it sheds light on their earliest phase during the first half of the 15th century.
The Worst Witch
The book deals with Mildred's graduation at the end of her fourth year. Its writing was delayed when Murphy underwent cancer treatment.
The Witch (play)
The Witch is a Jacobean play, a tragicomedy written by Thomas Middleton. The play was acted by the King's Men at the Blackfriars Theatre. It is thought to have been written between 1613 and 1616; it was not printed in its own era, and existed only in manuscript until it was published by Isaac Reed in 1778.
Jim Butcher
"Dead Beat", released on May 3, 2005, was the first hardback release in the series by Roc. The first printing of 15,000 copies sold out in three days, and the book was immediately reprinted. A second omnibus edition, titled "Wizard by Trade" and containing "Summer Knight" and "Death Masks", appeared in early 2006, followed by "Proven Guilty" on May 2, 2006, the same day as the paperback edition of "Dead Beat". "Proven Guilty" quickly climbed to #21 on the New York Times Best Seller List and #91 on the USA Today list. A third omnibus release from the Science Fiction Book Club entitled "Wizard at Large" and containing "Blood Rites" and "Dead Beat" was released in November 2006.
Blair Witch
A series of eight young adult books entitled "The Blair Witch Files" were released by Random subsidiary Bantam from 2000 to 2001. The books center on Cade Merill, a fictional cousin of Heather Donahue, who investigates phenomena related to the Blair Witch in attempt to discover what really happened to Heather, Mike, and Josh.In August 1999, Oni Press released a one-shot comic promoting the first film, simply titled "The Blair Witch Project". Written by Jen Van Meter and drawn by Bernie Mireault, Guy Davis, and Tommy Lee Edwards, the comic featured three short stories elaborating on the mythology of the Blair Witch. In mid-2000, the same group worked on a four-issue series called "The Blair Witch Chronicles".
The Witch of Edmonton
Written and first acted in 1621, the play was not published until 1658. It was entered into the Stationers' Register on 21 May that year; the edition that followed was issued by the bookseller Edward Blackmore. The title page of the first edition attributes the play to "divers well-esteemed Poets; William Rowley, Thomas Dekker, John Ford, &c." Scholars have generally ignored the "et cetera" and assigned the play to the three named playwrights—though a few have noted that the three writers were working with John Webster at the time, on "Keep the Widow Waking," and have suggested that the "&c." might stand for Webster.
The Worst Witch
In the first book of the series, it is revealed without explanation that Ethel and Mildred were enemies prior to the story. Ethel takes pleasure in taunting Mildred about her inability to train her cat into riding a broomstick, and Mildred responds by turning her into a pig. From then on Mildred and Ethel resent each other, and Ethel vows to get Mildred expelled. So far she has been unsuccessful. In the first five books she appears to have no friends, although her young sister, Sybil, makes an appearance in "A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch". A friend of Ethel's, Drusilla, makes a brief appearance in "The Worst Witch All at Sea" and later plays a bigger part in "The Worst Witch to the Rescue", where she hides Mildred's tortoise up a tree. Ethel is Mildred's arch-enemy.
Max Gladstone
Gladstone's newest serial, "The Witch Who Came in From the Cold", co-created with Lindsay Smith, launched in January 2016 from Serial Box. The serial, written by Gladstone, Smith, Cassandra Rose Clarke, Ian Tregillis, and Michael Swanwick, is a Cold War supernatural spy thriller set in the 1970s. The first season is set to run for 13 episodes. Simon and Schuster's Saga Press imprint released print collections of the first season of "Bookburners" in January 2017. A collection of season one of "The Witch Who Came in From the Cold" will be published in June 2017.
The Worst Witch (film)
Prism Entertainment released this television movie on VHS on 19 October 1994. It was also released by Reel Corporation PTY LTD. in 2000 Bfs Entertainment re-released this television film on video on 28 December 1999 and on DVD on 24 August 2004.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
Appearances in the books:
A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch (briefly)
A Witch Shall be Born
"A Witch Shall Be Born" is one of the original novellas by Robert E. Howard about Conan the Cimmerian. It was written in only a few days in spring of 1934 and first published in "Weird Tales" in December 1934. A book edition was published in 1975 by Donald M. Grant, Publisher with illustrations by Alicia Austin.
