Sweary Mary
Encyclopedia
Sweary Mary is a fictional character in Viz
magazine, who appeared briefly in 1994-95. Bearing more than a passing physical resemblance to The Beano
‘s Minnie the Minx
, her sole purpose in life was to say as many rude words as possible; and the comic's story - such as it was - revolved around her attempts to evade censorship
.
The magazine was being sold in W H Smith
for the first time ever during this period, and with their typical schoolboy sense of humour, the editors had placed this cartoon on the cover deliberately to cause offence. Mary's ultimate aim was to say 'cunt' on the cover - this was blocked out. Eventually, she came up with the word 'fitbin', which, the readers were told, was an incredibly rude word. As it wasn't, of course, the page was uncensored. Afterwards she still made attempts to swear on various covers and in various strips, until she finally got the chance to swear on the cover of Issue 99. Sadly, her wish was broken as she lost her voice, and the other characters taunted her as a result.
Fitbin is still occasionally heard as a swearword, although Sweary Mary, by contrast, having largely fulfilled her function, has almost completely disappeared from the pages of Viz.
Viz (comic)
Viz is a popular British comic magazine which has been running since 1979.The comic's style parodies British comics of the post-war period, notably The Beano and The Dandy, but with incongruous language, crude toilet humour, black comedy, surreal humour and either sexual or violent storylines...
magazine, who appeared briefly in 1994-95. Bearing more than a passing physical resemblance to The Beano
The Beano
The Beano is a British children's comic, published by D.C. Thomson & Co and is arguably their most successful.The comic first appeared on 30 July 1938, and was published weekly. During the Second World War,The Beano and The Dandy were published on alternating weeks because of paper and ink...
‘s Minnie the Minx
Minnie the Minx
Minnie the Minx is a fictional character in the British comic The Beano. Created and originally drawn by Leo Baxendale, she first appeared in issue 596, dated 19 December 1953 making her the third longest running Beano character, behind only Dennis the Menace and Roger the Dodger...
, her sole purpose in life was to say as many rude words as possible; and the comic's story - such as it was - revolved around her attempts to evade censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
.
The magazine was being sold in W H Smith
W H Smith
WHSmith plc is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It is best known for its chain of high street, railway station, airport, hospital and motorway service station shops selling books, stationery, magazines, newspapers, and entertainment products...
for the first time ever during this period, and with their typical schoolboy sense of humour, the editors had placed this cartoon on the cover deliberately to cause offence. Mary's ultimate aim was to say 'cunt' on the cover - this was blocked out. Eventually, she came up with the word 'fitbin', which, the readers were told, was an incredibly rude word. As it wasn't, of course, the page was uncensored. Afterwards she still made attempts to swear on various covers and in various strips, until she finally got the chance to swear on the cover of Issue 99. Sadly, her wish was broken as she lost her voice, and the other characters taunted her as a result.
Fitbin is still occasionally heard as a swearword, although Sweary Mary, by contrast, having largely fulfilled her function, has almost completely disappeared from the pages of Viz.