Horrid Henry The Movie DVD

Cast: Theo Stevenson, Richard E. Grant, Anjelica Huston, Mathew Horne, Parminder Nagra,Kimberly Walsh
Director: Nick Moore
Genre: Children, Family, Drama
Rated: G
Running Time: 90 minutes

Welcome to the world of Horrid Henry, Leader of the Purple Hand Gang and secret agent extraordinaire. We join him in a top secret raid on enemy territory - Moody Margaret's treehouse next door, where Sour Susan, Singing Soraya and Henry's number one nemesis Moody Margaret are having a Secret Club meeting. Henry's eye is on the prize - the Secret Club biscuit tin, packed full of chocolate hobblers - but as he tries to sneak it past their noses with the help of his trusty yo-yo he's spotted and the chase is on! Henry hotfoots it away with the tin. Mission Accomplished! But Margaret has the last laugh: she's now in possession of Henry's Mighty Magnet yo-yo!

Back on safe ground, Henry's ready to taste the spoils of victory, but just as he's about to take a bite his mum sticks her head through the kitchen window. "Henry! Homework! Now!" Noooooo! It's not fair!! Even at home Henry gets it on all sides, from Mum and Dad telling him to do his homework, and from his wormy worm little brother Perfect Peter, who can do no wrong!

Sent to his room for the umpteenth time, Henry fantasises about life as a rockstar - there's no doubt that he's too cool for school, and we get a glimpse of what life as a rockstar would be like for Henry. But his dream is abruptly shattered when Mum yells at him to get up and go to school - two things Henry hates more than anything else. And of course Henry can't find his homework book. Arriving at school, he spots Peter rushing off to say hello to the other members of the Best Boys Club, Tidy Ted, Goody Goody Gordon and Spotless Sam. Henry sighs. He hates school. If only one day he could walk round the corner and find out it has just disappeared…

Still, he's got the other members of the Purple Hand Gang to keep him company - Rude Ralph, Aerobic Al, Brainy Brian and Beefy Bert. But they're all running late for registration, and they know that Miss Battle-Axe, the worst teacher in the whole wide world, takes a tough line on lateness. Of course Henry needs a favour from Brian, a homework note, and although everyone sneaks in just as their names are read, but - just Henry's luck -called out, it's Henry who Miss Battle-Axe catches and Henry who gets yet another late mark. And Henry gets the full benefit of her attention when it's time for homework to be handed in. Miss Battle-Axe realises immediately that Henry's mum hasn't written the note Henry swiftly and smugly hands her, and she knows he didn't write the note either. "Spell homework, Henry," she demands. Erm… H-O-M-E-Well, at least he's halfway there. Er… W-E-R-K? "Thank you Henry," Miss Battle-Axe thunders. "Now I know that you did not write this note, as homework is spelt correctly in this note." Henry sighs, and takes his punishment - single detention for failing to do his homework, double detention for failing to bring in his homework and triple detention for getting someone else to write a note about his homework. Life's just not fair!

Meanwhile Ashton Primary's headmistress Ms Oddbod is dealing with the arrival of a pair of school inspectors who seem particularly keen to catch the school out. Confident that there's nothing to hide, she takes them on a tour of the school. Henry starts to enjoy his detention - the Zero Zombies (aka Bert, Al and Ralph) have joined him in the science labs and they're getting ready to rock on down. But as Ms Oddbod and the school inspectors approach the science lab, the sound of music worries her slightly. And when she bursts in to find Henry air guitaring off the desk, rocking out with his Zero Zombies band, she's apoplectic. But we're only practising for the school talent contest, Henry protests.

At least there's a chance for Henry to practise his patent Flick the Bogey yoyo move on Moody Margaret, complete with exploding water-bomb, on his way back home; and still in rock star mode Henry decides to listen to his very favourite band, the Killer Boy Rats, at full volume. Trust Perfect Peter to ruin his fun. He has to tell, of course, and duly informs Mum that Henry's not doing his homework! Why does he always have to be so perfect? Henry's feelings boil over and as he transforms into a giant Henryosaurus he roars at a fleeing Peter. "Don't be horrid, Henry!" warns Dad, stomping upstairs and throwing open the door to Henry's room. He's surprised and not a little pleased to see Henry is doing his homework! He backs out slowly, and Henry snorts. As if! He's returns to working on an elaborate scheme to goo Moody Margaret!