The Worst Witch
In 1986, the first book in the series was converted to a made-for-television film on ITV starring Fairuza Balk, Tim Curry, Diana Rigg, and Charlotte Rae. Though a British film, it also aired in the USA on HBO. The film followed the plot of the first book of the series, portraying the incidents of Mildred turning herself invisible and turning Ethel into a pig, Miss Cackle's evil twin sister Agatha plotting to take over the school, and the Grand Wizard viewing the Halloween Broomstick formation (sabotaged by Ethel's faulty broom she lent to Mildred). It was shot at St. Michael's College in Tenbury Wells. This holiday special later aired on the Disney Channel every year for Halloween until the late 1990s. Its opening song, "Growing Up Isn't Easy", was sung by Bonnie Langford; its music was composed by Charles Strouse and its lyrics were written by Don Black. Their other musical number was "Anything Can Happen on Halloween", sung by Tim Curry. Denis King composed its incidental music score. He also wrote the song "My Little School".
Kate Duchêne
Kate Duchêne ( (born Catherine Anne Purves Duchêne, 5 July 1959) is an English character actress best known for her role as the teacher Miss Hardbroom in the adaptation of the children's books "The Worst Witch".
The Three Witch Maidens
The Three Witch Maidens was originally published in the United Kingdom in 1972, by Methuen & Co. Ltd.. This entry, however, refers to the 1977 paperback version published by The Hamlyn Publishing Group Ltd. under its Beaver Books imprint.
List of The Worst Witch characters
Enid Nightshade is Mildred's second best friend who is introduced in "The Worst Witch Strikes Again" where she has hair "the colour of milky tea" wearing it in a thick plait and having large limbs. Mildred is assigned to look after her by Miss Cackle. Enid at first appears to be dull and boring but turns out to be a wild practical joker/prankster who is more likely to get the three into trouble than Mildred is. She unintentionally causes trouble for Mildred throughout the novel, even to the point where Miss Cackle threatens to expel Mildred if there is any more bother from her. Nevertheless, Enid is just as loyal as Maud is and provides comfort and support to Mildred in the following books of the series. Enid is the second worst witch in the Academy, as both she and Mildred are hapless at broomstick riding and lack the specific requirements to be fully-fledged, efficient witch. In the TV series, Enid was portrayed by Jessica Fox. In the new BBC reboot, Enid was portrayed by newcomer Tamara Smart.
Ethel Hallow is the snobbish, stuck-up, vindictive, and sly rival and enemy of Mildred and her friends. She is favoured by Miss Hardbroom, but appears to have no friends, apart from the rarely seen Drusilla Paddock, who is just as bad as Ethel. Ethel is described as being ""one of those lucky people for whom everything goes right"" which is what caused her to become so snobby. Ethel is tall and thin (just like Mildred) and has mousy-brown hair which she wears in a ponytail with a black hair ribbon. She also has a very spiky nose (pointed out by Maud in "A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch"). Various sources have noted that Ethel's primary weakness as a student is that, which she is able to easily follow the rules and perform new spells after demonstration, she lacks the ability to imagine and improvise when given free rein. This was demonstrated most clearly in "The Worst Witch to the Rescue", when she was the student who performed worst in the art class and had no ideas whatsoever for a summer project to research a spell of the student's choice as she lacked a framework for her to start studying in, in contrast to Mildred who not only performed best in art but had even created a completely new spell for the project.Because of her nasty ways, Ethel is sometimes seen as a bully. Yet her actions are instrumental in setting up the climax of nearly every novel.
In "The Worst Witch" the jinx she puts on the broomstick results in Mildred running away into the woods rather than face Miss Cackle. If Mildred hadn't run away she wouldn't have spotted Agatha Cackle and her coven.
In "The Worst Witch Strikes Again", if she hadn't locked Mildred and Enid in the store cupboard they would never have flown into the Great Hall to do a performance and improve Maud's speech.
In "A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch", if Ethel hadn't turned Mildred into a frog, Mildred wouldn't have discovered Algernon Rowan-Webb and he would have remained a frog for the rest of his life.
