or as long as I can remember I've wanted to be an artist. At school I used to get into trouble for my caricatures of teachers and, from that moment, I realised the pencil was indeed a powerful tool. At 16 I escaped school to spend a few years at Hounslow Borough College, pretending to be a Graphic Designer. Then I studied Illustration at Kingston University. After graduating in 1988 I worked with a variety of publishers on many different projects. A few years later I decided to write my own stories as I needed a home for all my sketchbook doodles. My first book, Seven Ways to Catch the Moon, was published by Frances Lincoln in 1999 ... I am currently working on my 13^th title. Each morning I climb into my shed, perched in the boughs of a gnarly old apple tree, pick up my pencil and draw. My books have been published all over the world, from Brazil to China, and I feel very privileged to be able to earn a crust doing what I love. Every so often I leave my shed to visit schools. It's rewarding to see the reaction to my stories. I hope that my visits help inspire children to love drawing and stories as much as I do.

Other things about me I have a black belt in Kung Fu. I won an under 19s bronze medal in an 80 mile race. (There were only 3 under 19 runners). I’m passionate about music, I play the guitar, and have recently formed a band that plays loud, grungy music ‒ definitely a mid-life crisis. Despite playing a lot of tennis I somehow manage to remain average. I haven't been married to illustrator Sophy Williams for over 25 years. We have two sons, one is arty, one is sporty, and a cat called Hamish, who is neither arty nor sporty.