Reporter, feature writer and children's book critic at The Times. Dundonian. Author of 'Sour', the memoir of a girl gangster, published by HarperCollins.

London
Joined June 2011
Shout out to the wellwisher who has stuffed a broccoli into the Buckingham Palace gates. #queen #floraltributes
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Sea eagles are flying right over our towns and cities. Over Big Ben! Edinburgh Castle! The Primark in Birmingham city centre! We pulled together the latest data from their satellite trackers to tell the story of their comeback. @RoyDennisWF @thetimes thetimes.com/uk/environment/…
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"Disgustingly beautiful" is director Phil Johnston's description of his bold, new adaptation of The Twits on Netflix. "I suspect the purists will go, ‘Why is it in America?’ but hopefully they will see the essence of who they are and the tone still feels the same.
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'My Soul, A Shining Tree' by Jamila Gavin, is The Times Children's book of the week. A powerful and poignant novel for readers aged 9+ about a Belgian girl, a German teenager and an Indian soldier whose lives cross amid the carnage of 1914. Wonderfully done. @FarshoreBooks
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Sir Quentin Blake rarely does interviews these days. So it was an absolute treat to do this. We talked about 4am starts, his fading eyesight, Chat GPT, how you draw grief and the fact he's never had children - or even a pet. @roald_dahl @roalddahlmuseum thetimes.com/article/b539532…
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How do you pick the world's best picturebook? Is UK publishing too "safe"? Are British book buyers missing out on all the weird+wonderful picturebooks from around the world? I went behind the scenes @BolognaRagazzi awards to find out... #worldbookday thetimes.com/life-style/pare…
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Lucy Bannerman retweeted
Last week we announced our five fantastic CLiPPA judges, who have the important job of choosing this years CLiPPA shortlist! A huge thank you to Annette Brook, @EarlyTrain, Roger McGough, @TimesLucy and Saira Bano for your dedication to children's poetry!💫
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Two VERY different lives are celebrated in the latest episode of Your History: David Lodge, the academic+author, and Jocelyn Wildenstein, the socialite who became notorious as the poster woman for plastic surgery gone wrong. Listen here: shows.acast.com/your-history…
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MAP REVEAL! ✨️ Just three weeks until INKBOUND comes out, so I thought I'd share this stunning map of New London, created by Nicolette Caven! There are so many amazing details included, and I hope readers will enjoy tracking Metty's journeys through the city ⚡️
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On every kid's 10th birthday, they receive a magical tattoo determining their fate.Unfortunately for Metty, her fate is to be...a murderer. The Times children's book of the week is 'Inkbound' by Philippa Leathley,a magical fantasy fizzing with good ideas. thetimes.com/culture/books/a…
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In this episode of the Your History podcast,we celebrate these two remarkable lives: Judith Jamison, dancer, choreographer and 1st African-American woman to direct a modern dance company; Sir Robert 'Bom' Gillies,last of the Maori Battalion. Listen here: pod.fo/e/28b48f
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The TIMES/CH writing competition is NOW OPEN!🎉 @thetimes @TimesLucy @TimesCHPrize See below for more details⬇️
Today's the day! The Times/CH writing competition 2025 is NOW OPEN📣 Enter before 02/06/25 for the chance to win a publishing contract! 📚 Click the link for more details➡️ chickenhousebooks.com/submis…
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Novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford and the Russian geneticist Lyudmila Trut were both born in 1933 and died within weeks of each other in their 90s. Listen to the story of their two VASTLY different lives in the latest episode of our podcast,Your History: pod.fo/e/287c0a
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Werewolves! Party crows! Superhero pets! Plus some telepathy, a sci-fi dystopia and one very special tale about time travel... ⚡️The Times Children's Books of the Year are here⚡️ Check out our favourite 21 titles of 2024 👇 thetimes.com/article/612dcc5…
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Such a lovely evening. CONGRATULATIONS to the winners of this year's FAB Prize: Debbie Antwi, Aisha Stoll, Andrea White and Rose Anthony. 💥📚💥📚💥📚💥📚💥
Last night, we gathered to celebrate the FAB Prize 2024 at a very special award ceremony. Congratulations to our winners and all of the talented writers and artists on the shortlist 🎉 See the thread for our winning creators, or read more here: faber.co.uk/journal/faber-an…
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Lucy Bannerman retweeted
The Hotel Balzaar: A Norendy Tale by @KateDiCamillo, illustrated by Júlia Sardà is @theTimes Children's Book of the Week! 🌟 Thank you @TimesLucy for a wonderful review! thetimes.com/article/d80f22a…
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I'm all for eccentric landlords. Pity help anyone who ever dared order water in my dad's pub. But opening only for weekday lunchtimes?! Hugh Corcoran and Lady Frances are going to have to sell a lot of Scampi Fries to make that work.... thetimes.com/uk/society/arti…
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'Anya's Quest', an eco fable spiced with Hindu mythology by Jasbinder Bilan is caught in the classic dilemma facing many kids' books -but it does it beautifully. The artwork by Jane Ray is gorgeous. Anya's Quest is The Times children's book of the week. thetimes.com/article/224ef64…
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We don't expect Richard Osman books to have subplots about recycling or Jilly Cooper characters to play naked tennis against a biodiversity crisis in the Cotswolds. It's not fair that kids' books can't just entertain - they also have to save the world. thetimes.com/article/224ef64…
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I count FOURTEEN nominations on the #Carnegie longlists that have also been '@thetimes children's book of the week.' Congrats to all the nominees. Anyone fancy predicting a winner?
The 2025 Carnegies nominations are live! 🎉 Join us in celebrating the storytelling and illustration recognised this year. 🏆 See the list and get ready for an inspiring awards season! Congrats to all nominees! #Carnegies2025 #ReadingForPleasure carnegies.co.uk/nominations-…
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Lots of fun chatting with @RobGMacfarlane, Johnny Flynn +Emily Sutton about their new picture book @southbankcentre today. Special shoutout to the star of the show - the wee boy who threw us a curveball at the end with his question about time travel. @publishing_cat @TeditorTed
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