Buy The Worst Witch

"Onward, ever striving onward, Proudly on our brooms we fly. Straight and true above the treetops Shadows on the moonlit sky." The strains of the school song can be heard echoing through the vaulted halls of the converted Gothic castle, which is Cackle's Academy. The young witches fly in on their broomsticks across the dark wooded slopes and over the school gates for the start of another year. Miss Hardbroom is taking a register of the first years as they arrive. She is very pleased to see Ethel Hallow come flying in and make a perfect landing, but has to inform Miss Cackle that Mildred Hubble hasn't yet arrived. Miss Cackle wonders if Walker's Gate can be left open a little longer, but Hardbroom is a stickler for discipline and insists that it be closed on time. Mildred Hubble arrives breathless, at the other side of the gate. As she searches for the handle the door slams shut and the key is turned. Mildred is about to call out, but stops herself in time as she reads the notice on the door - "Latecomers will report to the back entrance where they will stand and wait until they are dealt with by me." signed C. Hardbroom. Inside the courtyard, Miss Cackle is making a speech of welcome to the girls. At that moment Mildred, in full flight, dangling dangerously from her broomstick, rises up over the gates. Miss Cackle, Miss Hardbroom and the new girls watch, transfixed, as Mildred hanging on for dear life dives down, swoops along the courtyard and crashes straight into the school dustbins, breaking her broomstick in half. Mildred hasn't gotten off to a good start. Everyone has a laugh at her expense, but Maud Moonshine comes to her rescue with some parcel tape. Mildred's broomstick will never fly perfectly again. The next few days are full of madness and mystery as Mildred comes to terms with all the rules and age-old traditions of Cackle's Academy. What an odd place it is! There is no electricity in the school, there are bats in her bedroom, and a cold north wind whistles through twelve-inch thick ever-open glass-free windows. The first two weeks are devoted to broomstick flying. If you don't make the grade, you don't stay for the course. After all, who's ever heard of a witch who can't fly a broomstick? There's no real need for it anymore, but Cackle's is a very traditional establishment, unfortunately for Mildred, who is afraid of heights. Ethel and her friend Drusilla Paddock think this is a great joke. Mildred is warned that, though she may a scholarship girl, if she doesn't pass her Broomstick Aptitude Test, Miss Cackle will be forced to ask her to leave. It looks like Mildred Hubble is going to be out of the school before she's hardly begun. But when the time comes, with a little bit of magic from somewhere unexpected, she stays the course and manages to perform some extraordinary manoeuveres...
Hide description ▲

Mildred Hubble and Maud Moonshine are now best of friends and, often to be found in their company, are Ruby and Jadu. Ethel and Drusilla however, are always trying to stir up trouble between them, taunting Maud Moonshine by calling her "Moonface" and delighting in telling Mildred how hopeless she is. Now that they are a few weeks into the term, homesickness is taking its toll of the first years. Miss Hardbroom makes everyone write a letter home, telling their parents that they are well and doing fine, which only makes everyone feel worse - apart from Ethel and Drusilla, who apparently have no room for public sentiment. Part of their problem is the food - liver in cold, greasy gravy, fish with gazing eyes and lumpy milk puddings. As a result they've resorted to eating too many sweets. There's a disgraceful scene in the Great Hall when Ethel "accidentally " trips Mildred and her plate of stew lands all over Miss Hardbroom. Miss Cackle decides that the only answer is to set an example by eating exactly the same food as the girls - for the whole week. "If it's good enough for the headmistress it's good enough for them!" Meanwhile, the warm and motherly school cook, Mrs. Tapioca, comes to Mildred's rescue and invites her down to the kitchen to sample her fresh pasta and pizzas. Mildred spots an extraordinary contraption, which Frank Blossom has created for catching mice. It's ridiculously large and complicated for such a small task. She also notices an interesting cupboard, which Mrs. Tapioca tells her is where the staff keeps their own food. Mildred has an idea and later she suggests to the others that they have a midnight feast. This gets an enthusiastic response from all but Ethel. Miss Cackle takes a class in simple shape-changing, and their hats are magicked into an amusing range of headgear. The girls are really enjoying themselves. Miss Cackle uses the opportunity to give them a lecture on the finer details of shape-changing: hats are easy because a witch's hat is already magic, but "suppose you wanted to make cheese, for instance" - and off she goes in a trance dreaming of all the wonderful things she's missing by restricting herself to school food. Miss Cackle also tells them the legend of Sir Walter's Wet Week. Centuries ago, Baron Overblow refused to give shelter to Sir Walter one wild and stormy night and left him in the rain to die. As a result every year it rains for a week and the water, like tears of pity, flows down the walls. On the last night of the week there's always a big storm and Sir Walter walks the corridors, looking for revenge! Ethel and Drusilla hatch a plan to scare Mildred's lot by pretending to be the ghost of Sir Walter but the tables are turned and they get more that they bargained for thanks to Miss Cackle and to Frank's amazing cheese protector! Miss Cackle has proved her point over the school food but agrees to change the rules and declares Saturdays to be pizza days, much to everyone's delight!
Hide description ▲

