Minnie the Minx: Beano character marks 70th anniversary

Laura Howell has been illustrating Minnie the Minx since 2018

Despite turning 70 this year Hermione Makepeace - better known as Minnie the Minx - will forever be preserved as a 10-year-old girl.

In 1953 the writers of the Beano said they created the character to "kick back against pre-war societal norms".

"She's still fearless, and she likes to create a bit of trouble too," said her current illustrator Laura Howell.

"The 1950s aren't really known for being a shining beacon of feminism," the Birmingham-based artist said.

"So a little girl who won't be told what to do and considers herself tougher than all the boys around her, was quite a thing.

"She will always be the wild one, the one who senses fun in everything."

Minnie was first introduced by DC Thomson to The Beano in 1953

Synonymous with Dundee, DC Thomson was set up in 1905, with the first Beano appearing in 1938, making it the world's longest-running weekly comic.

Joining the comic as its first female illustrator in 2007, Howell has been drawing Minnie since 2018.

"I would like to say that I stomped into the editor's office waving flags and demanding the job, but the truth is the editor decides who will draw what strip," she said.

"I can't speak for what ancient and arcane methods he uses to do this - but it was decided for me.

"But there is something quite satisfying about a female artist working on the most famous female character."

Although Minnie was created with Dennis the Menace iconography - most famously the red and black stripy jumper - Howell said Minnie was "very much her own character".

Created in 1938, The Beano is the world's longest-running weekly comic

Talking of her own career, the artist said working as an illustrator was never something she had considered until she reached her late 20s.

"I would have liked to, but I didn't really have the confidence in my own abilities to think I can do this," she said.

Howell is now one of three female artists at the Beano.

"It's a bit of a misconception that there aren't that many women working in comics, but they don't tend to cluster in humour comics like this," she said.

"When I started, I was the first one in nearly 70 years at that point, but it's good that we are more represented."

She said being in charge of the character had not made her own personality any more wild or rebellious.

"I think that anybody that has to fill in a tax return has lost the right to call themselves wild," she joked.

"I do wear a beret with a pompom on the top that I wear at comic-cons and I do own a stripy top - so if I'm not living the life, I'm at least living the visuals."

Lionesses captain Leah Williamson has guest-edited a special edition to celebrate 70 years of Minnie the Minx.

A special edition of the comic has been released, guest-edited by the Lionesses football captain Leah Williamson to mark the 70th anniversary.

Williamson said Minnie had shown generations of children "through mischief and laughter, that it's okay to blaze their own trail through life" and that "strong role models like her empower young girls, helping them break down barriers".