In "The Worst Witch All at Sea", if she hadn't set the boat adrift, the legendary treasure chest on Cat's Head Rock wouldn't have been discovered.
In "The Worst Witch Saves the Day", if Ethel hadn't left Tabby on the roof then Miss Granite wouldn't have picked him up and Mildred wouldn't have found out Miss Granite was actually Agatha Cackle in disguise.
While she is a straightforward bully in "The Worst Witch to the Rescue", where the main threat is Ethel stealing Mildred's summer project to pass off as her own, Ethel returns to her traditional role of unwittingly provoking success in "The Worst Witch and the Wishing Star", where her attempts to expose Mildred's new dog Star result in Mildred being granted permission to use Star as her broom companion rather than Tabby after she and Star win an inter-school competition.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
Appearances in the books:
The Worst Witch
Witch World (novel)
The first hardcover edition was published by Gregg Press of Boston in 1977 as #1 in a set of seven called "The Witch World Novels of Andre Norton". Later it appeared in three-novel omnibus editions and in audiobook.
A Discovery of Witches
"A Discovery of Witches" was first published in hardcover on February 8, 2011, by Penguin Books, becoming a "New York Times" Best Seller upon its release. It has since been released in paperback and also as an ebook. The novel has been translated into more than 36 languages. The book received mostly positive feedback from literary critics. It was praised for its intelligence and the mixture of history and fantasy, although some critics felt the plot was trite and the pacing was slow. Comparisons were made between other popular fantasy series, namely "Twilight" and "Harry Potter". The novel began as a "thought experiment" for Harkness, who had previously only published works of historical non-fiction. She drew upon her academic background as a historian and her studies of alchemy, magic, and the occult.
Strike Witches
Two separate light novel series have been published. The first, , was written by Noboru Yamaguchi and illustrated by Hashigo Ueda. The first volume was published in Japan in October 2006, and as of June 11, 2009, 3 volumes have been published. A fourth volume, originally scheduled for Spring 2009, is in production. The Suomus Misfits Squadron series is set in a different time period and location from the anime, and uses a different cast of characters.
The Worst Witch (1998 TV series)
In Australia series 1–3 of "The Worst Witch" were released onto DVD as was "Weirdsister College", and both series of "The New Worst Witch" were released in 2007. Series one and two of "The Worst Witch" were released as one boxset, containing four discs which play on most DVD players (including the United Kingdom), as well as Series three and "Weirdsister College" on another boxset.
List of The Worst Witch characters
Mildred Hubble is the titular character of "The Worst Witch" series. Unlike the other girls at Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches, she doesn't come from a regular witch family, but was given a scholarship which greatly impressed Miss Cackle. She is best friends with Maud Spellbody and Enid Nightshade. In "The Worst Witch", although inadvertently ruining a broomstick formation flying display when she was given a sabotaged broomstick, she saves the whole academy from Miss Cackle's jealous and rebel-ish identical twin sister Agatha Cackle, who was seeking to turn all the teachers and pupils into frogs. In the nick of time, Mildred turns Agatha and the rest of her fiendish coven into snails.
Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches
Leland's translation and editing was completed in early 1897 and submitted to David Nutt for publication. Two years passed, until Leland wrote requesting the return of the manuscript in order to submit it to a different publishing house. This request spurred Nutt to accept the book, and it was published in July 1899 in a small print run. Wiccan author Raymond Buckland claims to have been the first to reprint the book in 1968 through his "Buckland Museum of Witchcraft" press, but a British reprint was made by "Wiccens" Charles "Rex Nemorensis" and Mary Cardell in the early 1960s. Since then the text has been repeatedly reprinted by a variety of different publishers, including as a 1998 retranslation by Mario and Dina Pazzaglini with essays and commentary.
List of The Worst Witch characters
In the 1986 film Miss Hardbroom is portrayed by Diana Rigg. In the 1998 TV series she is portrayed by Kate Duchêne, and in "The New Worst Witch" by Caroline O'Neill. In the 2017 CBBC series she is called Miss Hecate Hardbroom and played by Raquel Cassidy.