It's time for the presentation of the kittens - the black cat will sit decoratively on the end of each girl's broomstick when they fly. Mildred nearly doesn't get one at all, and when she does there are no black ones left, so she has to make do with a tabby. Meanwhile, Frank is looking after his nephew Charlie for a few days and brings him to the school. Charlie is fascinated by the girls but finds it hard to believe that they're really witches. When Ethel brags about her family portraits that adorn the walls, Charlie insults her lineage. He annoys her even more by asking whether boys can be witches. Of course Mildred and Ethel disagree. When Tabby can't even manage to cling onto Mildred's broom, Ethel lays into her about how hopeless she is. Mildred has been looking up spells in the library and, pushed too far, tries to turn Ethel into a frog - only to find a pig in front of her. The pig trots off, and the chase is on to catch it and turn it back into Ethel before Miss Hardbroom discovers what's happened - and Mildred gets into trouble once again! Charlie gets mixed up in all this by memorizing a simple reversing spell, which comes in handy when Mildred turns Ethel into a pig. When Frank brings Ethel to Ted's pig farm, Mildred and Charlie must rescue her before the farmer brings them to the market. Charlie manages to save the day, though not before the pig becomes a duck and Charlie becomes a donkey!
Hide description ▲

"Moonlight! Starlight! The Bogies will be out tonight! Give us a candle - give us a light! If you don't you'll get a fright. It's Punkie Night tonight! Time to meet - for a trick or treat! It's Punkie Night tonight! Punkie Night, Punkie Night, Punkie Night, tonight!" All of Mildred's attempts to revise her potion notes fail, and when Miss Hardbroom gives them the test of making a laughter potion, Mildred and Maud create one that's a slimy green colour - Ethel Hallow (who never worries about tests) makes one that's bright pink. Fearing the worst, they swallow the potion and wait for the results to set in. Soon, everyone's giggling as the potions do their work, except for Mildred and Maud - who discover they are invisible. Miss Hardbroom sends them to Miss Cackle's office, where Mildred is severely reprimanded, and called the Worst Witch. Mildred is determined not to get into any more trouble, but Halloween is near, and Mildred's class is chosen to put on a flying display. In a rare show of democracy, Miss Hardbroom draws the parts out of a cauldron, and Mildred is chosen to play the main character. She will have to perform fancy broomstick-flying moves. H.B. insists that Mildred's broom, stuck together with parcel tape, be replaced with Ethel's - a Slozzinger-Hazletwig. Ethel is still furious about Mildred turning her into a pig, and whispers a few words to the broomstick. The Chief Wizard, Egbert Hellibore, attends the Halloween celebration. He expects a fine presentation, in the tradition of Cackle's Academy. All goes well until Ethel's broom starts behaving in a most unorthodox way and Mildred crashes into Chief Wizard Hellibore. The ceremony is ruined and Mildred is in deep disgrace. Ethel is triumphant. That night, Mildred decides to run away...
Hide description ▲

