During the war he served with both the RAF and the army, and it was in 1947, while stationed in Cairo, that he wrote his first short story. On leaving school at the age of fourteen, he spent a year in a lawyers' office before joining the BBC as an engineer. After ten days I found that I had a book on my hands.“ Īuthor of over one hundred books, Michael Bond was born in Newbury, Berkshire, in 1926 and grew up in Reading. I wrote some stories about the bear, more for fun than with the idea of having them published. I took it home as a present for my wife Brenda, and named it Paddington, as we were living near Paddington Station at the time. “I saw it left on a shelf in a London store, and felt sorry for it. My thoughts and love are with his wife, Sue, and his children, Karen and Anthony.A Bear Called Paddington (1958) “It all began when I bought a small toy bear on Christmas Eve 1956,” he recalls. “He will be for ever remembered for his creation of the iconic Paddington, with his duffel coat and wellington boots, which touched my own heart as a child and will live on in the hearts of future generations.
Paddington bear writer tv#
More than 35m Paddington books have been sold worldwide, spawning toys, TV programmes and most recently the films.Īnn-Janine Murtagh, HarperCollins’s executive publisher of children’s books, said: “I feel privileged to have been Michael Bond’s publisher – he was a true gentleman, a bon viveur, the most entertaining company and the most enchanting of writers.
Paddington bear writer series#
We should all have a marmalade sandwich in honour of his creator.”Īs well as Paddington, Bond created characters including Olga da Polga and A Mouse Called Thursday along with a series of novels for adults, featuring the detective Monsieur Pamplemousse. The Peruvian immigrant bear is one of the quirkiest but somehow most emotionally real children’s characters, both fantastical and domestic.
The novelist Matt Haig, who worked on the Paddington film, said: “Michael Bond created an icon of children’s fiction. “On meeting him I realised he was #Paddington.”įrancesca Simon, author of the Horrid Henry series, said: “Michael Bond created that infinitely rare thing: an iconic, utterly original, instantly recognisable and memorable character. He was as kindly, dignified, charming & lovable as the immortal Paddington Bear he gave us.”Ĭhildren’s author and comedian David Walliams wrote: “I had the great pleasure of spending time with #MichaelBond A dazzling wit & perfect gentleman. Presenter and writer Stephen Fry tweeted: “So sorry to hear that Michael Bond has departed.
He leaves a special legacy: long live the bear from darkest Peru.” “Michael will be greatly missed by his legions of fans and especially by his wife, Sue, his family and of course by his beloved guinea pigs. “In Paddington, Michael created a character whose enthusiasm and optimism has given pleasure to millions across the generations. Hugh Bonneville, who plays Mr Brown in the film adaptation and its sequel, set for release later this year, said in a statement: “It seems particularly poignant that we should learn of dear Michael Bond’s death on the last day of shooting our second film about his unique, loveable creation. Tributes poured in from figures in the literary and entertainment industry. He was one of those people that people instinctively warmed to and he was as funny as a person and delightful as he was in his writing and as a father.” I never came across anybody who disliked my father. “You can tell just by reading his books what a lovely person he was. “Because … Paddington and his other characters were so real to him, he became alive to everybody else. It was wonderful he could continue writing until the end,” she said. Jankel said it was incredible that her father was still writing up until his death.
0 kommentar(er)
