Edinburgh Festival with Julia Jarman

If you read my blog on the festival, you will remember that my camera died almost immediately, so I got very few pics. Fortunately, Tom Breslin, husband of author Theresa Breslin and a friend of Julia Jarman, took photos.


This is us on stage, as the audience are let into the theatre. Doesn't Julia make a dashing pirate?

When the event finishes, you are taken to the festival bookshop, where you do your signing. This is also a lovely opportunity to chat to people who enjoyed the show enough to buy a book.


You only hope you're not unlucky enough to be signing on the next table to someone like Julia Donaldson: every author/illustrator will at some time suffer the humiliation of sitting like a lemon, trying to look busy, while their more famous neighbour slogs through a queue stretching 3 times round the block!


As you can see though, Julia and I had a great time, as we always do when we perform together. We are both as giddy as each other.

Thanks Tom!

Wicked, Eh? That's Brill!

I just got a lovely parcel of feedback forms from Stockport Art Gallery, where I did a day of workshops recently, based on Dragon's Dinner.

I'd like to share some with you, as well as these great photos taken on the day by local amateur photographer Ian Benson. Thanks Ian - they're smashing!

"Wicked. I really enjoyed drawing the dragon and I have learnt how to draw character, and that you can express their emotions through the picture, not the use of speech bubbles. Very interesting art lesson."

"It was brill because I learnt a lot. It was the best!"

"I thought it was really good. The bit I enjoyed most was when Lynne gave away her pictures she drew. I also enjoyed when she let us try it ourselves. The whole if it was really good!!! Thank you."


"Utterly amazing!"

"I think it was really fun. I have always wondered how to draw a dragon, a SCARY dragon."

"Very very very very great. The best in the world."

Isn't that just lovely? Makes me feel all warm and squishy. Thank you to everyone who came and worked so hard. I'm so pleased you had fun.

A Sunny Weekend at Last!

At last, some sun! It was so nice to be able to potter about and just sit with my feet up in the garden late Saturday afternoon:



Then on Sunday we went for a lovely, long walk along Stanage Edge in Derbyshire.



John celebrated the good weather in his usual fashion, as you can see.

As we were resting thus, on the flat rock on the cliff edge, a head suddenly appeared just 12" from John's head: a climber coming up from the below!