A distressed Mildred runs off with Tabby in her bag, and stopping to rest in the valley below she comes upon a group of witches. They are planning to take over Cackle's Academy by turning everyone into frogs while they are asleep! Mildred, thinking on her feet, casts self-defense spell on the witches, but it doesn't stick. Miss Drill, meanwhile, has decided to take a ride in the forest. She is angry with the others for not taking her fears about "shifty" witches seriously. She comes across Mildred's things, and decides to investigate. To her surprise, she discovers the witches have planted Mildred's feet in the ground. Miss Drill comes to the rescue and yanks her from the ground, praising her untied bootlaces. Back at the school, the evil witches have turned Miss Cackle into a frog. Mildred and Maud, who have decided to become friends again under the circumstances, team up to trap the witches. Maud will create a diversion while Mildred will try to re-create the wrong spell, "in exactly the right way". They end up in the lab where Mildred casts the spell on the witches, shrinks them, and puts them in a box. Miss Cackle is furious when she discovers her jealous twin sister in the bunch, and demands that they concede defeat. Agatha, Coldstone, and Bindweed disagree very loudly and the box is closed until they decide to take a no-retaliation oath according to the Witches Code. They reluctantly agree, and are restored to their original sizes. Miss Cackle is so pleased with Mildred for coming to the rescue of the Academy that she decides to forget all about the celebration foul-ups.
Hide description ▲

A new term and Mildred arrives back at school with trepidation. Thinking that some extra responsibility might do her some good, Miss Cackle asks Mildred to look after a new first year, Enid Nightshade. On the surface the new girl seems rather quiet - even dull. Mildred has been put on probation by Miss Cackle, and if she does one tiny thing wrong, she's out. She throws herself wholeheartedly into watching Enid and Maud feels left out. Meanwhile, Mr. Blossom has waged a war against a wayward fungus that has spread all over the school. One night, as he is skulking about the halls pulverizing it, he sees a monkey - too much spray? Enid's true character is discovered while the girls are rehearsing for a play with Miss Drill. When Enid has had enough of Ethel's snootiness, she unties the rope holding the scenery upright, and it falls on her head. She passes out cold, and the girls are punished. Their punishment is to scrub the floors, a task of which Enid quickly tires. She runs off leaving Mildred alone with the scrub-brush. When Mildred's curiosity finally gets the better of her, Mildred abandons the scrubbing and goes to find Enid. She opens the door to her room and the monkey escapes. Mildred thinks she'll do Enid a good turn and chases it on her broomstick, which ends in disaster. Miss Hardbroom thinks the monkey is Ethel, but in fact it's Enid's cat, which she's turned into a monkey for fun. She is obviously cheekier than she looks! Mildred will have to watch her or she'll be in even more trouble than usual.
Hide description ▲

Miss Cackle's birthday is a day of indescribable boredom where the girls are all expected to sing, recite or chant for her in the Great Hall. Maud is getting special coaching for her chanting and Ethel is playing solo violin. Mildred is starting to realize that looking after Enid is becoming a liability and Maud is feeling decidedly left out. On the morning of the birthday celebrations, Enid, determined not to sit through the whole interminable performance, drags a reluctant Mildred into a store cupboard. Eagle-eyed Ethel however, has spotted them and locks the door on them. Maud sees what has happened but before she can do anything, Miss Hardbroom appears, and ushers her into the Great Hall. Inside the locked cupboard Mildred is in despair - she'll definitely be expelled now. Piles of old furniture surround them and, high up on one wall is an arch that which leads to who-knows-where? Buried beneath the furniture, they find a broken broomstick that they temporarily repair with Enid's sash and very shakily they manage to take off - just as Miss Hardbroom comes bursting through the door. At Miss Cackle's birthday celebration, the proceedings are in full swing when suddenly; Mildred and Enid fly out through an archway at the top of the Hall. Maud, thinking quickly, introduces them as the surprise item - a double display on solo broomstick! Despite their clownish acrobatics, Miss Cackle decides to take it kindly. Their display may not have been delicately performed, but it showed "team spirit and initiative and effort". Mildred breathes a sigh of relief - they have gotten away with it! But Miss Hardbroom, doing one of her sudden materializing acts, tells her that the prize should go to Maud, "You have her to thank for saving you from a fate worse than death!"
Hide description ▲