Witch World
Witch World is a speculative fiction project of American writer Andre Norton, inaugurated by her 1963 novel "Witch World" and continuing more than four decades. Beginning in the mid-1980s, when she was about 75 years old, Norton recruited other writers to the project, and some books were published only after her death in 2005. The Witch World setting is one planet in a parallel universe where magic long ago superseded science; early in the fictional history it is performed exclusively by women. The series began as a hybrid of science fiction and sword and sorcery but for the most part it combines the latter with high fantasy. 
Witch World begins with what is now called the Estcarp cycle. These describe the adventures of Simon Tregarth from Earth, his witch wife Jaelithe, and their three children Kyllan, Kemoc and Kaththea.
Paula Brackston
Brackston's debut novel, "The Witch’s Daughter", was originally published in February 2009 under the title "The Book of Shadows" and was intended as the first book in the proposed Shadow Chronicles series, followed by "The Winter Witch". However, each of the novels are standalones that explore witches and their experiences through different times and settings. "The Witch’s Daughter" spawned a sequel titled "The" "Return of the Witch" in 2016. In "Lamp Black, Wolf Grey", Brackston introduces Merlin as one of the main characters in the story.
Ilse Witch
Ilse Witch is a fantasy novel by American writer Terry Brooks, the first book in The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara fantasy trilogy. First published in 2000, it was the first novel in which Brooks described the use of futuristic technology, including airships as well as robots and lasers from the Old World. A conversation between the Druid Walker Boh and the Shade of Allanon that was edited from "Ilse Witch" was published as part of "Unfettered", a collection of fantasy short stories
The Last Wish (book)
The Last Wish () is the first (in its fictional chronology; published second in original Polish) of the two collections of short stories (the other being "Sword of Destiny") preceding the main "Witcher Saga", written by Polish fantasy writer Andrzej Sapkowski. The first Polish edition was published in 1993, the first English edition was first published in 2007. The book has also been translated into several other languages.
A Discovery of Witches
"A Discovery of Witches" first achieved attention from publishers at the 2009 Frankfurt Book Fair. It was then published by Viking Press for a North American release in February 2011. The novel was commercially successful, debuting at number two in Hardcover Fiction on the "New York Times" Best Seller list, and number eight on the "USA Today" Best-Selling Book list. Two months after publication, "A Discovery of Witches" was already in its seventh printing.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
The Worst Witch Strikes Again
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
Mr Egbert Hellibore is the Grand Wizard. He appears at the Halloween celebrations in the first book. He later appears again in the third book at the Halloween celebrations where he bans Mildred Hubble and Ethel Hallow from attending the celebrations for causing the havoc the previous year. He is also revealed to be friends with Algernon Rowan-Webb and also one of his fellow magicians from the days when Cackle's Academy was used for meeting places for magicians and wizards.
Worse Things Waiting
Worse Things Waiting is a collection of fantasy and horror short stories by author Manly Wade Wellman, with illustrations by Lee Brown Coye. It was released in 1973 by Carcosa in an edition of 2,867 copies, of which 536 pre-ordered copies were signed by the author and artist. Many of the stories originally appeared in the magazines "Weird Tales", "Strange Stories", "Unknown", and "Fantasy and Science Fiction".Foreword by the author
PAGES FROM A MEMORY BOOK
GRAY VOICES
THE NIGHT SIDE OF HISTORY
LONGER IN THE TELLING
The Witch's Tales
The first issue, dated November 1936, led with "The Madman", a story by Cole about a mad scientist. Cole's work also appeared in the second issue with "Mrs. Hawker's Will". Originally an episode Cole had written for the radio show, it was adapted from the script for the magazine by Laurence D. Smith. All the other stories, from both issues, were reprinted from the American edition of "Pearson's Magazine". These included "The Monster of Lake LaMetrie", by Wardon Allan Curtis, from 1899; "The Fountain of Youth", by William Hamilton Osborne, and "Phantom of the Links", by John C. Haywood, both from 1906; and "The Death-Trap", by George Daulton, which had originally appeared in 1908. The reprints were good stories, in the opinion of Mike Ashley, and they often had science fiction themes: Curtis's story involved the transplant of a man's brain into the body of a prehistoric monster. Despite the relatively high quality of the material, the stories were not action-oriented enough to have pleased a typical pulp magazine reader of the era.