But at school the next day, it's Margaret who's lining up a big bucket of purple goo over the entrance to Henry's classroom. Her intended victim is Henry, who is due to burst through the door any second and get a face full. The bell rings, and Henry rushes towards the classroom, late as ever. But he bumps into Miss Battle-Axe, who's walking with the school inspectors. She'll show them how disciplined her pupils are. "Teachers first, Henry!" she declares. "Of course, Miss Battle-Axe" replies Henry. A gallant school inspector reaches forward and turns the door handle and as Miss Battle-Axe walks through, she's pelted with a bucket of gunge. She only has one person to blame… "HENRY!!!"

Later that day, her face still tinged purple by the goo, Miss Battle-Axe is in pieces in Miss Oddbod's office. With out of control pupils and a lack of discipline in the classroom, the school simply can't be seen to be an unruly mess, Ms Oddbod explains. Not to mention the dismal homework record, for which Henry is largely responsible. That horrid boy, opines Miss Battle-Axe, she was never able to teach him anything…

Returning to her classroom, Miss Battle-Axe informs her jubilant class that they can go home early. Henry and Ralph are over the moon to discover from the local news that this is because Miss Battle-Axe has lost her job but Henry has a moment of disquiet as he watches Brick House headmaster Vic Van Wrinkle commenting on the situation. "It's a sad state of affairs when a school can't keep its own pupils in order," he tells the reporter. Miss Battle-Axe saves the last word for Henry. She'll be back!

Meanwhile, over at Brick House School, we get our first glimpse of the dastardly Vic Van Wrinkle. His plan is working, he says. It won't be long before Ashton Primary is shut down and all the parents in the area will be forced to send their kids to his hugely expensive school instead! He hands the school inspectors - who are clearly on his payroll - a pot of Mega Explosive Gross Goo with the dastardly instruction "Let's see if we can make this boy Henry even more horrid, shall we?"

The next day, back at Ashton Primary, there's a candidate for Miss Battle-Axe's old job, even though Ms Oddbod hasn't advertised it yet! A hulking Scottish gentleman introduces himself as Beowulf Battering Ram. Ms Oddbod sees straight through the pretence - Miss Battle-Axe in disguise - and gently explains that she can't give the disgraced teacher her old job back.

Henry and the rest of Miss Battle-Axe's class are crammed into the classroom of Miss Lovely, Perfect Peter's lovely teacher. Peter and the Best Boys are good as gold as they tell Miss Lovely all the lovely things they've done today. Unnoticed by anyone the school inspectors sneak the pot of goo into Henry's bag, just in time for Margaret to try and grab it off Henry. They tussle with the bag for a minute before Margaret's forceful tug loosens Henry's grip. The tub of Mega Gross Goo sails out of the bag, opens up in mid-air and splats Miss Lovely square in the face!

When she gets wind of what's happened, Ms Oddbod is outraged! She marches furiously out of her office and promptly bans the Zero Zombies from the school talent contest! That'll teach them. Henry's distraught.

At home, Henry's Rich Aunt Ruby, her son Stuck Up Steve, and Prissy Polly with her baby Vomiting Vera have come round for tea. Rich Aunt Ruby has heard Ashton Primary's on the brink of closing down, and is advising Mum to send Henry and Peter to Brick House. But isn't it very expensive? asks Mum. Henry's having the usual tussle with Stuck Up Steve over the TV remote control. Henry wants to watch his favourite programme, Too Cool for School, but Steve is only interested in watching Business for Boys. It's so not fair - isn't Henry allowed to watch what he wants to watch in his own house?

