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Simon Farnaby has written and starred in some of the UK's best-loved family TV such as Horrible Histories, and Ghosts, and films such as Paddington and Paddington 2. The Wizard in My Shed was his first children's book. When not writing or acting, Simon is a keen amateur wizard and can often be found in his garden (unsuccessfully) conjuring vegetable spells.
A World Book Day 2022 Mini Book | In an exclusive for World Book Day, Bubbles the guinea pig shares his thoughts about wizards, magical adventures, his owner, Rose, dogs, pooing – and food. Mostly food. This is a story about me, Bubbles. Find out how Merdyn the Wild, a wizard from the Dark Ages, landed in my life and distracted my owner, Rose, with magic and adventures. My top five people: 1) Rose, because she feeds me 2) Merdyn, because he cast a spell so that Rose could understand me 3) Mum, because she sometimes feeds me 4) Um. Not Rose’s brother, Kris, because he ignores me 5) The owner of the pet food store – mmm, food… From the writer of Paddington 2 and writer and star of Horrible Histories and Ghosts, this hilariously silly, heartfelt comedy is perfect for fans of David Walliams and David Baddiel.
More Misadventures with Merdyn the Wild! | Merdyn the Wizard is back, which is great news for everyone who enjoyed his adventures in The Wizard in My Shed (and if you haven’t read them, you’re really missing out). In the first story, Merdyn found himself in the 21st century, where he met and made friends with 12-year-old Rose, who turned out to be a descendant (no space here to list the requisite number of greats before grandchild). In this story, Rose must time travel to the Dark Ages when her brother Kris is kidnapped on the orders of Vanheldon the Vandal, as a way to lure Merdyn into a deadly trap. Accompanied by her still talking guinea pig, Bubbles, all sorts of adventures await Rose, and the story is both action-packed and very funny. Farnaby fills the pages with more wonderful historical details while also making all of his characters living, breathing people. Original, vastly entertaining, full of humour and a fair bit of wisdom, these time-travelling adventures are solid gold.
The Misadventures of Merdyn the Wild | 1,500 years apart, two people are having bad days. In 511, warlock Merdyn the Wild is about to be banished from the king’s court for bad behaviour; in the 21st century, 12-year-old Rose Falvey’s disastrous audition for her school’s version of Britain’s Got Talented People is about to go viral. The two meet by accident in the woods outside town, Rose is running away, Merdyn, sent through the Rivers of Time, believes he’s in Purgatory but manages to convince Rose of his warlock credentials by making her guinea pig speak. This is just the start of a wild and very funny adventure that will also involve large numbers of the town’s police and security guards, Rose’s lovelorn brother Kris, and Merdyn’s nemesis and rival, Jerabo the Great. After an extraordinary range of mishaps, misunderstandings and mix-ups, Merdyn is finally able to return to the Dark Ages, by which time Rose, and readers, have become very fond of him. Simon Farnaby is of course writer (and star) of the Horrible Histories TV series and has great fun packing in historical details not to mention a wonderful array of sixth century insults – fopdoodle, wax-nosed hufty-tufty, ninny hammer – all of which will come in handy in the playground (there are helpful translations at the foot of the page). He is no mean hand at storytelling either and the plot rattles along very nicely indeed, all the time-travelling loose ends are neatly tied up. Great fun!
Merdyn is the greatest wizard of the Dark Ages. Obviously. Rose is his 21st-century descendent. Lucky her. And Vanheldon the vandal warrior is FURIOUS! After all, last time they met, Merdyn turned his army to stone. Seeking revenge, Vanheldon comes up with a way to kidnap Rose and transport her back to Dark Ages Transylvania, set on luring Merdyn into a terrible trap. Except - whoops! - his magical minion kidnaps Rose's teenage brother Kris instead. Rose, Merdyn and Bubbles the guinea pig must team up to save the day. But can they rescue Kris without creating historical mayhem? Will Rose's wizard ancestor even remember her? (And want to help them?) And will Bubbles ever stop pooing? From the writer of the Paddington 2 movie and writer and star of Horrible Histories and Ghosts, this hilariously silly, heartfelt comedy of errors with a historical twist is perfect for fans of David Walliams and David Baddiel. The follow-up to The Wizard in My Shed.