It's half-term, and the girls are off on a "strictly no magic" camping trip with Miss Drill and Miss Hardbroom. Mildred soon breaks this rule, after she attempts to lighten their loads. After a lot muttering and moaning, the group arrive at their destination, only to find they have been double-booked with a team of Canadian boy scouts. Much to Miss Hardbroom's displeasure, the two groups decide to "embrace the democracy of the great outdoors" and share the campsite. The girls are getting along extremely well with the boys and Miss Drill is getting on even better with their team leader, Serge Dubois. But Miss Hardbroom is convinced it will all end in disaster and resolves to have nothing more to do with the trip. The next day, Miss Drill and Serge decide to send the group on a treasure quest. Of course Ethel and Drusilla are on one team, and Mildred is on the other. Ethel lets her competitiveness get the better of her when the other team gets to the treasure map before her. She magics a few natural phenomenas, and when Mildred retaliates, things get completely out-of-hand. With a heavy blizzard raging, Drusilla sprains her ankle and it is Mildred who runs to save her. Miss Drill suspects magic and begs Miss Hardbroom to stop the blizzard, but it takes a bit of convincing, since she still miffed by the situation. When H.B. finally quells the roaring winds, everybody comes together in a celebration of tea and marshmallows.
Hide description ▲

During a potion lesson to make the elixir of life, Mildred accidentally drops a cyberpup, lent to her by Ruby, into her cauldron. The potion froths and gurgles and overflows the sides of the cauldron. A creaking and groaning sound fills the classroom. The desk and floorboards are coming to life - as trees! The potion laboratory is wrecked. The cyberpup has also come to life - not harmless anymore, but spiky and ravenous and requiring endless attention. Miss Cackle seizes the opportunity for a complete modernization of the laboratory and decides to invite the Chair of the School Governors (who happens to be Mr. Hallow, Ethel's father) to inspect the damage and hopefully pay to re-equip the laboratory. Mr. Hallow arrives practically bursting with gadgets. He's keen to build the potion lab of the future: All Hallows Information Technology - The Software for Sorcery. Computers are installed and initially the girls are very excited - so are some of the staff, though not Miss Hardbroom. Meanwhile, unseen by anybody, Ruby's cybermonster seizes the opportunity to download onto the computer. Soon, the staff and students are feeding it nonstop. This attention is not enough for it however, and it plans to hook up to the Internet and enslave the world. Mildred becomes more and more concerned that her friends are becoming zombies at the mercy of the computers. While she is in the library, Fenella and Griselda draw her attention to an old fairy book and tell her the story of the Snow Queen who places a splinter of glass in Kay's heart, which puts him under her power. The comparison is obvious and Mildred looks for a spell that could undo the attention of the computers. Mildred's enchantment works on Ruby and Miss Hardbroom and in the nick of time, Miss Hardbroom saves the day.
Hide description ▲

During a potion lesson to make the elixir of life, Mildred accidentally drops a cyberpup, lent to her by Ruby, into her cauldron. The potion froths and gurgles and overflows the sides of the cauldron. A creaking and groaning sound fills the classroom. The desk and floorboards are coming to life - as trees! The potion laboratory is wrecked. The cyberpup has also come to life - not harmless anymore, but spiky and ravenous and requiring endless attention. Miss Cackle seizes the opportunity for a complete modernization of the laboratory and decides to invite the Chair of the School Governors (who happens to be Mr. Hallow, Ethel's father) to inspect the damage and hopefully pay to re-equip the laboratory. Mr. Hallow arrives practically bursting with gadgets. He's keen to build the potion lab of the future: All Hallows Information Technology - The Software for Sorcery. Computers are installed and initially the girls are very excited - so are some of the staff, though not Miss Hardbroom. Meanwhile, unseen by anybody, Ruby's cybermonster seizes the opportunity to download onto the computer. Soon, the staff and students are feeding it nonstop. This attention is not enough for it however, and it plans to hook up to the Internet and enslave the world. Mildred becomes more and more concerned that her friends are becoming zombies at the mercy of the computers. While she is in the library, Fenella and Griselda draw her attention to an old fairy book and tell her the story of the Snow Queen who places a splinter of glass in Kay's heart, which puts him under her power. The comparison is obvious and Mildred looks for a spell that could undo the attention of the computers. Mildred's enchantment works on Ruby and Miss Hardbroom and in the nick of time, Miss Hardbroom saves the day.
Hide description ▲

Mrs Cosie's tearoom is a haven of peace and comfort for Miss Cackle, full of delicious goodies. It is, however, strictly out-of-bounds to the girls of the Academy. This doesn't deter Mildred and her gang, who are keen to stem their hunger pangs and take advantage of a free cake promotion. Unseen by Miss Cackle, the girls settle down at a table where they overhear a plan to trick Miss Cosie into selling her tearooms so that a toxic incinerator can be built on the site. This would make life unbearable for the inhabitants of Miss Cackle's - to say nothing about the wildlife. Can Mildred prevent Mrs. Cosie from signing the tearooms away and, more importantly, an the girls avoid being caught out-of-bounds by Miss Cackle and the stickler Miss Hardbroom?
Hide description ▲