Later that night, there's a phone call. It's Great Aunt Greta, who's offering to pay for Perfect Peter to go to Brick House, and she's booked him into the Open Day. She says she'll take care of Henry. Henry is not impressed.

Henry arrives with Great Aunt Greta in her ancient Rolls Royce, pulling up outside … Our Lady Giddiantus, one of the poshest girls schools around. Of course, Great Aunt Greta thinks Henry is Henrietta, a girl - no-one else does though, and Henry is greeted by a trio of sneering school girls. This is bound to lead to trouble, especially when someone else turns up for the open day - Moody Margaret! Just what Henry needs! They step into the school together.

Over at Brick House, Peter is being taken to the Open Day by Dad. On his way in he spots his very favourite teacher, Miss Lovely. He's over the moon - is she getting a job here? "Maybe," says Miss Lovely. Inside, Vic Van Wrinkle is welcoming his new pupils. He asks Peter to show the assembled boys what he can do - with some prompting from Miss Lovely Peter embarks on a trembling Frere Jacques. The boys are not impressed!

Back at Our Lady Giddiantus, Margaret and Henry are making their way through the dark school corridors. The chanting escalates, getting louder and louder. Henry and Margaret turn and run for their lives!

While Peter is singing his song, Miss Lovely spots Vic Van Wrinkle in conversation with one of the school inspectors. She tells Peter to keep singing and goes to investigate as they return to Van Wrinkle's office. It doesn't take her long to figure out the inspectors are in Van Wrinkle's pay, but she's caught eavesdropping on their conversation. She hands her notes to Peter - look after your "Good as Gold book" she reminds him - before she is whisked off by Van Wrinkle.

Henry and Margaret make their escape from Giddiantus, pursued by hordes of Giddiantus Girls. Back at the Purple Hand Gang fort, Henry informs a stunned Purple Hand Gang that they've GOT to save Ashton Primary. Once he's persuaded his friends that he's serious, they turn their minds to the challenge of how to do this. Margaret joins the debate - the events of the day have persuaded her that she doesn't want to go to Giddiantus even if they paid her Dad to have her, and her taunts to Henry convince him that there's only one way to save the school - become so famous by winning the talent contest that they simply can't close the school down. Well, it just might work!

The challenge now is getting into the Crooked Corner, where the talent contest is taking place, without being spotted by Ms Oddbod's sidekick Soggy Sid. Margaret comes to the rescue with a foolproof disguise - pilfered uniforms from Giddiantus, and the boys look set to get away with it, until Bert gives the game away with his trademark 'I dunno' and the chase is on. The boys run through to the green room, with Sid in hot pursuit, to hook up with Brian and their instruments.

When Soggy Sid finally bursts in, all he can see is Brian, sitting on a large case. Brian denies all knowledge of the Zero Zombies. He's here to do his snake charming act, of course. Sid cautiously asks to be shown the snakes, but just as he's about to open the case, in walks Killer Boy Rats lead singer Ed Banger, who's one of the celebrity judges for the talent contest. Sid goes weak at the knees - he's a big fan, he says. Ed's just looking for the bathroom and Sid offers to show him the way. Phew, Henry and his friends are in the clear. For now!

When Sid finally returns, the Zero Zombies are already waiting in the wings, ready to go on stage. Sid takes a look in the case - it's empty! "Oh no!" says Brian. The snakes have escaped! Panic spreads as kids and performers run this way and that. The Zero Zombies are oblivious, all they're thinking about is getting onto that stage, and after a moment of stage fright on Henry's part, they're in the spotlight and are halfway through before Soggy Sid even notices they're there. His attempts to get them off the stage don't spoil the show, and everyone, Ed Banger included, rocks out to their rendition of 'Rockstar' by none other than the Killer Boy Rats.

Naturally enough the Zero Zombies win the talent contest, and Henry can't wait to get to Ms Oddbod's office to tell her the good news. Even meeting a sobbing Soggy Sid (who has just been sacked) in the school corridor doesn't dampen his enthusiasm. But she pours scorn and cold water on his scheme. No matter how famous he becomes, the school will still close down.