Umineko When They Cry
The first game of the "Umineko When They Cry" visual novel series, titled "Legend of the Golden Witch", was first released on August 17, 2007 at Comiket 72. The second game "Turn of the Golden Witch" was released on December 31, 2007 at Comiket 73, and the third game "Banquet of the Golden Witch" was released on August 16, 2008 at Comiket 74. The fourth game "Alliance of the Golden Witch" was released on December 29, 2008 at Comiket 75. The first game in the "Umineko no Naku Koro ni Chiru" series, entitled "End of the Golden Witch", was first released on August 15, 2009 at Comiket 76. The sixth game "Dawn of the Golden Witch" was released on December 30, 2009 at Comiket 77. The seventh game "Requiem of the Golden Witch" was released at Comiket 78 on August 14, 2010. The eighth game "Twilight of the Golden Witch" was released at Comiket 79 on December 31, 2010. A fan disc titled "Umineko no Naku Koro ni Tsubasa" was released the same day as "Twilight". A second fan disc titled "Umineko no Naku Koro ni Hane" was released at Comiket 81 on December 31, 2011. MangaGamer released the Windows games on Steam.
The Whitby Witches
The Whitby Witches is the first book in "The Whitby Witches" series by Robin Jarvis. It was originally published in 1991.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch
Strike Witches
Published in December 2008. Similar to the first volume, and set in the same general time frame and location (North Africa, circa 1942). Consisting of two volumes it follows an experimental Karlsland tank witch unit based on the Tiger I.
Conjure Wife
This novel was the first by Fritz Leiber and was first published in the April 1943 edition of "Unknown". It is said to have been the inspiration for at least three films: "Weird Woman" (1944),
"Night of the Eagle" (also known as "Burn, Witch, Burn!") (1962), and 
"Witches' Brew" (also known as "Which Witch is Which?") (1980).
Witch House
Witch House is a fantasy novel by American writer Evangeline Walton. It was published in 1945 by Arkham House in an edition of 3,000 copies. It was the first full-length novel to be published by Arkham House and was listed as the initial book in the Library of Arkham House Novels of Fantasy and Terror. An expanded version, with a newly-written 20,000-word prologue, was published in England in 1950. In 2013, Centipede Press issued the first American edition of this revised version, also including previously unpublished writings by Walton and several of her short stories.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
The Worst Witch
Evangeline Walton
Walton's "Witch House" was written in the mid- to late-1930s and published in 1945 as the first volume in “The Library of Arkham House Novels of Fantasy and Terror”. It is an occult horror story set in New England. In 1956, she published "The Cross and the Sword", a novel set during the Danish conquest of England and the destruction of its Celtic culture.
The Haunt of Fear
The Old Witch was the last to make her appearance. The first issue of "The Haunt of Fear" had no host. The second issue debuted "The Witch's Cauldron" feature, with the Old Witch introducing herself in a story drawn by artist Jack Kamen. The third issue featured a Craig cover depicting three GhoulLunatics stepping out of doorways and launched a letter column, "The Old Witch's Niche." Thereafter, the Old Witch presided over the magazine as its comedic horror host, delivering an irreverent and pun-filled commentary to lighten the horrific tone of the stories she introduced. In spite of her slow start, the Old Witch would prove to be the most visible of the GhoulLunatics in their initial run. Not only did she appear in virtually every issue of "The Haunt of Fear", "Tales From The Crypt" and "The Vault of Horror", she also appeared in the final story of "Crime SuspenStories" in every issue from #3 through #16.
Weirdsister College
Weirdsister College is the sequel to successful British children's television series "The Worst Witch" (1998–2001). It aired on ITV from 28 November to 14 December 2001.
