The classic children's TV programme Mr Men is being given a revamp and will include brand-new characters - including Mr Rude, who speaks with a French accent. Mr Rude appears in an internet game on the official mrmen.com website telling viewers how rude he can be and then blowing a raspberry. The new show, which launches on Five at the end of February, will boast four new characters including Little Miss Daredevil - based on a stunt rider - who wears a crash helmet, white heels and a rocket pack. Other characters will get a makeover. Mr Strong will no longer be square and will now have broader shoulders, a narrower waist and bulging biceps. A spokeswoman for programme-makers Chorion defended the use of a French accent for Mr Rude. "It is a kids' comedy show, it is not meant to be offensive or anything like that. It is very light-hearted," she said. Mr Men started as a series of small, square story books for young children by Roger Hargreaves in the early 1970s. Little Miss was an accompanying series of books by the same author with female characters that started in 1981. The original characters were inspired by Mr Hargreaves' son, Adam, when he asked his father 'What does a tickle look like?', thus creating Mr Tickle. The Mr Men Show will air on Five's Milkshake! on February 25 at 7.30am.