Back at home, Henry is distraught. While he ponders life without Ashton Primary, something that he would normally be celebrating, a note is pushed under his door. Purple Hand Gang Fort. Now. Signed Frenz. It reads. Arriving at the Purple Hand Gang fort, Henry discovers Margaret and Peter, waiting for him. Peter, spurred on by Margaret, tells Henry all about Vic Van Wrinkle's plot, information gleaned from Miss Lovely's notebook. Why don't we just tell a grown up, asks Henry, no longer confident that he can sort everything out on his own. Miss Lovely said tell no-one, reports Peter, wide eyed.

Margaret hands Henry a letter. Henry's been invited to play for the cash prize on his favourite TV show, Too Cool for School! But he's nervous, really nervous. No one has ever won on Too Cool For School - the tests are simply too hard. Well, someone loves you, says Margaret. You're going to be on Too Cool For School. Tomorrow! And of course Margaret has figured out that if Henry wins the big cash prize they can give the money to Ms Oddbod to bribe the school inspectors not to close down Ashton Primary. Easy really. Henry doesn't agree!

In the studio, Henry is terrified. The presenters welcome the audience, which includes all Henry's school friends and Peter and the Best Boys, to the show and ask Henry who he thinks his Terrible Teacher, waiting for him at the end of the show if, and it's a big if, he gets through, might be. "Henry has always had three problems," a mystery voice declares. "Homework, homework, homework." Wait a second… That sounds like…

But before Henry can think any more about who the Terrible Teacher might be, he is whisked away. His challenge will be to get his homework in on time. Noooo! Henry manages to get the first series of questions right, and follows his homework book down the back of the sofa. As the clock ticks away Henry rummages for it. He's got it, just in the nick of time! Task one complete!

Next up is nutrition - a bowl of worms, a bucket of spiders or an Ashton Primary hot school dinner lovingly prepared by the Demon Dinner Lady - which of these is best? There's no contest, and Henry faces his nightmare meal, vegetable stew, with thirty seconds to eat it all up. He looks at the mess of bubbly, unappetising stew. He can't do it! Mum, Dad, Ruby, Steve and Polly are watching at home. Henry's never eaten a vegetable in his life, says Mum, appalled.

As Henry steels himself to eat even one mouthful, Peter and the Best Boys sneak out of the studio, determined to find out where Miss Lovely has got to. Henry thinks he's going to be sick, the stew is so vile, but help is at hand from somewhere very unexpected. Fang, his ever faithful furry hamster friend, has sneaked into his rucksack, his mission, to get into the bowl of stew without the presenters noticing. After that it's an easy run, Fang's huge appetite taking care of the stew, to the stunned delight of Henry, who pretends to eat huge spoonfuls of the bubbling mess as Fang cleans up the bowl. Henry's through the second challenge, with a little help from his friend!

Vic Van Wrinkle is watching the action in the studio unfold on his wide screen TV in the Headmaster's Study at Brick House. He's holding Miss Lovely captive, and when Peter and the Best Boys appear, he promptly captures them too. What is that horrid boy up to, Van Wrinkle wonders out loud as he watches Henry's exploits? The Best Boys are first with their hands up, and one by one they reveal Henry and Margaret's plan to Van Wrinkle, realising too late what they've done.

Back at the Too Cool For School studio, it's time for Henry to meet the Bog of Doom. Henry's suspended on a small platform over a roiling mass of bright green goo, the only way out is a lever which is well and truly out of reach. Suddenly the platform starts to retract, powered by a peddling Soggy Sid, who's determined to have his revenge on Henry. Henry desperately tries again to reach the lever, but manages to lose his yo yo in the process - it falls into the Bog, never to be seen again. Once again help comes from unlikely quarters - Margaret throws Henry his Mighty Magnet yo-yo and with one flick of the bogey Henry manages to secure the lever and pull it down, releasing a second drawbridge. He's saved!

