25 Incredible Facts About Aaron Blabey You Probably Didn't Know!

Ritwik Bhuyan
Mar 20, 2023 By Ritwik Bhuyan
Originally Published on Mar 20, 2023
Fact-checked by Shadiya Ahammad
Read on to find some exciting facts about Aaron Blabey

Aaron Blabey is an Australian author born on January 1, 1974.

Aaron Blabey is known for his children's books. He created the three best-selling children's series, 'Pig The Pug', 'The Bad Guys' (the bestselling graphic novel series), and 'Thelma The Unicorn'.

Aaron Blabey has almost 35 million books in print. Many of his books have been been for more than 120 weeks on the New York Times Bestseller List. On July 3, 2019, 'The Bad Guys' reached number one on the list for the first time.

An animated movie based on 'The Bad Guys' was released in the US on April 22, 2022. Aaron Blabey was the executive producer of the film. Aaron Blabey was also announced as the executive producer of the Netflix movie-musical adaptation of 'Thelma The Unicorn'.

Aaron Blabey was also an actor until 2005. He is known for his two television series 'The Damnation Of Harvey McHugh' and 'CrashBurn'.

He played lead roles in both television series. His popular children's series are very famous today. The first book 'Pearl Barley And Carlie Parsley' won him the Children's Book Council of Australia Award.

Interesting Facts About Aaron Blabey

Let us learn some interesting and unique facts about Aaron Blabey.

  • Born in Bendigo, Victoria, Australia, Aaron Blabey today lives in Leura, NSW, Australia.
  • Aaron Blabey has worked as a painter, an actor, a designer, a grape-picker, a video shop person, an advertising copywriter, a comic-strip creator, a screenwriter, a college lecturer, and a picture book maker.
  • His list of literary works includes 'Pearl Barley And Charlie Parsley', 'Sunday Chutney', 'Stanley Paste', 'The Ghost Of Miss Annabel Spoon', 'The Dreadful Fluff', 'Noah Dreary', 'The Brothers Quibble', 'Pig The Pug', 'Babies Don't Suck', 'Thelma The Unicorn', 'Pig The Fibber', 'The Bad Guys', 'Piranhas Don't Eat Bananas', 'The Bad Guys', 'I Need A Hug', 'Pig The Winner', 'Don't Call Me Bear', 'Pig The Elf', 'Busting!', 'Guff', 'Pig The Star', 'Pig The Grub', 'Pig The Tourist', 'The Return Of Thelma the Unicorn', 'Pig The Slob (Blob)', 'Pig The Monster, and many more. Penguin Books, Australia, have published most books.
  • Aaron Blabey has won awards like the Best Actor for Leading Role in a Television Drama in Australian Film Institute Award in 1994 for 'The Damnation Of Harvey McHugh', Children's Book of the Year Award: Early Childhood in 2008 for 'Pearl Barley And Charlie Parsley', White Ravens Award by the International Youth Library in 2012 for 'The Ghost Of Miss Annabel Spoon', National Literacy Ambassador in 2012, Ambassador for The Alannah and Madeline Foundation from 2012 to 2015, Patricia Wrightson Prize for Children's Literature in New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards in 2013 for 'The Ghost Of Miss Annabel Spoon', Best Designed Children's Cover of the Year (2003) by the Australian Publishers Association for 'The Dreadful Fluff', The Children's Peace Literature Award (2013) in 2013 for 'The Ghost Of Miss Annabel Spoon', and INDIE books award for Best Children's Book in 2016 for 'The Bad Guys'. He has also won a Book of the Year award from Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) for 'Pearl Barley And Charlie Parsley'.
  • In 2006, Aaron Blabey started focusing on making children's picture books. This was the start of his early picture books.
  • His book 'Pearl Barley And Charlie Parsley' was shortlisted for the CBCA's Crichton Award.
  • This book won the Children's Peace Literature Award and the NSW Premier's Literature Awards – The Patricia Wrightson Award.
  • 'Sunday Chutney' was his second book and was published in 2008. This book was also nominated for the CBCA Picture Book of the Year in 2009 and the Australian Book Industry Awards in 2009.
  • 'Stanley Paste' was his third book and a CBCA Notable Book (2010) in the Picture Book category. 'The Ghost Of Miss Annabel Spoon' was also the same. The 2012 book won many awards. Nick Cave also selected the book to record for the Story Box Library website.
  • 'The Dreadful Fluff' was his fifth book. It won the Best Designed Children's Cover of the Year (2013) by the Australian Publishers Association. The same year, he released 'Noah Dreary'. His critically acclaimed sixth title was well received.
  • He released a picture book for adults entitled 'Babies Don't Suck'. It was a guide for new fathers.
  • 'The Bad Guys', Blabey's best-selling graphic novel specially made for junior readers, was released in 2015.
  • The story of 'The Bad Guys' follows a gang of dangerous, scary-looking animals - Mr. Snake, Mr. Wolf, Mr. Piranha, and Mr. Shark. These animals try to do good deeds to change their flawed perceptions.
  • Although most of his books have been published by Penguin Books, Australia, the 'The Bad Guys' series was published by Scholastics.
  • 'The Bad Guys' by Penguin Books Australia was in The New York Times Best Seller list (Children's Series) for many weeks. On July 3, 2019, it got the number one spot.
  • More than 16 million 'The Bad Guys' books are circulating worldwide today.
  • The books 'Pig The Pug', 'Piranhas Don't Eat Bananas', and 'Thelma The Unicorn' were hits in Australia and made into many languages. They have been published worldwide.
  • Due to the success, there have been other Pig books like 'Pig The Fibber', 'Pig The Winner', 'Pig The Elf', 'Pig The Star', 'Pig The Grub', 'Pig The Tourist', 'Pig The Slob (Blob)', and 'Pig The Monster'.
  • USA and Australia have been the primary market for the Pig books, with millions of copies sold.
  • 'Thelma The Unicorn' was the second book in the initial three-book deal. The book is about a simple tiny pony who wants to become a unicorn. This picture book also was a bestseller.

