From Mr Grumpy to Michael Gove – politicians as Mr Men
Education Secretary Michael Gove has hit out at teachers using Mr Men to teach students about the rise of Hitler. So we asked you which Mr Men modern politicians most resemble.
“I may be unfamiliar with all of [creator of Mr Men] Roger Hargreaves’ work but I am not sure he ever got round to producing Mr Anti-Semitic Dictator, Mr Junker General or Mr Dutch Communist Scapegoat.”
Michael Gove wasn’t messing about when he launched a scathing attack on what he sees as the infantilisation of education on Thursday. Referring to a lesson plan suggested on the website activehistory.co.uk, he condemned the suggestion that older pupils could make a Mr Men book for younger students, to round off what they had learned about the rise of Hitler.
It’s worth pointing out that not all teachers turn to picture books to illustrate the ascent of possibly the most famous tyrant in modern world history. But the very idea of it has certainly got Mr Gove – who is currently reviewing how history, and other subjects, are taught in Britain’s schools – hot and bothered.
In fact, if you’ll forgive us, it appears to have transformed him into Mr Grumpy. But what other Mr Men characters do our top politicians resemble? We asked you to send in your suggestions…
@channel4news Mr Clumsy – Ed Miliband Mr Uppity – David Cameron Mr Greedy – all of them.
— Cagulae (@Cagulae) May 10, 2013
Sadly, some of your suggestions were not fit to print. Many of you have commendable illustration skills but occasionally, in your enthusiasm, perhaps took it a little too far in your criticism of our elected representatives.
But others managed to keep it clean – just.
@oxxomoco on Twitter said: “Mr. Greedy, Mr. Topsy-Turvy, Mr. Uppity, Mr. Nonsense, Mr. Wrong, Mr. Out-Of-Touch-With-Reality… the list goes on.”
@channel4news Gove is Mr Uppity, shurely?
— Felix Riley (@FelixRileyBooks) May 10, 2013
In a poll on The Guardian, readers voted for which Mr Man most resembles Mr Gove himself. It’s not good news for him, with 39 per cent voting for “Mr Nonsense” by late afternoon on Friday.
Sadly for politicians, there weren’t many votes for any of them to be depicted as Mr Cheerful, Mr Clever or Mr Cool. And as for Mr Perfect – if only. But here at Channel 4 News at least, we’ve already got our own Mr Man: “Mr Snow” is one of the characters in the series.
@channel4news Boris Johnson- Mr Messy
— Jon Gleeson (@jon_gleeson) May 10, 2013