Seven Stories to appear on Blue Peter

Airing Thursday 14 July 2016, 5pm.

Seven Stories, The National Centre for Children’s Books is home to a nationally significant collection of original material relating to children’s books from the 1930s to the present day. One of the most recent additions to the collection was the complete archive from best-selling author Michael Morpurgo – an exhibition of his work is currently on display at the Visitors Centre in Newcastle.

Michael said of his donation to Seven Stories: “The great thing about this is that now it will serve a useful purpose, rather than being boxed away. There will be some people down the line who will want to know how writers work and I love that people might 

have an insight into how that happens. If you look at my notebooks I have all kinds of impressions, efforts and little psychological boosts I give myself. For instance at the end of half an hour or a page I count up a word tally as I go along and it gives me an absurd sense of satisfaction. How fluent I can be when I’m working well and how tentative and stuttering I can be when it’s not moving necessarily the way I want it to move or in the direction I want it to go.”

And that is precisely what they have done! Seven Stories Archivist Kris McKee took original material from Michael Morpurgo’s War Horse and Private Peaceful to the Blue Peter studios in Media City, so that the viewers of Blue Peter could have an inside look at the workings of Michael and memorabilia relating to his iconic titles.

Blue Peter presenter Lindsey Russell talked through Michael’s original material on the show that will be aired Thursday 14 July at 5pm, including his orange notebooks with word counts on the back and original material full of workings out, scribbles and notes to himself.

The show is part of the CBBC Authors Live programming, of which Seven Stories is incredibly proud to be a part of. CBBC are also putting on a two-day event in Birmingham to celebrate awesome authors in partnership with BBC Learning, Birmingham City Council and the Library of Birmingham.

Awesome Authors, which aims to get children excited about reading, creative writing and storytelling, will bring CBBC stars together with best-loved authors, such as Dame Jacqueline Wilson, at the Library of Birmingham and Centenary Square between Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th July. Awesome Authors is part of Love To Read, a BBC campaign that celebrates great authors and their works and will get the nation reading and sharing the books they love.  

Media Contact: Kathryn Row, Marketing and Programming Manager

Kathryn.row@sevenstories.org.uk