Happy families
Happy Families is a traditional card game played in the UK, usually with a specially made set of picture cards, featuring illustrations of fictional families of four, most often based on occupation types. The object of the game is to collect complete families. The player whose turn it is asks another player for a specific card from the same family as a card that the player already has. If the asked player has the card, he gives it to the requester and the requester can then ask for any player for another card. If the asked player does not have the card, it becomes his turn and he asks another player for a specific card. Play continues in this way until no families are separated among different players. The player with the most cards wins.[1] The game can be adapted for use with an ordinary set of playing cards.
The game was devised by John Jaques II, who is also credited with inventing tiddlywinks, ludo and snakes and ladders, and first published before the Great Exhibition of 1851. Cards following Jaques's original designs, with grotesque illustrations possibly by Sir John Tenniel (there was no official credit), are still being made.
A series of children's books based on the characters (including several never used on the cards such as Mrs Wobble the Waitress) was written and illustrated by Allan and Janet Ahlberg.
Family members
The names of the family members are structured in a formal way:
- Mr X the Y
- Mrs X the Y's Wife
- Master X the Y's Son
- Miss X the Y's Daughter
Family names
Family names, which vary from edition to edition, include:
- Hearty, the Captain
- Snuffet, the Undertaker
- Carriage, the Undertaker
- Hardwatch, the First Mate
- Snoot, the First Class Passenger
- Deck, the Swabhand
- Stitches, the Sailmaker
- Bacon, the Butcher
- Block, the Barber
- Block, the Builder
- Bones, the Butcher
- Brush, the Artist
- Bud, the Florist
- Bun, the Baker
- Bung, the Brewer
- Chalk, the Teacher
- Chip, the Carpenter
- Chop, the Butcher
- Constable, the Policeman
- Creep, the Crook
- Dose, the Doctor
- Dip, the Dyer
- Field, the Farmer
- Flea, the vet
- Green, the Grocer (most likely a greengrocer)
- Grits, the Grocer
- Hose, the Fireman
- Jumbo, the pilot
- Mug, the Milkman
- Pint, the Milkman
- Parcel, the postman
- Pipe, the plumber
- Sole, the Fisherman
- Soot, the Sweep
- Stamp, the Postman
- Tape, the Tailor
- Teeth, the dentist
- Tuckin, the Chef
- Pots, the Painter
The eleven families indicated by italics are from Jaques's original edition.
CBBC
CBBC also showed a children's TV series based on the Happy Families Card Game, including the characters from the game.Happy Families (CBBC TV series)