Two Special 90ths - Winnie the Pooh and the Queen

 


I had no idea that Winnie the Pooh was celebrating his 90th anniversary this year until this morning, when I heard about the release of a lovely new book in which Christopher Robin takes his friends to deliver a special birthday present to the Queen. Written and published specially for the Queen's 90th birthday, a video version, read by Jim Broadbent, has also been released - and you can watch it here (leaving Activity Village). Please do settle down with the kids and enjoy ... it's really special and such a treat for all Winnie the Pooh fans! There is also a link to download the illustrated ebook below.

"Bear," announced Christopher Robin solemnly. "That hum is fit for a Queen. That hum shall be The Queen's present. Owl shall write it out and you and I and Eeyore shall deliver it to Buckingham Palace. And Piglet must come too because London is a very big place indeed and even small animals, if they are very good friends, can make everything alright."

It's amazing to think that in 1926 AA Milne's book Teddy Bear and the Other Songs from When We Were Very Young was published, and dedicated to Princess Elizabeth upon her birth. Apparently she was a huge fan of the stories as a child. This new adventure is of course the first time the much-loved bear has ‘met’ Her Majesty in one of the Winnie-the-Pooh stories.

The illustrations for the story have been done by Mark Burgess, after the style of E. H. Shepherd who of course illustrated the original books.

Piglet meets the Queen
Pooh's hum for the Queen

Piglet gives Prince George a balloon
Piglet gives Prince George a balloon

The friends from Hundred Acre Woods head home after an exciting day
The friends from Hundred Acre Woods head home after an exciting day

Jim Broadbent with Pooh, reading the story
Jim Broadbent with Pooh, reading the story

Jim Broadbent, who narrated the audiobook of the new short adventure, says: “I have been a fan of Winnie-the-Pooh since I was a boy, in fact I named my very first and much loved teddy ‘Pooh’ and that can only have been after the A. A. Milne character.  I’ve loved being part of this story to celebrate The Queen’s 90th birthday and Winnie-the-Pooh’s 90th anniversary; it’s been an honour to narrate such an iconic story and I want to wish both Her Majesty The Queen and Winnie-the-Pooh a very Happy 90th!”

You can download the illustrated ebook and watch the animated story for free here.

More for Queen Elizabeth's 90th Birthday

Two Special 90ths - Winnie the Pooh and the Queen
Thursday, 26th May 2016

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