His next challenge is an easy one - where does Ms Oddbod keep the key to the Confiscation Cupboard? Of course Henry knows that it's in the plastic chest in her goldfish bowl! Now he has a choice - take whatever he wants from the Confiscation Cupboard and give up the chance to win the cash prize, or carry on and meet the Terrible Teacher. Henry is sorely tempted to take the goodies and run, but in the end he has to face up to what it is he's come here to do. He chooses the Terrible Teacher.

At Brick House, Van Wrinkle continues to watch, confused by Henry's altruistic decision, but Miss Lovely has a plan. Flicking her mobile phone onto the floor, she engages Van Wrinkle in conversation, and Peter makes a secret phone-call to Ms Oddbod, unnoticed by Van Wrinkle. Pressing the speaker button when Ms Oddbod answers, Peter positions the phone so that when Miss Lovely asks Van Wrinkle to explain his devious plot one more time and just like every dastardly schemer, he just can't resist giving her all the details, Ms Oddbod is there to hear everything. Replacing the receiver in her office, Ms Oddbod quickly calls the police.

Meanwhile Henry is about to face his final challenge. As the Terrible Teacher spins round in their chair, the audience gasp as they realise that the Terrible Teacher is Miss Battle-Axe! So it was her who invited Henry onto Too Cool for School! Henry is despondent, he'll never win the cash prize now. When Miss Battle-Axe reveals that the final homework subject is spelling Henry is resigned to failure, especially when Miss Battle-Axe asks him to spell one little word "Homework Henry…"

Nevertheless he has a go. H-O-M-E-he glances at the homework book on the desk in front of Miss Battle-Axe but before he can read the letters on the cover, she covers it up. He struggles to remember… W… Suddenly the bizarre appearances of Miss Battle-Axe throughout his journey here make sense; he flashes back to his encounters with Miss Battle-Axe and her favourite admonishment: "Oh, Henry…" O! That's it! Homework: H-O-M-E-W-O-R-K!

"Well done Henry," says Miss Battle-Axe "I knew you could do it" And done it he has - Miss Battle-Axe tells him he's only the second contestant to ever win on Too Cool For School. Henry is puzzled, the second? Miss Battle-Axe nods. Yes, the first winner was a long, long time ago. Henry spots the Too Cool for School badge displayed proudly on the scarf around her next - it's you, he says, astonished. You won Too Cool For School a long, long time ago!

Back at Brick House, Van Wrinkle decides to make his goodbyes, as the sound of sirens fills the air. Van Wrinkle makes a run for it, but falls to the ground as he climbs out of the window - Peter, that horrid boy, has tied his shoelaces together!

Margaret interrupts the celebrations to encourage Henry to get on with the job in hand. Henry and Margaret leave the studio with the big cash prize, on their way to Ms Oddbod's office but as they arrive they see the school inspectors being led away in handcuffs. It seems that the big cash prize won't be needed to save the school after all. Ms Oddbod hands the money back to Margaret, it's their money they won it fair and square.

I won it, asserts Henry as they leave the school once more. Big deal, beetle bum, says Margaret. What are we going to do with the money? Asks Henry. We're going to have the party of a lifetime, Margaret tells him, and so they do!

The party's in full swing and Mum and Dad notice that Henry's missing. They find him up in his room, doing his homework, or so he says. He puts the finishing touches to his computer game - gooing Moody Margaret - and runs downstairs to join the party goers, who include Prissy Polly singing along to 'Let's Dance'.

Horrid Henry The Movie
RRP: $34.95
Buy Now

Introducing Henry - Horrid Henry!

Ever get the feeling that life just isn't fair? Henry gets that feeling, all the time. And if you answered 'yes' to that question too, then you may be just like Henry.

Only chances are that you're not, because Henry is a ten-year-old kid with a perfect little brother called Peter and a Mum and Dad who would love him dearly if only he'd stop behaving like, well, a ten-year-old kid!

Look at it from their point of view; Peter's pet is a cat called Fluffy, Henry's pet is a hamster called Fang. Peter likes flower arranging and doing his homework, Henry likes playing with Gross Goo and listening to his favourite band, the Killer Boy Rats. Really, really loudly!

