These books also feature cockney urchin heroine Dido Twite and her adventures and travels all over the world.Īnother series of children's books about Arabel and her raven Mortimer are illustrated by Quentin Blake, and have been shown on the BBC as Jackanory and drama series. Her most popular series, the 'Wolves Chronicles' which began with The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, was set in an elaborate alternate period of history in a Britain in which James II was never deposed in the Glorious Revolution,and so supporters of the House of Hanover continually plot to overthrow the Stuart Kings. For her books she received the Guardian Award (1969) and the Edgar Allan Poe Award (1972). She worked for the United Nations Information Office during the second world war, and then as an editor and freelance on Argosy magazine before she started writing full time, mainly children's books and thrillers. She was born in Rye, East Sussex, into a family of writers, including her father, Conrad Aiken (who won a Pulitzer Prize for his poetry), and her sister, Jane Aiken Hodge. She was known as a writer of wild fantasy, Gothic novels and short stories. It was originally performed by a cast of ﬁve, but it has also been staged by – and is suitable for – much larger casts.įeaturing a chorus who narrate, sing and comment on the action, and plenty of opportunities for song and dance, this version will suit any theatre company, youth theatre or drama group wanting to exercise their theatrical imagination.Joan Aiken was a much loved English writer who received the MBE for services to Children's Literature. Russ Tunney's magical adaptation of The Wolves of Willoughby Chase was first performed at the Layard Theatre, Wimbourne, in 2010.

The opening of the Channel Tunnel has led to dangerous wolves roaming Britain, but this is not the only danger that cousins Bonnie and Sylvia, and their friend Simon the Goose-boy, must face as they encounter unforgettable characters and mysterious scheming.

A thrilling, funny and spectacular adaptation of Joan Aiken's classic children's novel, perfectly suited to performance by theatre companies and drama groups of any size.Ī thrilling adventure set in an alternative history of England, The Wolves of Willoughby Chase tells the story of two brave and determined girls as they fight against ferocious wolves, snowy wastelands and their very evil guardian, Miss Slighcarp.

The wolves of willoughby chase book