Horrible Histories author Terry Deary
Celebrating 25 years of Horrible Histories books – and a new novel – writer TERRY DEARY talks about learning from the past
Be disciplined
As a child, whenever I wasn’t at school I worked in my dad’s butcher’s shop and that taught me a great work ethic, that if you’ve got a job to do, you get on with it. So now I’m a writer – which no one can say is hard work like butchering – I still have that same discipline and work drive. So I get up at 7am, do emails from 8-8.30am and then write 8.30-5pm often to a target such as 2,000 words a day.
Fact is funnier than fiction
Horrible Histories books began when I was asked by the publishers to write a history joke book with a few facts thrown in. But I soon found the facts were more interesting than the jokes so, instead, it became a fact book with jokes. Writing the books I learned how evil some of the aristocracy have been historically. For example, it makes my blood boil to see re-enactors play Henry VIII as this fat, jolly man and for the schools to tell children he was a bit cruel but because he was strong he was a good leader. That’s nonsense as he was an awful person. I do see it somewhat as my job to set the record straight to children on these things.
Books can define you
Horrible Histories was life-changing for me but, without sounding ungrateful, it also sometimes detracted from other things I would like to have done. For example, I’m a professional actor but don’t get much chance to do that now I’m busy churning out books. It’s a bit like being a long-running actor in a soap opera where the job comes to define you.
Don’t take life too seriously
The humour in my books comes naturally perhaps because I have a different take on things and don’t take life as seriously as other people. I don’t know how people like politicians can ever keep a straight face when they stand up in Parliament and take themselves so seriously.
I would have been a singer
When I was younger I had a bit of a singing career going in small-time clubs and one of the people I sang with said “I’m going off to London to be a Rockstar.”We said“bye, see you in six months.” But the next we heard of him a few years later, he’s part of the Eurythmics. He’s Dave Stuart. I thought why hadn’t I done what he did? He had really lived in poverty for a while and struggled before he met Annie Lennox, whereas I took the safe route. Nevertheless, my ambition still is to have a No.1 country record and today I often sing on my book tours, which I love.
■ Terry’s new book Wiggott’s Wonderful Waxworld: Terror Train, a witty and adventurous time-travelling adventure, is out now, rrp £3.99.
■ He was talking to Katharine Wootton.