Sometimes Mum and Dad wonder where Henry came from, while Henry wonders where he's going to. Well, he knows he's headed for stardom of some sort, but he's just not quite sure how or when he's going to get there.

As if things weren't bad enough, Henry has to live next door to a girl. And she's not just any girl - Margaret is impossibly rich, impossibly moody and she's the lean, mean leader of the Secret Club, sworn enemies of Henry's Purple Hand Gang. Margaret thinks that if you don't like pink you're not worth talking to. And she is on a mission to make Henry's life a misery.

With all this going on, is it any wonder that Henry often finds himself in hot water?

Because if someone is pretending there's a shark in the school pool to get out of swimming class, or organising a campaign to liberate his friends from having to wear school uniform, you can bet it'll be Henry. And as Mum and Dad struggle to come up with increasingly severe forms of punishment, Henry can be found auctioning off Mum's perfume bottles or setting up a pet-sitting business in his bedroom in a desperate attempt to supplement the contents of his piggy bank.

Henry sees life somewhat differently to the rest of us - he's looking at it from the bottom up, and his favourite question is 'why'?

Why isn't ketchup classified as a vegetable? It's made from tomatoes, after all.
Why can't kids stay up all night on Christmas Eve? Santa does!
And why can't homework be doing what comes naturally - climbing trees and building a mega fort in the garden? Grrrrr! Sometimes life is just not fair!

Horrid Henry's History
With sales of over 16 million books in the UK alone, Horrid Henry is a bona-fide phenomenon. Created by author Francesca Simon and illustrated by Tony Ross, Horrid Henry is now the most successful children's literary character in the UK after Harry Potter. Translated into 22 languages and available in 27 countries, the books are popular with kids of all ages. The TV series, produced by Novel Entertainment and three times BAFTA nominated, is the most popular series ever on CITV and it has sold more than 1 million copies on DVD.

Understandably, then, the younger cast of Horrid Henry: The Movie in 3D knew exactly what they were getting into. "I've been reading the books since I was really, really young," says the film's star, 13-year-old Theo Stevenson, who plays Horrid Henry. "I got my mum to read me every single book. Me and all my mates are into them. When I heard they were making a movie of it, before I'd even got the part, I just wanted to see it, because I knew it was going to be amazing!"

"I've known about Horrid Henry for years," declares 11-year-old Ross Marron, who plays Henry's goody two-shoes brother, Perfect Peter.

"I used to read the books every single day," echoes 12-year-old Scarlett Stitt, who plays Moody Margaret. "And my brother is very obsessed with the TV show. Horrid Henry has been a part of my childhood and it's been great to get to know it again."

With 156 episodes completing production for transmission in the UK from Summer 2011, and the series sold in over 18 countries Novel Entertainment also runs a full licensing programme which includes toys, clothing and toiletries as well as a live stage show which has run for more than 280 performances in London's West End and across the UK. The website, www.horridhenry.me, has attracted more than 9 million page views since launch and two computer games, with a third in the pipeline, have been released for the Nintendo platform. Henry has also released his own music album and audio books, broadcast his own radio show, appeared live at Legoland, and featured in the recent, hugely popular, Marmite campaign.

The story of the Horrid Henry franchise begins in 1994 with the publication of the first book, simply titled 'Horrid Henry' but it wasn't until several books later that it started to work its way into kids' consciousness. "Book four is called Horrid Henry's Nits" explains Novel Entertainment's Mike Watts, who is an Executive Producer on the film, "and in the way kids like really yucky things that was the first big hit."

Released in 1997, Horrid Henry's Nits was the spark that set the franchise alight, and a new Horrid Henry book has been released each year since. In 2001, Mike Watts and Emmy Award winning producer Lucinda Whiteley formed Novel Entertainment, and were on the lookout for fresh literary franchises to develop for children's television.

