The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole, a novel by Sue Townsend, is the 2nd book in the Adrian Mole series, following on from "The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾". It focuses on the worries and regrets of a teenage aspiring intellectual. The novel is included in the omnibus "". The book is written in a diary style and set in 1982 through to mid-1983. Notable events in this volume are the breakup and later reconciliation of Adrian and Pandora, Adrian's attempt to run away from home and subsequent breakdown, the birth of
Bad Boyes an anonymous schoolboy's many schemes, dodges and scrapes. When the Eldridges met with the BBC about developing the concept into a children's comedy series, they came up with a name for the character and fleshed out the scenario for the television series. The actual diary framing device element was dropped early on in the show's planning stages, due in part to avoid comparisons with the very successful "The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾" books and television series, as well as it being felt that the diary sections simply weren't required for the format of the television series. Although