Jill Murphy
Murphy started to write "The Worst Witch" while still at school, but put the book on hold while she attended Chelsea and Croydon Art Schools. She continued to write it during a year living in a village in Togo, West Africa, and later while working as a nanny back in the UK. After receiving rejection letters from publishers to whom she offered the book (as she recalls, "They said children would be frightened about a school for witches..."), in 1970 when she was 21 she decided to try the new young company Allison and Busby. "They accepted it immediately, and printed 5,000 copies, and I remember wondering how many aunts and uncles I had, and what we would do with the rest," she said in an interview with "The Telegraph". However, the book proved an instant success, selling out within two months of publication. Murphy continued working as a nanny until the publication in 1980 of "The Worst Witch Strikes Again" prompted her to devote herself to writing full-time.
She gave birth to her son Charlie in spring 1990. Her marriage to potter Roger Michell ended in divorce.
Mildred Hubble
In "The Worst Witch Strikes Again" she is assigned by Miss Cackle to show the new girl, Enid Nightshade, around the school, much to the chagrin and disappointment of both Maud and Miss Hardbroom. Throughout the novel, Enid gets Mildred into trouble without owning up. In A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch she is turned into a frog by Ethel Hallow after telling her younger sister a pretend story about Miss Hardbroom turning a pupil into a frog after being two seconds late for a lesson. This is how she discovers Algernon Rowan-Webb. In "The Worst Witch All at Sea", after being given a normal black cat after Fenella Feverfew transferred to Miss Pentangle's Academy, Mildred disobeys orders and brings Tabby with her to Grim Cove. She also discovers a legendary treasure chest on Cat's Head Rock.
Witch (band)
Witch was formed in 2005 by Dinosaur Jr guitarist J Mascis and long time friend Dave Sweetapple. However, Mascis does not play guitar for the band; he plays his first instrument, the drums. To complete the band's line-up, Mascis and Sweetapple recruited the guitarist and vocalist, Kyle Thomas, from King Tuff and avant-folk group Feathers. Their eponymous debut album was released on March 7, 2006. They also contributed an alternate version of the song "Rip Van Winkle" to the "Invaders" compilation, which was released by Kemado Records later that year. Their latest album "Paralyzed" was released on March 18, 2008.
Witch trials in the early modern period
In the early 20th century, a number of individuals and groups emerged in Europe, primarily Britain, and subsequently the United States as well, claiming to be the surviving remnants of the pagan Witch-Cult described in the works of Margaret Murray. The first of these actually appeared in the last few years of the 19th century, being a manuscript that American folklorist Charles Leland claimed he had been given by a woman who was a member of a group of witches worshipping the god Lucifer and goddess Diana in Tuscany, Italy. He published the work in 1899 as "Aradia, or the Gospel of the Witches". Whilst historians and folklorists have accepted that there are folkloric elements to the gospel, none have accepted it as being the text of a genuine Tuscan religious group, and believe it to be of late-nineteenth-century composition.
The Worst Witch (disambiguation)
The Worst Witch may also refer to:
Serena Valentino
Valentino has published five Villains novels. The first novel, "The Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen", based on the Evil Queen from "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", was released on August 18, 2009. The second novel, "The Beast Within: A Tale of Beauty's Prince", based on the character of Beast from "Beauty and the Beast", was released on July 22, 2014. The third novel, "Poor Unfortunate Soul: A Tale of the Sea Witch", based on Ursula the Sea Witch, the villainess from "The Little Mermaid", was released on July 26, 2016. The fourth novel, "Mistress of All Evil: A Tale of the Dark Fairy", written from the point of view of Maleficent from "Sleeping Beauty", was released on October 3, 2017. The fifth novel, "Mother Knows Best: A Tale of the Old Witch," based on Mother Gothel, the villainess from "Tangled", was released on August 7, 2018. The expected release date for the sixth book, "The Odd Sisters: A Villains Novel", is July 2, 2019. Valentino is currently at work on her seventh Villains novel.
The Witches of Karres
"The Witches of Karres" was originally a novelette published in the December 1949 issue of "Astounding Science Fiction", and has been reprinted many times. The novelette version was included in "The Science Fiction Hall of Fame, Volume Two" as one of the best works published prior to 1966. Schmitz expanded the novelette into a novel in 1966, and it was reissued by Baen Books in 2005.
