Chris Riddell


Chris Riddell is a South African-born English illustrator and occasional writer of children's books and a political cartoonist for the Observer. He has won three Kate Greenaway Medals – the British librarians' annual award for the best-illustrated children's book, and two of his works were commended runners-up, a distinction dropped after 2002.
Books that he wrote or illustrated have won three Nestlé Smarties Book Prizes and have been silver or bronze runners-up four times. On 9 June 2015, he was appointed the UK Children's Laureate.
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Life

Chris Riddell was born in 1962 in Cape Town, South Africa, where his father was a "liberal Anglican vicar" and was opposed to the system of apartheid. The family returned to England when Chris was one year old, where he spent the rest of his childhood with his sister and three brothers, who now live in South Africa, Brighton, and Egypt. He attended Archbishop Tenison's Grammar School in Kennington. Chris displayed artistic talent from an early age and was encouraged in this by his mother. As a child, he admired the work of Sir John Tenniel, the first illustrator of Alice in Wonderland, and W. Heath Robinson. At Brighton Polytechnic, he studied illustration; one teacher was Raymond Briggs, an earlier winner of two Greenaway Medals.
Riddell worked as an illustrator at The Economist in the 1980s, and at the Observer starting in 1995.
In 2002, he named as influences Tenniel and E. H. Shepard, the first illustrator of The Wind in the Willows and Winnie the Pooh.
As of 2019, Riddell and his wife, Joanne Burroughes, an illustrator and print-maker, live in Brighton with three children. They also have a second home in rural Norfolk where Joanne is from. Daughter Katy Riddell is also a children's book illustrator, including of Pongwiffy by Kaye Umansky.
His brother Rick Riddell, a secondary teacher at the Alice Smith School, died in February 2012.

Career

The Edge Chronicles

Some of Riddell's most celebrated work are The Edge Chronicles, a children's book series co-written with Paul Stewart and illustrated by Riddell. Set in the fictional world known as "The Edge", the books have been praised for Riddell's beautifully detailed line drawings and the unique nature of their collaborative writing process.

Other works

For his illustrations, Riddell was a commended runner-up for the 1994 Kate Greenaway Medal and highly commended for 1999.
He won the 2001 Medal for illustrating Pirate Diary: The Journal of Jake Carpenter by Platt. The press release called Pirate Diary the first "information book" to win the Medal since 1975 and "a fictionalised account" when he spoke with author Richard Platt the harsh necessities of historical accuracy came into play. 'Everything I got excited about got shot down. No parrots, eye-patches or wooden legs. Thank god there were weapons and amputations!'.
Three years later, Riddell won the Greenaway again, this time for his work on Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver", retold by Martin Jenkins from the 1726 classic Gulliver's Travels. The panel chair commented, "Gulliver is a tour de force. Chris Riddell has given us 144 pages of fantastic, faultless illustrations, which constantly extend the power of the text. Our winning title also proves that today's picture books are not just for the youngest age-groups, but are an important source of pleasure and learning for readers of all ages."
Other books illustrated by Chris Riddell include Fergus Crane, Corby Flood, and Hugo Pepper, all set in the same world. These books were also co-written with Paul Stewart. Stewart and Riddell also collaborated on Muddle Earth and the Barnaby Grimes series. Most recently, Riddell has both written and illustrated the Ottoline series, written while he was on holiday visiting his brother in Malaysia. The first book, Ottoline and the Yellow Cat, won the final Smarties Prize in age category 6–8 years. It has been followed by Ottoline Goes to School and Ottoline at Sea.
Beside writing and illustrating books, Riddell is an acclaimed political cartoonist for the Observer newspaper in London, where his caricatures of politicians from John Major to Gordon Brown, Bill Clinton to George W. Bush, have earned him a reputation as a fine draughtsman and acute commentator on the political scene. Before working at the Observer, Chris spent time working at the Economist as an illustrator and occasional cover artist.
Chris Riddell is the cover artist for the Literary Review magazine formerly edited by Auberon Waugh, a role he took over from the late Willie Rushton. Chris's serial gag cartoon for this magazine, called "Illustration to Unwritten Books", was published in book form as The Da Vinci Cod and Other Illustrations to Unwritten Books.
In November 2017, Riddell publicly accused department store chain John Lewis of plagiarizing elements of his 1986 picture book Mr Underbed for their Christmas advert "Moz the Monster". The chain defended the allegations, noting that the concept of a monster who lived under a child's bed was a common literary trope, and that both works had dissimilar plots. The row led to renewed interest in the book, with copies quickly selling out from stores.

