To mark the 70th anniversary of Dennis the Menace, comic creators will reveal the origins of his iconic red and black jumper for the very first time.
Dennis is the Beano’s longest-running comic strip, although he will forever remain 10-years-old in print.
His appearance may have changed slightly over the decades, but his wardrobe has remained familiar.
Now, to celebrate seven decades of mischief, Dennis finally discloses the secret of his striped jumper in new book The Epic Yarn of Awesomeness.
Magic jumper
Dennis reveals his jumper belonged to his great, great, “one-hundred-more greats” grandfather – also named Dennis.
The iconic pullover was knitted by Grampa Dennis’ own gran, a friendly witch.
Using spider wool infused with special red and black magic potions, she knitted the jumper with her wands to create an awesomely powerful – if slightly itchy – jumper.
Dennis claims his magical jumper is the reason he has come through so many scrapes and escapades mostly unscathed.
TikTok knitting sensation Jenna Bates, known as Wooly McWoolface, will be creating a bespoke red and black jumper to mark the occasion.
She has amassed over 500,000 followers on the social media service with her ambitious knitting projects and will give Dennis’ jumper added prank-power with built-in catapults and spiders.
The Epic Yarn of Awesomeness will be published by Harper Collins on September 30. It will feature more than 50 comics from recent years, alongside this never-seen-before story.
Beano Studios’ editorial director Mike Stirling said “The red and black stripy jumper has become a genuine British fashion icon.
“It returns to catwalks across eras, but it has remained stylish in Beanotown since 1951.
“Despite being adopted by superstars it remains synonymous with the original adopter: Dennis Menace.
“Our new fiction range allows us to tell taller, more expansive tales than ever before.”
In his very first appearance Dennis wore a – now uncharacteristic – shirt and tie. This was replaced just a month later with Dennis’ iconic striped jumper.
The red and black colours were chosen by artists because they were the strongest colours of ink available to printers in the 1950s.
Drag Race UK contestant Ellie Diamond wore a red and black striped top inspired by Beano on the second season of the show in 2021. This has since been acquired by The McManus.