The Worst Woman in London
The Worst Woman in London is an 1899 English melodrama play about a manipulative woman. It was highly popular particularly in the early years of the 20th century.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
1998 TV series" only
A Witch Shall be Born
This story was written in late May or early June 1934. Farnsworth Wright, editor of "Weird Tales", was running out of Conan stories which were growing in popularity and attracting new readers to the magazine. Howard had recently finished the Conan novel "The Hour of the Dragon", which was not intended for publication in "Weird Tales" and the story previous to that, "The People of the Black Circle" was already scheduled for August. He finished "A Witch Shall Be Born" in only two drafts over a period of days in order to meet this deadline. Wright accepted it without hesitation, telling Howard it was his best Conan story to date, and made it the cover story for the December issue.
Clare Higgins
In January 2017, Higgins appeared in CBBC's adaptation of Jill Murphy's "The Worst Witch" as Miss Ada Cackle, and her wicked twin sister Agatha.
The Witcher
The second published short story collection was "Miecz przeznaczenia" ("Sword of Destiny"). Although "Ostatnie życzenie" ("The Last Wish") was published after "Sword of Destiny", it replaced "The Witcher" as the first book since it included all the stories in "The Witcher", except "The Road with No Return" (the only story without Geralt). Although new short stories were added to "The Last Wish", they took place before those in "Sword of Destiny".
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
This is a list of minor characters who have roles in the children's book series "The Worst Witch", or its television adaptations.
Appearances in the books:
A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch (briefly)
Son of a Witch
"Son of a Witch" was first released on September 27, 2005 in hardcover format by Regan Books. Almost exactly a year later, on September 26, 2006, the paperback edition was released in the United States. A second edition of the paperback was released shortly thereafter on October 26, 2006.
The Worst Witch
In 1986, the first book in the series was made into a television film of the same name. A TV series based on the books aired from 1998 to 2001, and has inspired two spin-offs, "Weirdsister College", aired in 2001, and "The New Worst Witch", aired in 2005. In January 2017, a new series premiered in some markets as a CBBC, ZDF, and Netflix co-production and as of July 2017 it was released internationally on Netflix as a Netflix Original.
The Witcher
The "Witcher" short stories were first published in "Fantastyka", a Polish science fiction and fantasy magazine, beginning in the mid-1980s. The first short story, "Wiedźmin" ("The Witcher") (1986), was written for a contest held by the magazine and won third place. The first four stories dealing with the witcher Geralt were originally featured in a 1990 short story collection titled "Wiedźmin" ("The Witcher") — now out of print — with "Droga, z której się nie wraca" ("The Road with No Return"), which is set in the world before the Witcher stories and features Geralt's mother to be.
Leitch Ritchie
Ritchie wrote four novels, of which the most successful was "Wearyfoot Common". The others were "Schinderhannes", "The Robber of the Rhine" and "The Magician". In his later years he edited "Chambers' Journal". He also wrote short stories, including one of the first British werewolf short stories "The Man-Wolf" (1831). Ritchie also wrote non-fiction works, such as travel books.
The Witch of the Mists
"The Witch of the Mists" is a fantasy short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published in the August 1972 issue of the magazine "Fantastic", and was first appeared in book form by Ace Books in the paperback collection "Conan of Aquilonia" in May 1977, which was reprinted several times through 1994. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books in October 1978.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in "The Chronicles of Narnia" (1950–1956). Among all the author's books it is also the most widely held in libraries. Although it was written as well as published first in the series, it is volume two in recent editions, which are sequenced by the stories' chronology (the first being "The Magician's Nephew"). Like the others, it was illustrated by Pauline Baynes, and her work has been retained in many later editions.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
Griselda Blackwood makes her first (and only) appearance in the third book of the series where she is kidnapped by Mildred Hubble so Mildred can take her place at the Halloween celebrations.
Three Witches
The Three Witches, also known as the Weird Sisters or Wayward Sisters, are characters in William Shakespeare's play "Macbeth" (c. 1603–1607). They hold a striking resemblance to the three Fates of classical mythology, and are, perhaps, intended as a twisted version of the white-robed incarnations of destiny. The witches eventually lead Macbeth to his demise. Their origin lies in "Holinshed's Chronicles" (1587), a history of England, Scotland and Ireland. Other possible sources, aside from Shakespeare's imagination, include British folklore, such contemporary treatises on witchcraft as King James VI of Scotland's "Daemonologie", the Norns of Norse mythology, and ancient classical myths of the Fates: the Greek Moirai and the Roman Parcae. Productions of "Macbeth" began incorporating portions of Thomas Middleton's contemporaneous play "The Witch" "circa" 1618, two years after Shakespeare's death.