Selected works

As author and illustrator

Ben and the Bear Mr Underbed Bird's New Shoes The Fibbs The Trouble With Elephants The Wish Factory When the Walrus Comes The Bear Dance The Wonderful World of Zoom Puzzle Boy My Busy Book Tribal Politics The Da Vinci Cod The Emperor of Absurdia Wendel's Workshop Chris Riddell's Doodle-a-Day 100 Hugs Travels with My Sketchbook Once Upon A Wild Wood Timorous Beasts A Mermaid's Diary The World of Mr. Munroe A Mermaid's Rescue Humphrey:
  • * Humphrey the Hippo
  • * Humphrey of the Rovers
  • * Humphrey Goes to the Ball
  • * Humphrey's New Trousers Platypus:
  • * Platypus
  • * Platypus and the Lucky Day
  • * Platypus and the Birthday Party Ottoline:
  • * Ottoline and the Yellow Cat
  • * Ottoline Goes to School
  • * Ottoline at Sea
  • * Ottoline and the Purple Fox Alienography:
  • * Alienography or How to spot an alien and what to do about it
  • * Alienography – Tips for Tiny Tyrants Goth Girl:
  • * Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse
  • * Goth Girl and the Fete Worse than Death
  • * Goth Girl and the Wuthering Fright
  • * Goth Girl and the Pirate Queen
  • * Goth Girl and the Sinister Symphony The Sleep Of Reason:
  • * The Sleep Of Reason Volume I
  • * The Sleep Of Reason Volume II
  • * The Sleep Of Reason Volume III The Cloud Horse Chronicles:
  • * Guardians of Magic
  • * Tiggy Thistle and the Lost Guardians Five Years... A Sketchbook of Political Drawings:
  • * Five Years... A Sketchbook of Political Drawings - Volume I 2020
  • * Five Years... A Sketchbook of Political Drawings - Volume II 2021
  • * Five Years... A Sketchbook of Political Drawings - Volume III 2022
  • * Five Years... A Sketchbook of Political Drawings - Volume IV 2023
  • * Five Years... A Sketchbook of Political Drawings - Volume V 2024

As illustrator

Riddell has collaborated with Paul Stewart on dozens of books, including the Edge Chronicles series. He has also illustrated several books written by each of five other authors.
;written by other authorsThe Mystery of Silver Mountain Beware, Princess! Love Forty Dreamboat Brontosaurus Gruesome Giants The Magician's Cat Beyond the Rolling River Dracula's Daughter Moon Whales Peter Pan, an edition of the 1911 J. M. Barrie classicTreasure Island, an edition of the 1883 R. L. Stevenson classicThe Pirates of Pudding Beach Manifold Manor You're Thinking About Doughnuts Ffangs the Vampire Bat and the Kiss of Truth The Prism Tree Lizzie Dripping and the Witch Patrick in Person Best Enemies The Thing in the Sink An Armful of Bears A Trunkful of Elephants Rent-a-Friend Say Hello to the Buffalo The Iron Wolf Angus Rides the Goods Train Brilliant Minds Buddhism for Sheep Feng Shui for Cats Feng Shui for Dogs The Castle of Inside Out The Swan's Stories The Tall Story Until I Met Dudley Buddhism for Bears Buster's Diaries Management for Martians Stories for Me! Castle Diary, by Richard PlattThe Tao for Babies Pirate Diary, by Richard PlattThe Rabbits' Rebellion Three Scary Stories Hairy Bill Un Italiano in America Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver", Gullivers Travels adapted by Martin JenkinsPolitics Cutting Through the Crap Don Quixote, Don Quixote adapted by Martin JenkinsJust So Stories, an edition of the 1902 Rudyard Kipling classicThe Pied Piper of Hamelin, by Russell BrandThe Box of Demons, by Daniel WhelanThings You Find in a Poet's Beard, by A. F. HarroldIsland, by Nicky SingerMy Little Book of Big Freedoms The Hunting of the Snark, an illustrated edition of The Hunting of the Snark by Lewis CarrollThe Castle of Inside Out, by David Henry WilsonThe Lie Tree, by Frances HardingeI Killed Father Christmas, by Anthony McGowanHow To Stop Time, by Matt HaigA Kid in My Class, by Rachel RooneyPoems to Live Your Life By The Tales of Beedle The Bard, by J.K. RowlingPoems to Fall in Love With The Greenhill Dictionary of Military Quotations, edited by Peter G. TsourasPoems to Save the World With Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, an illustrated edition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis CarrollDOCTOR WHO: Adventures in Lockdown, by Chris Chibnall, Paul Cornell, Russell T Davies, Neil Gaiman, Mark Gatiss, Pete McTighe, Steven Moffat, Vinay Patel, Joy WilkinsonThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas AdamsIndigo Takes Flight, by Krista M. LambertThrough the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There, an illustrated edition of Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis CarrollBooklet for the vinyl releases of Punisher (album) by Phoebe BridgersArthur: The Always King, by Kevin Crossley-HollandThe Big Amazing Poetry Book We Wish You A Merry Christmas and other festive poems A Passing On of Shells: 50 Fifty-Word Poems, by Simon LambThe Little Prince, an illustrated edition of The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-ExupéryThe Restaurant at the End of the Universe, by Douglas AdamsGods and Monsters - Mythological Poems, by Ana SampsonMothtown, by Caroline HardakerHeroes and Villains: Poems About Legends, by Ana SampsonKing Alfred and the Ice Coffin, by Kevin Crossley-HollandI Will Haunt This, by Viviane Schwarz
;written by Paul StewartThe Edge Chronicles:
;written by Andrew William GibsonEllis and the Hummick The Abradizil Jemima, Grandma and the Great Lost Zone The Rollickers and Other Stories The Amazing Witherspoon's Amazing Circus Crew Chegwith Skillet Escapes
;written by Kathryn CaveHenry Hobbs, Alien Out for the Count Andrew Takes the Plunge Something Else - UNESCO prize, 1997Jumble The Emperor's Gruckle Hound Horatio Happened William and the Wolves Septimus Similon, Practising Wizard Henry Hobbs, Space Voyager Henry Hobbs and the Lost Planet
;written by Philip RidleyKasper in the Glitter Meteorite Spoon Dakota of the White Flats Mercedes Ice Dreamboat Zing Scribbleboy ZinderZunder
;written by Brian PattenBeowulf and the Monster Juggling With Gerbils The Story Giant Gargling With Jelly Thawing Frozen Frogs The Utter Nutters
;written by Neil GaimanThe Graveyard Book The Sleeper and the Spindle - Kate Greenaway Medal winner, 2016Fortunately, the Milk... Coraline Odd and the Frost Giants Neverwhere Art Matters: Because Your Imagination Can Change The World Pirate Stew What You Need to Be Warm
;written by Michael RosenA Great Big Cuddle: Poems for the Very Young Many Different Kinds of Love Michael Rosen's Pocket Shakespeare
;written by Francesca GibbonsA Clock of Stars:
  • * A Clock of Stars: The Shadow Moth
  • * A Clock of Stars: Beyond the Mountains
  • * ''A Clock of Stars: The Greatest Kingdom''

