Sir Nobonk and the Terrible Dreadful Awful Naughty Nasty Dragon
Encyclopedia
Sir Nobonk and the Terrible Dreadful Awful Naughty Nasty Dragon (also known by the shorter title of Sir Nobonk and the... Dragon) is a 1982
comedy novel
written by Spike Milligan
, and the fourth picture book by Milligan after The Bald Twit Lion, Badjelly the Witch
and Dip the Puppy.
of Medieval-type stories about knights and dragons (similar to Don Quixote or the much-later Shrek), set within a Medieval world with modern anachronisms for comic purposes (such as garden hoses for knights to wash out their armour).
, where knight
s are constantly at war with the Dragons
. Among the knights is a 60-year-old knight named Sir Nobonk, who becomes a dragon-catcher in order to save the dragons from extinction.
Setting forth into the nearby forest, Sir Nobonk successfully captures the last living dragon, and convinces the king to open a zoo
to help dragons to repopulate. The plan becomes successful, and also helps humans and dragons to co-exist peacefully within the kingdom.
However, the prosperity of the kingdom invokes a giant named Blackmangle to attack the kingdom along with his servant Witch-Way, leaving it to Sir Nobonk to face the new foes and to save the kingdom.
1982 in literature
The year 1982 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*La Bicyclette Bleue by Régine Deforges becomes France's best selling novel ever.-New books:...
comedy novel
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
written by Spike Milligan
Spike Milligan
Terence Alan Patrick Seán "Spike" Milligan Hon. KBE was a comedian, writer, musician, poet, playwright, soldier and actor. His early life was spent in India, where he was born, but the majority of his working life was spent in the United Kingdom. He became an Irish citizen in 1962 after the...
, and the fourth picture book by Milligan after The Bald Twit Lion, Badjelly the Witch
Badjelly the Witch
Badjelly the Witch is a brief handwritten, illustrated story by Spike Milligan, created for his children, then printed in 1973. It was made into an audio and a video version....
and Dip the Puppy.
Overview
The story of Sir Nobonk is a generic parodyParody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of Medieval-type stories about knights and dragons (similar to Don Quixote or the much-later Shrek), set within a Medieval world with modern anachronisms for comic purposes (such as garden hoses for knights to wash out their armour).
Plot
The story takes place in the mythical Kingdom of Rotten Custard, a kingdom that exists within CornwallCornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, where knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
s are constantly at war with the Dragons
European dragon
European dragons are legendary creatures in folklore and mythology among the overlapping cultures of Europe.In European folklore, a dragon is a serpentine legendary creature. The Latin word draco, as in constellation Draco, comes directly from Greek δράκων,...
. Among the knights is a 60-year-old knight named Sir Nobonk, who becomes a dragon-catcher in order to save the dragons from extinction.
Setting forth into the nearby forest, Sir Nobonk successfully captures the last living dragon, and convinces the king to open a zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
to help dragons to repopulate. The plan becomes successful, and also helps humans and dragons to co-exist peacefully within the kingdom.
However, the prosperity of the kingdom invokes a giant named Blackmangle to attack the kingdom along with his servant Witch-Way, leaving it to Sir Nobonk to face the new foes and to save the kingdom.
Characters
- Sir Nobonk - A 60-year-old knight-turned-dragon catcher
- Big Bill - Sir Nobonk's strong but dimwitted groom
- Little Willy - Nobonk's youngest (and most intelligent) groom
- The Wizard of Nothing - An incredibly small dwarf Nobonk encounters whilst hunting for dragons
- Blackmangle - An evil giantGiant (mythology)The mythology and legends of many different cultures include monsters of human appearance but prodigious size and strength. "Giant" is the English word commonly used for such beings, derived from one of the most famed examples: the gigantes of Greek mythology.In various Indo-European mythologies,...
who rules over the neighbouring Kingdom of Dangle, who wishes to claim the tame dragons for himself
- Witch Way - Blackmangle's servant, an evil witch
- Daz - Nobonk's white stallion, who eats grass and chips
- King Big-Twytt - Ruler of the Kingdom of Rotten Custard
Sources
- Milligan, S. (1982) Sir Nobonk and the Terrible Dreadful Awful Naughty Nasty Dragon London: Book Club Associates