The Chief Wizard, Egbert Hellibore, comes to give a talk to the girls on Spells, Potions, and Gourmet Cooking. The girls are given strict instructions about behaviour by Miss Cackle and H.B so that when the talk turns out to be really quite good fun, the girls have been so "drilled" that they clam up completely even when asked to join in. Hellibore presumes that they are lacking in confidence and need more practice at public speaking. He suggests a debate between the boys at his school for Wizards and, put on the spot, Miss Cackle has to agree. Ethel is chosen to be the star speaker, but even Mildred discovers she quite likes rattling on about whatever comes into her head. The girls are looking forward to meeting the boys, though when they are introduced, they hardly say a word. Have they all been overawed? But no - in the first part of the debate, the girls are indescribably good and the boys are hopeless. At break, it looks like the girls have got it in the bag. Hellibore magics some snacks for break, but some of the boys have brought their extraordinary-looking bottles of fizzy juice, which they won't let the girls near. After break - a shock turn around! Even the shy, mumbly boys have turned into regular orators, the girls are shocked to dumbness and the boys wipe the floor with them. But before the boys depart, Mildred and the others manage to steal a bottle of the suspicious fizz. When they test it out, the results are fascinating - especially in lessons, and everyone wants a go. The problem comes when it spills onto inanimate objects which then have the power of speech and can talk about their lot - mostly to whinge. And finally Miss Hardbrooms's desk spills the beans to her. To their surprise, H.B. is not as cross as might be expected. A return match is arranged with the boys. Hellibore and the boys can't resist, and come fully prepared with plenty of strange fizzy juice. They don't expect that the bottle of juice will be speaking in the debate - and would have a lot to say about what the boys had been up to.
Hide description ▲

It is nearly the end of Mildred's first year at Cackle's Academy. One night, there is a strange, fierce wind which blasts through the castle, rattling and shaking everything and giving Mildred and Maud bad nightmares. Next day, everything seems fine - except for Miss Cackle. She seems completely out of sorts. She is particularly irritated with Mildred and actually tells the staff that she is the Worst Witch in the school and that she is going to expel her. Miss Hardbroom is pleased to hear her opinion of Mildred confirmed, but strangely piqued about the expulsion - she finds herself saying there is little point in doing it now. When Miss Bat reminds Miss Cackle how Mildred saved them all from her wicked sister, Agatha, Miss Cackle breaks into a fury and says that relations between her and her sister are of a private matter. Mildred is put in isolation for the night, and spots Miss Cackle waving a lantern towards the forest. Mildred, Maud, and Enid consult as to what it means - has Miss Cackle been magicked by her evil sister? Mildred thinks not - witches aren't allowed to revenge themselves once beaten. Luckily, Ethel, who has followed them, knows about a statute of limitations - and Agatha's will be up at the high noon on the last day of the term. Ethel feels a bit sorry for Mildred now that she's going. It takes all the combined resources of the first years, to discover what is really going on - of course, Miss Cackle is her sister, the wicked Agatha! The girls track down the real Miss Cackle to the store cupboard in which Mildred and Enid were once trapped. Unfortunately, they are discovered by two of Agatha's wicked cronies, and time is ticking away to midday on the last day of term. The final confrontation takes place in front of everybody and gives Mildred a chance to show us all why she's really the best witch in the school.
Hide description ▲

Mildred arrives for her second year at Cackle's in a positive mood. There's a new intake of young would-be witches one of whom, Sybil, seems particularly wimpy. Mildred, in an attempt to be kind to Sybil, only seems to make matters worse and is inevitably blamed for Sybil's tears. Meanwhile, an argument is going on in the staff room between Miss Bat and Miss Drill about who is to be the second year class mistress. The usual second year tutor has decided not to return. Miss Cackle suggests that they share responsibility while she makes up her mind. This leads to rivalry and mischief between the two factions of Class Two - those for Miss Bat and those for Miss Drill. Ethel and Drusilla enlist the help of Sybil and Clarice in their scheme to get Mildred and her gang in trouble. When Mildred makes a surprise discovery - that Sybil is Ethel's younger sister - the game is up. Neither Miss Bat nor Miss Drill make the grade as Year Two Class Tutor and - horror of horrors - Miss Hardbroom takes over once again.
Hide description ▲

