Wed, Nov 3, 1999
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.
Wed, Nov 10, 1999
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.
Top-rated
Wed, Nov 17, 1999
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.
Wed, Nov 24, 1999
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.
Wed, Dec 1, 1999
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.
Wed, Dec 8, 1999
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.
Top-rated
Wed, Dec 15, 1999
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...
Wed, Dec 22, 1999
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!)
Wed, Jan 5, 2000
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.
Wed, Jan 12, 2000
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.
Wed, Jan 19, 2000
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.
Top-rated
Wed, Jan 26, 2000
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.
Wed, Feb 2, 2000
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.