A Witch Shall be Born
A version of the story that was edited and altered by L. Sprague de Camp appeared in the collection "Conan the Barbarian" (Gnome Press, 1954). This was reprinted several times, including the collection "Conan the Freebooter" (Lancer Books, 1968). It was first published by itself in book form by Donald M. Grant, Publisher, Inc., titled "A Witch Shall Be Born", in 1975, which did not use the de Camp version.
Wicked (novel series)
Wicked is a series of young adult novels written by American authors Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguié. The first book, "Witch" was released in 2002 through Simon Pulse.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
Appearances in the books:
A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch (briefly)
Andre Norton
She wrote more than a dozen speculative fiction series, but her longest, and longest-running project was "Witch World", which began with the novel "Witch World" in 1963. The first six novels were Ace Books paperback originals published from 1963 to 1968. From the 1970s most of the series was published in hardcover editions. From the 1980s some were written by Norton and a co-author, and others were anthologies of short fiction for which she was editor. (Witch World became a shared universe). There were dozens of books in all.
Blair Witch
After premiering at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival, the film was released on 30 July 1999 after months of publicity during a controversial promotional campaign. The film went on to be a massive commercial success, and a sequel, "", was released on October 27, 2000. A second official sequel, "Blair Witch", was released on September 16, 2016. Series of video games, books, novels and comic books were released to accompany the films.
Witch &amp; Wizard
Witch & Wizard is the first novel of the "Witch & Wizard" series, written by James Patterson & Gabrielle Charbonnet. It chronicles a dystopian future in which Whit and Wisty Allgood are arrested, imprisoned, and sentenced to execution during the uprising of a new totalitarian government, for unknowingly possessing outlawed magical abilities. The novel was published on December 14, 2009.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
Agatha Cackle is Miss Cackle's rebellious identical twin sister. She first appears in the first book where Mildred spots her and her warlike coven plotting to turn the whole academy into frogs, only to be discovered by Mildred as they were preparing their spells the day of their attack; they had planned to attack after the Halloween display, when the school normally slept in until noon, but Mildred was running away from the school in a panic after she unintentionally caused an accident during a broomstick display. Lacking any other ideas or time to stop them, Mildred turned Agatha and the coven into snails and puts them in the boxes meant for the frog-pupils and frog-teachers, subsequently taking them up to the academy to show to Miss Cackle. Having convinced her teachers of her honesty, Mildred was absolved of any punishment for the broomstick incident, Agatha and her coven being turned back into humans only after conceding that they had been defeated according to the Witches' Code. Agatha reappears in the fifth book "The Worst Witch Saves the Day" where she comes into the school disguised as a new teacher Miss Granite with a high-pitched squeaky voice and a large mop of ginger curls and a frivolous appearance. She is later found out by Mildred when Mildred comes to collect Tabby from her. Luckily, Mildred and co. turn Agatha and her coven into snails themselves.
List of minor The Worst Witch characters
Miss Gimlett never actually appears in neither any of the books or the TV series. She is mentioned at the beginning of "A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch", where she is supposed to be the form-mistress of the second-years but she is replaced by Miss Hardbroom.
Elizabeth Williams Champney
The first of her "Witch Winnie" books was published by White and Allen in 1889, entitled "Witch Winnie: The Story of a "King's Daughter"". The subject of the series is not a practitioner of witchcraft, but rather a mischievous young school-girl, and the first book is dedicated to Champney's daughter ("My Little Witch Marie"). The "Witch Winnie" series eventually contained nine books, the last of which, "Witch Winnie in Spain", was published in 1898. Dodd, Mead and Company published an edition of the first book in 1891 and was the original publisher of the rest of the series. Later A. L. Chatteron of New York picked up the series as a reprint company.