Philippa Pearce
Encyclopedia
Ann Philippa Pearce OBE
(23 January 1920 – 21 December 2006) was an English children's author
.
, Cambridgeshire
. Starting school late at the age of eight because of illness, she was educated at the Perse School for Girls
in Cambridge
, and went on to Girton College, Cambridge
, after winning a scholarship to read English and History there.
After gaining her degree, she left university and moved to London where she found work as a civil servant. She wrote and produced schools radio programmes for the BBC
, where she remained for thirteen years. From 1958 to 1960 she was children’s editor at the Oxford University Press
, and from 1960 to 1967 at the André Deutsch
publishing house.
becoming the River Say. It inspired a 1960 Canadian TV series of the same name
. The novel was adapted for British television in 1972, as Treasure over the Water.
Her next and best known book, Tom's Midnight Garden
(1958), has become one of the classic "time stories
", inspiring a film, a stage play, and three TV versions. It was awarded the Carnegie Medal in Literature in 1959. The "midnight garden" was, in fact, based directly on the garden of the Mill House where she had grown up. She wrote over 30 books, including A Dog So Small (1962),The Squirrel Wife
(1971), The Battle of Bubble and Squeak
(1978) and The Way To Sattin Shore (1983). The Battle of Bubble and Squeak inspired a two-part television adaptation in Channel 4
's Talk, Write and Read series of educational programming.
Although not a prolific author of full-length books, Philippa Pearce continued to work over the following years, speaking at conferences, editing anthologies and writing short stories. She attended a reception for children's authors at Number 10 Downing Street – the home of the Prime Minister – in 2002.
In 2004 she published her first new full-length book for two decades, The Little Gentleman. A further children's novel, A Finder’s Magic, was published posthumously in 2008.
, died two years later. They had one child, Sally, who was to become a children's author herself (under the name Sally Pearce). From 1973 until she died from complications of a stroke in 2006, Philippa Pearce lived once again in Great Shelford, down the same lane where she was brought up.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(23 January 1920 – 21 December 2006) was an English children's author
Children's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
.
Early life
The youngest of four children, Pearce was brought up in the Mill House in the village of Great ShelfordGreat Shelford
Great Shelford is a village located approximately four miles to the south of Cambridge, in the county of Cambridgeshire, in eastern England. In 1850 Great Shelford parish contained intersected by the river Cam. The population in 1841 was 803 people...
, Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
. Starting school late at the age of eight because of illness, she was educated at the Perse School for Girls
Perse School for Girls
The Stephen Perse Foundation is an independent, fee-paying day school situated near the centre of Cambridge, England. The Foundation is made up of four schools: The Stephen Perse Pre-Prep School, for boys and girls aged 3-7, Perse Girls Junior School,for girls aged 7-11, Perse Girls Senior School,...
in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, and went on to Girton College, Cambridge
Girton College, Cambridge
Girton College is one of the 31 constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge. It was England's first residential women's college, established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon. The full college status was only received in 1948 and marked the official admittance of women to the...
, after winning a scholarship to read English and History there.
After gaining her degree, she left university and moved to London where she found work as a civil servant. She wrote and produced schools radio programmes for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, where she remained for thirteen years. From 1958 to 1960 she was children’s editor at the Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
, and from 1960 to 1967 at the André Deutsch
André Deutsch
André Deutsch was a British publisher.After having learned the business of publishing working for Francis Aldor with whom he was interned in the Isle of Man during the Second World War and who had introduced him to the industry, André Deutsch left Aldor's employment after a few months to continue...
publishing house.
Writing career
In 1951 Pearce spent a long while in hospital, recovering from tuberculosis; during this stay she passed the time thinking about a canoe trip she had taken many years before. This was the inspiration for her first book, Minnow on the Say, published in 1955. Like several of her subsequent books, it was clearly inspired by the area where she had been raised, with the villages of Great and Little Shelford becoming Great and Little Barley, Cambridge becoming Castleford (nothing to do with the real town of the same name in West Yorkshire) and losing its university, and the River CamRiver Cam
The River Cam is a tributary of the River Great Ouse in the east of England. The two rivers join to the south of Ely at Pope's Corner. The Great Ouse connects the Cam to England's canal system and to the North Sea at King's Lynn...
becoming the River Say. It inspired a 1960 Canadian TV series of the same name
Minnow on the Say
Minnow on the Say is a Canadian children's adventure television series which aired on CBC Television in 1960. It is based on the 1955 novel of the same title by Philippa Pearce, who later wrote the classic Tom's Midnight Garden...
. The novel was adapted for British television in 1972, as Treasure over the Water.
Her next and best known book, Tom's Midnight Garden
Tom's Midnight Garden
Tom's Midnight Garden is a children's novel by Philippa Pearce. It won the Carnegie Medal in 1958, the year of its publication. It has been adapted for radio, television, the cinema, and the stage.-Plot summary:...
(1958), has become one of the classic "time stories
Time travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
", inspiring a film, a stage play, and three TV versions. It was awarded the Carnegie Medal in Literature in 1959. The "midnight garden" was, in fact, based directly on the garden of the Mill House where she had grown up. She wrote over 30 books, including A Dog So Small (1962),The Squirrel Wife
The Squirrel Wife
The Squirrel Wife is the title of a children's fairy tale written by Philippa Pearce and first illustrated by Derek Collard. This original fairy tale published by Longman Young in 1971 has subsequently been republished in Middlesex: New York; Paris and Madrid...
(1971), The Battle of Bubble and Squeak
Bubble and squeak
Bubble and squeak is a traditional English dish made with the shallow-fried leftover vegetables from a roast dinner. The main ingredients are potato and cabbage, but carrots, peas, brussels sprouts, and other vegetables can be added...
(1978) and The Way To Sattin Shore (1983). The Battle of Bubble and Squeak inspired a two-part television adaptation in Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
's Talk, Write and Read series of educational programming.
Although not a prolific author of full-length books, Philippa Pearce continued to work over the following years, speaking at conferences, editing anthologies and writing short stories. She attended a reception for children's authors at Number 10 Downing Street – the home of the Prime Minister – in 2002.
In 2004 she published her first new full-length book for two decades, The Little Gentleman. A further children's novel, A Finder’s Magic, was published posthumously in 2008.
Personal life
In 1962 Pearce married Martin Christie, who, never having fully recovered from being a Japanese prisoner of warPrisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
, died two years later. They had one child, Sally, who was to become a children's author herself (under the name Sally Pearce). From 1973 until she died from complications of a stroke in 2006, Philippa Pearce lived once again in Great Shelford, down the same lane where she was brought up.
External links
- The Philippa Pearce Memorial Lecture PearceLecture.com
- Authors & Artists: Philippa Pearce Walker.co.uk