Enid Blyton debate: Richard Madeley calls accusations ‘ridiculous’ after Royal Mint refuses to put ‘racist, sexist and homophobic’ children’s author on coin

Good Morning Britain presenter Richard Madeley has fiercely defended Enid Blyton after plans to give the Famous Five author a commemorative coin were rejected.

The Royal Mint blocked proposals to honour Ms Blyton with a commemorative 50p piece, saying she was “known to have been a racist, sexist, homophobe and not a very well-regarded writer”.

The Mint’s advisory committee said the plans discussed in December 2016 were quashed over fears it would provoke a “backlash” from the public.

The coin was would have been released that month to mark the 50th anniversary of the best-selling author’s death.

Last year marked 50 years since the author's death
George Konig/Keystone Features/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Minutes of the committee’s meeting were obtained by the Mail on Sunday under the Freedom of Information Act.

They sparked a fierce public debate.

And Mr Madeley was among those to defend the children’s writer, saying any suggestion she was homophobic was “ridiculous”.

Speaking to his GMB co-host Charlotte Hawkins on Tuesday, he argued: “It seems to me that if you were to draw a line in the year, say 1955, and go backwards from there you could pretty much pick up anybody based on our modern values.

“There are social lines that have changed and you can’t judge people by the standards of today, so actually I think personally to call Enid Blyton homophobic is ridiculous.

“And to say she was an anti-woman, anti-feminist - what about Mallory Towers?

Defenders of the author said she awakened a love of reading in them

“What about George in The Famous Five? These were strong girls, very very strong girls.

“I was reading some of it last night, I don’t detect a line that you could say as anti women, that’s anti-female, that’s misogynist.”

Twitter users were quick to offer their two cents on the controversy, with a number refuting Mr Madeley’s claim that the author’s values were typical of her generation.

One said: “For everyone using the ‘don’t judge by modern standards’ line - Enid Blyton had a manuscript rejected by Macmillan in 1960 on the grounds of xenophobic content.

“An editorial decrying her racist book ‘The Little Black Doll’ was published by the Guardian in 1966. Don’t do this."

Author Matt Haig agreed, tweeting: “I loved Enid Blyton’s books when I was little, but I definitely think there is a valid case for her not having a commemorative coin at this point in our history.

“Especially as she would never have been given a commemorative coin in her own era.”

Other users have protested, praising Blyton for getting “millions of children into reading.”

BBC Apprentice winner Michelle Dewberry said: “My childhood was often very unhappy (to put it mildly!).

“Books gave me much needed escapism & happiness. Alongside #RoaldDahl #EnidBlyton was my fave writer.

“Refusing this coin is wrong. It denies the joy she gave to many.

“Stop censoring yesterday based on today’s standards.”

Journalist Toby Young added: “Baffled by Royal Mint’s decision not to include Enid Blyton on a commemorative coin because her books were politically incorrect by today’s standards.

“Shouldn’t she be celebrated for creating one of the first trans characters in children’s literature - George in the Famous Five?”

Ms Blyton’s books have sold 600 million copies, including more than two million in the last five years.

As well as her best-known work, the Famous Five series, Ms Blyton - who died in 1968 - also won countless loyal fans with the Secret Seven and Noddy books.

Her Malory Towers novels, set in a boarding school for girls, sold 350,000 copies last year and are set to be turned into a 13-part drama for CBBC.

Blyton's face would have featured on a 50p coin if plans had gone ahead in 2016
Evening Standard/Getty Images

A spokesperson for the Royal Mint told the Mail on Sunday: “The point of the advisory committee is to ensure that themes commemorated on UK coins are varied, inclusive and represent the most significant events in our history.

“For these reasons not every event will progress to a UK coin.”

But novelist Jilly Cooper also dismissed the Mint's criticism as “rubbish”.

“Enid Blyton was a brilliant storyteller and her books have got millions of children hooked on reading,” she told the paper.

“She definitely deserves a commemorative coin. I adore her and so do my grandchildren."

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