The Secret Seven short story titled "The Secret of the Old Mill". It followed an earlier short story, "At Seaside Cottage", which introduced the leading characters Peter and Janet prior to the formation of the society. There followed a further five short stories and fifteen full-length books. The Secret Seven appeared in seven short stories by Blyton, including a mini-novella explaining how the society was formed. These were left uncollected until 1997, when all but "At Seaside Cottage" were published in a single volume by Hodder Children's Books under the title of "Secret Seven: Short Story Collection". Scamper – Janet and Peter's pet
The Secret Seven this one takes place during the school term time because the characters go to day schools. The names Secret Seven and Famous Five had already been used by author Charles Hamilton, under the pen-name Frank Richards, in his long-running series of stories featuring Billy Bunter and Greyfriars School. The Secret Seven was the name of a secret society that featured in a series of eleven stories published in "The Magnet" magazine in 1934; the term "Famous Five" dates from 1910 and is applied to a group of the leading characters: Harry Wharton, Frank Nugent, Bob Cherry, Johnny Bull and Hurree