Miss Cackle decides it's time to upgrade the school's alarm system and Mr. Blossom, the handyman, has concocted a wonderful contraption with levers and pulleys all around the school. It is not wholly reliable and inevitable false alarms ensue. Meanwhile, the girls are learning finger sparks to enhance the effect of Spells with Miss Hardbroom. Of course Ethel delicately zaps away one pine cone, while Mildred puts a hole in the cupboard door. Not all the Hallows are at the top of the class though, as Sybil fails her broomstick flying test. Mildred tries to make her feel more comfortable, but for some reason, she always seems to say the wrong thing. Things work themselves out though, when there is a genuine emergency in the school - created of course by Ethel and Drusilla - Mildred rises to the occasion, helped by her use of an overactive spell. She manages to save Sybil from a perilous situation and is awarded Cackle's Academy Medal for bravery.
Hide description ▲

Ethel thinks it's Mildred's fault that Sybil is always following her around, so when things go too far during a lesson of broomstick flying, Ethel vows to get her back. When Tabby falls off Mildred's broomstick, she is sent to her room with strict orders to make sure that the cat learns to properly sit on the broomstick. Frustrated, Mildred decides to take a nap, and when she awakes, she discovers that she's been turned into a frog. She escapes to find help but instead, Miss Hardbroom scoops her up and puts her in her handbag. Mildred thinks this is all Miss Hardbroom's doing, when she is unceremoniously dumped into a jar. Life as a frog is far from easy, so Mildred is greatly relieved when she manages to escape to the safety of the school pond. There she meets another frog - a wizard who has been enchanted so long ago that he can't even remember his own name. Mildred promises to get help as soon as she's restored to her old self. With a lot of effort, Mildred gets back to the school, where the others discover what has happened. When Ethel turns her back, she discovers it wasn't Miss Hardbroom that turned her into a frog. When Miss Hardbroom suddenly appears, she gets the shock of her life when Mildred is able to recite the precious contents of her bag.
Hide description ▲

Chief Wizard Hellibore is to give a master class in magic to the girls of Cackle's Academy. This is an ideal opportunity for Mildred to enlist his help to change her newfound frog friend back to his old self. Unfortunately, Mildred has been banished to her room and, as punishment, forbidden to attend the master class. She manages to lure Drusilla to her room and goes to the class in her place. Needless to say, Ethel who has also been banished from the class, exposes Mildred. It looks as though Mildred is in trouble again, especially when Hellibore recognizes her as the the girl who crashed into him last Halloween. Determined to keep her promise she reveals the wizard-frog who she has been hiding under her cloak, and persuades The Chief Wizard to change him back. Lo and behold, the two Wizards are old friends from long ago and there is general rejoicing all around.
Hide description ▲

Panic spreads amongst the teachers of Cackle's Academy; they're going to have a visit from the Witch School Inspectorate, Ofwitch. The particular individual appointed to inspect Cackle's Academy is none other than Mistress Hecketty Broomhead, a tyrant of the first order and, as it happens, Miss Hardbroom's personal tutor from witch training college. An emergency plan of action is drawn up and, in order to prevent any unforeseen disasters, Mildred is banished to her room and her bats are confiscated. Sybil, who has been desperately trying to do all she can do to impress Mildred, is somewhat uneasy when Fenella and Griselda tell her where the bats are hidden. The inspection is not a success; Miss Broomhead is bent on closing down the school, particularly when she discovers the subterfuge over Mildred. Sybil, comes into her own and casts a spell on Hecketty Broomhead, which has such a drastic effect that she is forced to change her mind. Once again, the school is saved from closure.
Hide description ▲