Awards and recognitions

Some of these awards and related honours may have recognised the writers of books Riddell illustrated. The three Greenaway Medals, two commendations, and three shortlists recognised Riddell as illustrator.
;Awards1997 Something Else, written by Kathryn Cave, won the UNESCO Prize for Children's and Young People's Literature in the Service of Tolerance. Later in a TV in 13.9.2001..2001 Pirate Diary, written by Richard Platt, won the Kate Greenaway Medal.2003 Pirate Diary won the Blue Peter Book Award, Best Book with Facts.2004 Jonathan Swift's "Gulliver", adapted by Martin Jenkins from the 1726 classic, won the Kate Greenaway Medal.2004 Fergus Crane, written by Paul Stewart, Nestlé Smarties Book Prize and the Smarties Prize "4Children Special Award".2007 Ottoline and the Yellow Cat, written and illustrated by Riddell, won the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize.2008 Ottoline and the Yellow Cat won a Red House Children's Book Award.2013 Goth Girl and the Ghost of a Mouse won the Costa Book Awards.2016 The Sleeper and the Spindle, written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Riddell, won the Kate Greenaway Medal. This made him become the first ever triple winner of the award.2019 He was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for services to illustration and charity.
;Runners-up, etc.1994 Something Else by Cave was commended for the Greenaway Medal.1999 Castle Diary by Platt was highly commended for the Greenaway Medal.2002 Pirate Diary by Platt was Smarties silver runner-up.2005 Corby Flood by Stewart was Smarties bronze runner-up.2006 Hugo Pepper by Stewart was Smarties silver runner-up.2006 The Emperor of Absurdia, written and illustrated by Riddell, was Smarties silver runner-up.2007 The Emperor of Absurdia made the Greenaway shortlist.2008 Ottoline and the Yellow Cat, written and illustrated by Riddell, made the Greenaway shortlist.2008 Wendel's Workshop, written and illustrated by Riddell, made the Booktrust Early Years Award shortlist.2010 The Graveyard Book, written by Neil Gaiman, made the Greenaway shortlist in its Children's Edition illustrated by Riddell..