William Heath Robinson (1872 – 1944) was an English illustrator and cartoonist, best known for his drawings of complicated machines for achieving simple objectives. “Heath Robinson Contraption” is a phrase that entered the language during WW1 in Britain, and later in the United States.
William wrote and illustrated three highly successful children’s books (The Adventures of Uncle Lubin 1902, Bill the Minder 1912, Peter Quip in Search of a Friend 1933) as well as illustrating numerous others.
In the run up to WW1, Robinson became known for a series of drawings in magazines such as The Sketch and The Tatler, many of which I will be featuring in this comprehensive look at his work.
This is part 11 of a 20 – part series on the works of W. Heath Robinson
1913 Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales (part 2):
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THE NIGHTINGALE
'Oh! How Pretty That Is!' He Would Say |
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| Then Began the Nightingale To Sing |
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| Among the Branches Dwelt a Nightingale |
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| They Admired the City, the Palace, and the Garden |
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| The Kitchen-Maid |
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| The Chief Imperial Nightingale Bringer |
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| He Was Quite as Successful as the Real Nightingale |
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| The Peasant's Wife Sat On Sundays at the Door of Her Cottage Reading Her Hymn Book |
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| So Elise Took Off Her Clothes and Stepped into the Water |
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| And Met an Old Woman With a Basket Full of Berries |
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| Not a Boat Was to be Seen |
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| There Was Only Just Room For Her and Them |
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| I Must Venture to the Church-Yard |
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THE REAL PRINCESS
I Have Scarcely Closed My Eyes the Whole Night Through |
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| Princesses He Found in Plenty, But Whether They Were Real Princesses it Was Impossible For HIm to Decide |
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| The Old King Himself Went Out to Open It |
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| The Peas Were Preserved in the Cabinet of Curiosities |
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THE RED SHOES
Karen |
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| She Sat Down One Day and Made Out of Some Old Pieces of Red Cloth, a Pair of Little Shoes |
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| And Karen was Dressed Very Neatly |
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| Karen and the Old Lady Walked to Church |
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| He Sat There Nodding at Her |
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| Dance She Must, Over Field and Meadow |
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THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES
Two Rogues Calling Themselves Weavers Made Their Appearance |
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| 'Oh, It Is Excellent!' Replied the Minister |
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| As if in the Act of Holding Something Up |
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| So Now the Emperor Walked Under His High Canopy |
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| THE SWINEHERD |
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| All Cares and Sorrows Were Forgotten by Him Who Inhaled its Fragrance |
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| And He Wept Like a Child |
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| 'Ach! Du Lieber Augustin' |
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| The Swineherd Scolded and the Rain Poured Down |
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THE FLYING TRUNK
And Flew the Trunk |
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| The Son Lived Merrily |
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| He Met a Nurse |
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| 'Will You Tell us a Story?' Asked the Queen |
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| But Make it Let Us Laugh, Said the King |
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| Their Slippers Flew About Their Ears |
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| She Sat the Live-Long day Upon the Roof of Her Palace, Expecting Him |
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| THE LEAPING MATCH |
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| The Old Councillor |
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| 'I Say Nothing For the Present,' Remarked the King |
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| THE SHEPHERDESS AND THE CHIMNEY-SWEEPER |
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THE UGLY DUCKLING
The Poor Duckling Was Scorned by All |
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| He Came to a Wide Moor |
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| And the Cat Said, 'Can You Purr?' |
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| And Every One said, 'The New One is the Best' |
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| THE NAUGHTY BOY |
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| He Jumped Down From the Old Man's Lap and Danced Around Him on the Floor |
