Baby Mischief (Starlight Baby Pony)
Baby Mischief was sold in the UK and Europe in 1991, as one of the
Starlight Babies. She bore similarities to the American pony Baby
Firefly, but is distinct enough to be considered her own pony,
despite the shared symbol. She had tinsel in her hair and a shiny
sheen that looked like she had been varnished with PVA glue (UK
kids from the eighties or nineties should get that reference). She
was sold with a shooting star comb.
Baby Mischief Mint on Card
UK, 1991
Image from LunaCat
Mischief by name, Mischief by release chaos.
Baby Mischief is clearly a very well named baby pony, as
her release was entirely chaotic. While some variations are
known to exist for the other babies in the set, Baby
Mischief's seem to come up more often, and are thus easier
to catalogue. Below are the six versions of Baby Mischief
that are currently known to exist.
Made in China
Tricolour tinsel in mane/tail
(Most common version)
Made in China
Gold tinsel in mane/tail
(Most common in Germany)
Made in China
Gold tinsel in mane/tricolour tinsel in tail
Made in China
Tricolour tinsel in mane, gold tinsel in tail
Made in Hong Kong
No Country of Manufacture on Hoof (Spain?)
Although all these versions
exist, the vast majority of Baby Mischiefs are the Chinese
version with tricolour hair tinsel, and that is the one
I have put at the top of the page. This pony was found at a
carboot sale here in the UK.
If you are based in Germany, you might have a higher
chance of finding one with gold tinsel in some form - as these
show up more commonly there. The pictured babies with gold
tinsel in their hair came from the continent - but regular
versions were also sold there.
Both my Hong Kong and my No Country babies came from the UK,
albeit the first came from Ponycon, so I cannot guarantee her
country of origin. The No Country one came in a lot of ponies
which were the childhood collection of a British collector.
This is the least common version of Baby Mischief - but it
does seem that she was sold in the UK. Her hair is set very
back on her head, giving her a big forehead.
Some of the gold-tinsel rooting is in very curly hair, but
most Baby Mischiefs have loose curls or waves to their mane
and tail.
Variations in tinsel may exist for the HK and NC versions, but
if they do, I have yet to find them.
Baby Mischief's Character
Baby Mischief was a very common character in the My Little Pony
comic in 1991. As her name suggests, she was often getting into
trouble and causing mischief - much to the frustration of the
grown ups around her. She also had a kite, which she liked to
fly, also in the most inopportune moments possible, to cause
havoc for her own amusement. She was thoroughly and unashamedly
naughty - but she was not really bad natured, just full of,
well, mischief.
Baby Mischief pranking the Sky Wizard with her kite,
in front of Daffodil and an extremely happy tree.
My Little Pony Comic, UK 1991
She was always illustrated in purple - probably based off
Hasbro's promotional image, where she did appear in this colour.
In some early stories featuring this set, they were drawn in the
same style as the Sparkle Ponies, as if they had glitter,
although this was not consistent.