Biographical note

Sir Michael Morpurgo OBE is one of the greatest storytellers for children writing today and has written more than one hundred books, the most famous of which, War Horse, has been adapted for stage and screen to international acclaim. He has won numerous major literary awards, including the Nestlé Children’s Book Prize and the Whitbread Children’s Book Award, and was Children’s Laureate 2003–2005. In 2006 he was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in recognition of his services to literature, and in 2018 he was made a Knight Bachelor. Michael now lives on a farm in Devon with his wife, Clare, and describes himself as “oldish, married with three children, and a grandfather six times over”. Visit Michael's website at www.michaelmorpurgo.com. Briony May Smith graduated from Falmouth University with a First Class degree in Illustration. Since then, she has been shortlisted for the British Comic Awards and has twice been highly commended for the Macmillan Children’s Prize. She is the author-illustrator of Margaret's Unicorn, The Mermaid Moon, A Practical Present for Philippa Pheasant and Tiny Jenny. She also illustrated The Giant’s Necklace, written by Michael Morpurgo and Tooth Fairy in Training and Witch in Training, both written by Michelle Robinson. Find her online at brionymaysmith.com and on X and Instagram as @BrionyMaySmith.