It's the start of the summer term and there's a blizzard raging outside Cackle's Academy. The girls are all desperately trying to stay warm and Miss Drill tries to get the blood flowing by having the girls jog around the school. Meanwhile, Mrs. Tapioca is having problems with a GIANT mouse in the kitchen. Amidst all the chaos, who should arrive seeking shelter from the weather, but Chief Wizard Hellibore, Algernon Rowan-Webb and three wizard apprentices Barry Dragonsbane, Gary Grailquest and Merlin Flagstaff. Algernon is in a particularly mischievous mood and in order to cheer everybody up, pronounces the day to be an upside-down day. Everything is turned on its head; teachers and pupils change places and there are games instead of lessons. Fenella and Griselda teach a Potions' class, while the others play games in the Great Hall. The grand finale of the day is a shape-changing competition between The Chief Wizard and Algernon, but things go terribly wrong when Algernon changes himself into a mouse and is threatened by The Chief Wizard in the shape of an owl. He escapes to the kitchen where he is in equal danger from Mrs. Tapioca's cat, Lightning. Mildred and Merlin save the day and as a thank-you, Algernon invites Mildred and her class to his riverside retreat where he has decided to retire.
Hide description ▲

It's half-term, and Mildred and her friends set off to visit Algernon at his riverside retreat. Mildred has been told to leave her cat behind, but when no one is looking she manages to smuggle him away with her. Much to Mildred's delight, she discovers that Algernon has taken on Merlin as his apprentice. She lets him into the secret about Tabby and together they hide him in the cabin of a small boat, and secretly supply him with food. Miss Hardbroom, while taking a walk on the beach, hears a cat mewing and goes to investigate. She slips on a kipper and is knocked unconscious. Meanwhile, Ethel and Drusilla have become suspicious of Mildred and after discovering the boat with Tabby on board, they untie the rope and send the the boat down river towards the rapids, completely unaware that Miss Hardbroom is on board...
Hide description ▲

Miss Hardbroom is lying unconscious on a little boat with Tabby, Mildred's smuggled cat, heading towards the rapids. Ethel and Drusilla have cast the boat adrift, not realizing that H.B. is on board. Mildred rescues she and Tabby from plunging to their death down the rapids but H.B. is still unconscious and the boat is stuck on the rocks. Meanwhile, Merlin has accidentally freed a Dragon Lord free from his captivity in a cave by the river. The Dragon Lord forces Merlin to take him to Algernon's riverside retreat where he tells everyone that the house is his. He claims that Merlin, whom he has mistaken for the long-dead Wizard, Mandrake, had stolen the house from him, along with his treasure. He's been left in the cave for so long, that he has lost track of time. The Dragon Lord wants his home back and his stolen treasure, or he will imprison everyone in the cave for all eternity as he has been. Cackle, Algernon, Ethel and Drusilla are in grave danger until Maud and Enid escape from the riverside retreat and rescue Mildred. She returns with the lost treasure, which was hidden on the rocks, and a magic amulet she finds inside it. Mildred faces up to the Dragon Lord and defeats him with the amulet. Even Miss Hardbroom, when she has recovered consciousness, finds it impossible to be too severe on Mildred (and she is allowed to keep her contraband cat!)
Hide description ▲

Sybil, Clarice and the other first years are left with Miss Bat and Miss Drill while the rest of the school is away on a trip. The two teachers see this as an opportunity to put all their favourite educational ideas into practice. As a result, there's a lot of P.E. and chanting for the girls. In the staff room, Miss Drill and Miss Bat are competing for Miss Cackle's vacant chair and the authority it confirms. The first years however, are FED UP with P.E. and chanting, so Miss Bat and Miss Drill persuade Mrs. Semolina to teach a cooking lesson. This ends in disaster when Sybil and Clarice use the opportunity to lace the salad dressing with a dancing potion. Soon, the staff is helplessly and wildly tangoing the staff room to destruction! Sybil and Clarice pretend to make amends for this catastrophe by inventing a magical everlasting light to replace the candles (which are always in short supply). They invent a magic lamp in an attempt to make all of Sybil's wishes come true. The side-effects are disastrous, and the castle is nearly destroyed...until Clarice has an inspiration.
Hide description ▲

Frank's nephew Charlie has arrived for another weekend visit to Cackle's. He's fed up with his own school and jealous of the fun the girls seem to have at the Academy, so he persuades his uncle to ask if he can become a pupil at the Academy. The Academy is busy planning celebrations for the commemoration day of their founder, Great, Great, Great Granny Cackle. Miss Drill seems sympathetic to Charlie's request but Miss Hardbroom is dead set against it, despite Miss Cackle wondering if it might not be time for the Academy to go coed. H.B. thinks it's a mistake to have boys at the Academy because it would distract the girls, and Miss Bat thinks boys can't chant properly. In the end, Cackle decides that H.B. should give the boy one of her tests as a way of proving his worth. She gives Charlie a math test, and as he's failing miserably, Mildred comes to his rescue with a spell. It gets out of control and has magic numbers flying everywhere! Charlie's hopes are dashed until Fenella and Griselda turn up with a book, which states that every boy who turns up at the founder's day feast must be automatically accepted into the Academy. But how to keep him from having to go home before then? Mildred decides to give him a magical case of the flu! This turns out terribly for Charlie, and Miss Bat's herbal cure makes him feel even worse. Miss Hardbroom then catches them in the act and announces that she knew what they were doing all along. Charlie however, doesn't think it's much fun to be a witch anymore, although he enjoys being allowed to stay for the Founder's Supper.
Hide description ▲

