It recently came up that, while Beatrix Potter stories are often characterized as cute and "cottagecore" (whatever that word means these days), they are often driven by a plot of, well, avoiding getting eaten. And the bad guys can be pretty nasty characters.
So in the spirit of that...
Who is the greatest, nastiest, vilest, scariest, most evil villain in a Beatrix Potter story?
Mr. McGregor (Peter Rabbit, Benjamin Bunny, Flopsy Bunnies)
Old Brown (Squirrel Nutkin)
The Trout (Jeremy Fisher)
The Foxy Gentleman (Jemima Puddle-Duck)
Samuel Whiskers and Anna Maria (Samuel Whiskers)
Tommy Brock (Mr. Tod)
Mr. Tod (Mr. Tod)
The Cat (Johnny Town-Mouse)
The Ship's Cook (Little Pig Robinson)
Voting ended onDec 16, 2025
Left out the characters that are just jerks, evidently. Propaganda in case you need it:
Mr. McGregor: old farmer. Likes to catch rabbits and cook them. Is foiled repeatedly. The most recurring villain of the books.
Old Brown: tawny owl who is placated by squirrels with multiple offerings of food. Tries to eat Squirrel Nutkin (to be fair, Nutkin was asking for it) but ends up tearing off his tail instead.
The Trout: apparently a regular big fish with no signs of higher intelligence. Almost eats Jeremy Fisher. Doesn't like the taste of rubber boots.
The Foxy Gentleman: seduces and almost eats Jemima Puddle-Duck.
Samuel Whiskers and Anna Maria: two rats that dwell in liminal spaces. Roll a kitten into a pudding and almost eat him.
Tommy Brock: badger. Gains Bouncer Bunny's trust only to stuff the rabbit's grandkids into a bag and abduct them to cook and eat later. Would have gotten away with it too, were it not for...
Mr. Tod: fox. Gets in a fight with Tommy Brock, during which Peter and Benjamin save the baby rabbits.
The Cat: regular cat, no sign of intelligence. Tries to eat our heroes.
The Ship's Cook: entices Little Pig Robinson onto a boat in order to fatten and cook him later (our hero escapes).
That's a lotta characters who want to eat other characters O_o