"I went to a children's bookshop in London, and the lady behind the counter recommended Horrid Henry," continues Mike Watts. "She said, 'Children buy one, and then they come right back in and buy the rest of them.'". Mike Watts remembers that he and Lucinda Whiteley read the stories the same day and immediately understood their appeal. "It was easy to see why children would love a character like Henry who is full of mischief and gets to do things they can only dream of."

After identifying the potential of the books, Novel contacted the publisher, Orion, with a view to acquiring the rights. "It turned out others had thought about doing the same thing," says Lucinda Whiteley. "There were seven companies in total that pitched at the time. Most wanted to do it as live action, we wanted to do it as animation. We put together a little sample and Francesca really liked what we'd done. She thought it was very funny, and that was her big thing, that we should keep it funny."

Having won the pitch, Novel worked with Francesca Simon directly to build a picture of the world Henry inhabits. "Behind the stories there was quite a lot in her head about Henry's world" continues Lucinda Whiteley. "When you're taking something from a book to a TV series you need all of that information, to make his world more three-dimensional."

The Horrid Henry animated show debuted on CITV in late 2006 and became their most popular kids TV series ever, sending the popularity of the franchise into orbit. With an initial season of 52 episodes, the BAFTA nominated show was based on stories already present in the Horrid Henry books, along with fresh stories created just for the series, and proved to be an immediate winner for audiences. Two further series of episodes have since been commissioned bringing the total number of episodes to 156, a record for a UK produced animation series.

"We'd been thinking about next steps for the franchise," says Novel's Lucinda Whiteley. "Along with the TV, we'd done a stage show, two Nintendo DS games, a music album and a radio show and created a website so it felt to us that a film was always going to be the next stage."

For kids who have grown up reading the Horrid Henry books, and watching the animated series, there's plenty to take from Henry's world. Says Theo Stevenson: "I remember, when I was reading the books, I was always thinking, 'Oh, why's everyone picking on Henry? It's not fair!' Everyone wants to be friends with him, they want to be with him and he always saves the day."

"He's a very inspiring character for children to look up to," agrees Scarlett Stitt. "They all say, 'Oh, he's so cool - I want to be like him!'"

15-year-old Tyger Drew-Honey (Outnumbered) plays Henry's posh cousin, Stuck-Up Steve. A big fan of the Horrid Henry series, he believes kids can relate to the world's sprawling cast of characters. "Everyone has friends who are very goody two-shoes and friends who are like Henry. It recreates their school playgrounds, I think."

Ross Marron says he loved playing Perfect Peter, even though the character's a bit of a goody two-shoes. "He's kind of the hero of the film, really," he declares. "He has all the facts about what's going on, and he takes them to Henry, so he really saves the school. I've always wanted to play a character who's strong about his feelings and believes he can do it if he sets his mind to it."

And Scarlett Stitt is just as defensive of Margaret. "I don't think she's the bad guy at all, but then I would say that because she's my character," she laughs. "She is the brains behind the plans and she's a bit snobby, but I think she's just putting that on to impress people."

For Richard E. Grant, who plays the dastardly headmaster of Brick House School, Vic Van Wrinkle, a character created especially for the film, Horrid Henry: The Movie represents themes present in literature for millennia. "Any story where authority is challenged and usurped is a winner," he says. "You are so powerless as a child, and challenging the authority of your parents and teachers is a big deal, so anyone who does so usually earns big Brownie points. The desire to exert your own personality requires courage and tenacity, both of which Henry has by the bucket load. It's the classic David and Goliath scenario where the little guy takes on the might of a giant and wins."

"When I came on-board I watched one of the series of the cartoons," says Mathew Horne, who plays Henry's dad. "I got it straight away. It's a really nice, simple dynamic. The cartoon is effectively a sit-com and that's a field I've worked in a lot, so I knew what to do. Those characters that are amiable and positive in the face of adversity are always a good source of comedy."

"Naughty children are pretty historical," says the film's director, Nick Moore. "It appeals to kids. Everyone loves a rascal, which is kind of what Henry is."