The girls are getting bored and restless, and they can't wait for the term to end. Miss Drill introduces the girls to basketball and arranges a friendly match with the Hevversham Hevvies! Mr. Blossom is given the job of turning the Great Hall into a basketball court, which he does with enthusiasm. The opposition, however, led by the imperious Miss Pike, make fun of Frank's efforts and of Cackle's Academy. The Hevvies are tough and ruthless and during the basketball game, walk all over Cackle's Academy. Mildred is hopeless and has a tendency to freeze when it's time to shoot at the basket! All the teachers and most of the school are watching the humiliation of her team, which doesn't make it any easier for her! Up until now, Mildred and Ethel have been enemies, but now they must put their differences aside and show that they have all the necessary magic to produce a win from thin air.
Hide description ▲

Mildred's potion exam, and a gardening competition for Mr. Blossom are both happening at the same time. Mildred's chances of passing look slim, as Ethel and Drusilla conspire to get her thrown out of Cackle's. Frank's chances of winning are sabotaged by his rival, Terry Root. Mr. Root has persuaded Miss Cackle (with a certain amount of blackmail concerning the girls' behaviour in the village) to allow the gardening competition to take place in the Academy Courtyard. Miss Hardbroom is absolutely opposed to the idea, especially since it might distract the girls from their exams. When Mr. Blossom's greenhouse is trashed and his marrows are destroyed, Miss Hardbroom who suspects Mildred and her friends, forbids the girls to have anything more to do with gardening - after they have cleared up the mess of course. Mildred and Maud find one marrow untouched and decide a growing potion will help Frank win the competition. Of course, Ethel and Drusilla see this as a chance to get Mildred in big trouble with H.B. The growing potion turns out to be the right answer for both Mildred and Frank, while Ethel's plans blow up in everybody's face.
Hide description ▲

The girls are very excited because it's the thousandth birthday of the Castle, which is the home of Cackle's Academy and Amanda Honeydew - one of the pop band, The Spell Girls, and an old girl of Cackle's Academy - is to be the special guest at the celebrations. Special presentations are being organized. Miss Bat is preparing a performance of one the Spell girl songs with Fenella, Griselda, Sybil and Clarice. The second years are planning some dramatic episodes from the Castle's history. But then things go wrong. Sybil, who is meant to be playing the clarinet, loses confidence and walks out on Miss Bat's band. Mildred and her friends are elbowed out of their drama slot by Ethel and Drusilla who want to do the storming of the Castle by Major Barebones in 1644. Mildred and her friends decide to do their own Living Waxwork of Horrors in the dungeons - but then a real horror-story breaks. It transpires that Mr. Hallow, Ethel's father and Chair of the School of Governors, is planning to sell the Castle to Amanda and build an ultra-modern school with the proceeds. Miss Hardbroom resigns in protest, but, after a surprisingly frank and tender meeting with Mildred in the dungeons, Mildred plots and schemes with her friends and her enemies - to put off Amanda and save the old Castle from being turned into a theme park. Sybil has found the confidence to improvise on the clarinet but the words they sing to the Spell Girls' song is designed to unsettle Amanda - and the Living Waxwork in the dungeon is designed to terrify the wits out of her.
Hide description ▲

Mildred discovers that there is something which she is not worst at - drawing. Ethel, however, who can't bear the thought of anybody being better than her at anything, is determined to thwart Mildred. She very nearly succeeds - but not quite!
Hide description ▲

Cackle's Academy is staging a Pantomime for the Christmas season. Needless to say there is as much drama off-stage as there is on, and only with the help of a certain amount of magic does the whole production end as it should with Cinderella getting her Prince.
Hide description ▲