Shocking Facts About Aaron Blabey

Learn some exciting yet shocking facts about the author and actor.

  • 'The Brothers Quibble' was his seventh book. This book was about sibling rivalry. More than 500,000 children read it by 2015.
  • Aaron Blabey has written many episodes of 'The Bad Guys'. He has won awards like Children's Peace Literature Award and NSW Premier's Literary Awards.
  • Aaron Blabey has worked in television series like 'G.P.', 'Phoenix', 'The Man From Snowy River', 'Halifax f.p', 'The Damnation Of Harvey McHugh' (Aaron Blabey won the Australian Film Institute Award for Best Actor (Leading Role in a Television Drama), 'Blue Heelers', 'Turning April', 'Twisted Tales', 'Mr Reliable', 'Fallen Angels', 'Medivac', 'Wildside', 'Water Rats', 'Day of the Roses', 'Pentuphouse', 'Erskineville Kings', 'All Saints', 'Water Rats', 'Stingers' (Aaron Blabey was nominated for Best Performance by an Actor in a Guest Role in a Television Drama Series in Australian Film Institute Award), 'Grass Roots', 'Mullet', 'CrashBurn', 'Human Touch', 'Through My Eyes: The Lindy Chamberlain Story', and 'The 9:13'.
  • Aaron Blabey has also worked at a major advertising agency as a staff writer. He then worked as a lecturer in a design college in Sydney for two years.

Weird Facts About Aaron Blabey

There are not many weird things to know about Blabey. Here are some facts that might intrigue you.

  • In 2006, Blabey switched over to creating children's books. He had many solo exhibitions in Australia.
  • Blabey was part of many film and television roles in the '90s and ’00s. He also appeared in many theatrical productions.
  • He was nominated by the Australian Film Institute in 2000 for his guest-starring role in the television series 'Stingers'. He had already received an award in 1994 for his lead role.
  • After a few years in the ’00s, he changed his profession from acting to painting. He did six separate solo exhibitions throughout Australia from 2004 to 2006.

Insightful Facts About Aaron Blabey

Here are some unknown facts about the author/actor/painter.

  • 'The Bad Guys' was drawn using 2B pencils. To save time, he used to sharpen 40 of these pencils every morning.
  • He based his characters on real people in the real world. A famous TV comedian, a former work colleague, and a childhood pet inspired the character in 'Pig The Pug'.
  • Blabey didn't use writing journals. He writes his books while walking. He wrote 'Thelma The Unicorn' on his phone. He even wrote one of his books on a napkin from a restaurant.
  • In 10 years, he has written 29 books. His productivity has been rewarded many times.
  • Blabey helps to protect children from violence by supporting The Alannah and Madeline Foundation.

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Sources

https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Aaron_Blabey

https://kids.kiddle.co/Aaron_Blabey

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aaron_Blabey

https://amp.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/how-author-aaron-blabey-found-happiness-through-greedy-and-selfish-pig-the-pug-20160607-gpdmof.html

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Written by Ritwik Bhuyan

Bachelor of Arts specializing in English

Ritwik Bhuyan picture

Ritwik BhuyanBachelor of Arts specializing in English

A skilled content writer, Ritwik holds a Bachelor's degree in English from Delhi University. He has refined his writing abilities through his past experience at PenVelope and his current role at Kidadl. In addition to his proficiency in writing, Ritwik has pursued his passion for flying by achieving CPL training and becoming a licensed commercial pilot. This diverse skill set highlights his commitment to exploring multiple fields. Ritwik's experience in the aviation industry has provided him with a unique perspective and attention to detail, which he brings to his writing.

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Fact-checked by Shadiya Ahammad

Bachelor of Arts specializing in English Language and Literature, Master of Arts specializing in India and World Literature

Shadiya Ahammad picture

Shadiya AhammadBachelor of Arts specializing in English Language and Literature, Master of Arts specializing in India and World Literature

A skilled writer and content creator with a postgraduate degree in English literature from the University of Calicut, Shadiya has also completed a Master of Arts in World Literature from Widya Dharma University and studied English Language and Literature at the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. With her educational background and four years of experience in content writing, Shadiya has developed excellent research, communication, and writing skills, which she brings to her work every day. Her passion for language extends beyond her professional work, as she enjoys studying Arabic and Spanish in her free time.

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