Merdyn is the greatest wizard of the Dark Ages. Obviously. Rose is his 21st-century descendent. Lucky her. And Vanheldon the vandal warrior is FURIOUS! After all, last time they met, Merdyn turned his army to stone. Seeking revenge, Vanheldon comes up with a way to kidnap Rose and transport her back to Dark Ages Transylvania, set on luring Merdyn into a terrible trap. Except - whoops! - his magical minion kidnaps Rose's teenage brother Kris instead. Rose, Merdyn and Bubbles the guinea pig must team up to save the day. But can they rescue Kris without creating historical mayhem? Will Rose's wizard ancestor even remember her? (And want to help them?) And will Bubbles ever stop pooing? From the writer of the Paddington 2 movie and writer and star of Horrible Histories and Ghosts, this hilariously silly, heartfelt comedy of errors with a historical twist is perfect for fans of David Walliams and David Baddiel. The follow-up to The Wizard in My Shed.
More Misadventures with Merdyn the Wild! | Merdyn the Wizard is back, which is great news for everyone who enjoyed his adventures in The Wizard in My Shed (and if you haven’t read them, you’re really missing out). In the first story, Merdyn found himself in the 21st century, where he met and made friends with 12-year-old Rose, who turned out to be a descendant (no space here to list the requisite number of greats before grandchild). In this story, Rose must time travel to the Dark Ages when her brother Kris is kidnapped on the orders of Vanheldon the Vandal, as a way to lure Merdyn into a deadly trap. Accompanied by her still talking guinea pig, Bubbles, all sorts of adventures await Rose, and the story is both action-packed and very funny. Farnaby fills the pages with more wonderful historical details while also making all of his characters living, breathing people. Original, vastly entertaining, full of humour and a fair bit of wisdom, these time-travelling adventures are solid gold.
The Misadventures of Merdyn the Wild | 1,500 years apart, two people are having bad days. In 511, warlock Merdyn the Wild is about to be banished from the king’s court for bad behaviour; in the 21st century, 12-year-old Rose Falvey’s disastrous audition for her school’s version of Britain’s Got Talented People is about to go viral. The two meet by accident in the woods outside town, Rose is running away, Merdyn, sent through the Rivers of Time, believes he’s in Purgatory but manages to convince Rose of his warlock credentials by making her guinea pig speak. This is just the start of a wild and very funny adventure that will also involve large numbers of the town’s police and security guards, Rose’s lovelorn brother Kris, and Merdyn’s nemesis and rival, Jerabo the Great. After an extraordinary range of mishaps, misunderstandings and mix-ups, Merdyn is finally able to return to the Dark Ages, by which time Rose, and readers, have become very fond of him. Simon Farnaby is of course writer (and star) of the Horrible Histories TV series and has great fun packing in historical details not to mention a wonderful array of sixth century insults – fopdoodle, wax-nosed hufty-tufty, ninny hammer – all of which will come in handy in the playground (there are helpful translations at the foot of the page). He is no mean hand at storytelling either and the plot rattles along very nicely indeed, all the time-travelling loose ends are neatly tied up. Great fun!
Merdyn the Wild is from the Dark Ages. He's the world's greatest Warlock (don't call him a wizard), banished to the 21st century for bad behaviour, and he's about to create a whole load of trouble for Rose, aged 12. Rose is a totally ordinary girl, on a mission to mend her broken family. Bubbles is Rose's guinea pig. He just poos a lot. When Rose bumps into Merdyn and discovers what he is, she quickly realises that he could be just what she needs. Rose agrees to help Merdyn navigate the confusing ways of the modern world (things like: the lidded bowl in the bathroom is NOT a sink, it's a TOILET, so definitely DON'T wash your face in it) if Merdyn gives her a spell to fix her family in return. Now they just need to hide him in the shed without Rose's mum noticing, track down Merdyn's magic staff and find a way to send Merdyn back through time to the Dark Ages. What could possibly go wrong...? From the writer of the Paddington 2 movie and writer and star of Horrible Histories, this hilariously silly, heartfelt adventure with a historical twist is perfect for fans of David Walliams and David Baddiel.
Merdyn the Wild is from the Dark Ages. He's the world's greatest Warlock (don't call him a wizard), banished to the 21st century for bad behaviour, and he's about to create a whole load of trouble for Rose, aged 12. Rose is a totally ordinary girl, on a mission to mend her broken family. Bubbles is Rose's guinea pig. He just poos a lot. When Rose bumps into Merdyn and discovers what he is, she quickly realises that he could be just what she needs. Rose agrees to help Merdyn navigate the confusing ways of the modern world (things like: the lidded bowl in the bathroom is NOT a sink, it's a TOILET, so definitely DON'T wash your face in it) if Merdyn gives her a spell to fix her family in return. Now they just need to hide him in the shed without Rose's mum noticing, track down Merdyn's magic staff and find a way to send Merdyn back through time to the Dark Ages. What could possibly go wrong...? From the writer of the Paddington 2 movie and writer and star of Horrible Histories, this hilariously silly, heartfelt adventure with a historical twist is perfect for fans of David Walliams and David Baddiel.
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