Utterly delighted to see my ‘Shinoy and the Chaos Crew’ series shortlisted in Teach Primary‘s 2021 Awards!
With huge thanks to the ever-awesome Zoë Clarke, our amazing illustrator Amit Tayal and all the team at Big Cat Collins & HarperCollins Children’s Books UK for their endless sense of fun and adventure.
We have some tough competition, but it’s great to be in there fighting!
The winners will be announced in October.
Call to action … Chaos Crew 
My week took a strange twist when I received a message from a BBC producer asking me if I wanted to appear as a surprise guest on Colin Murray’s BBC 5 Live radio show while he was interviewing Steve Cram. He was chatting to the Olympian, World Champion and multiple World Record Breaker in advance of the start of the Olympic athletics programme about his life as a runner.
You would have thought maybe Seb Coe, Steve Ovett or Daley Thompson would have made a more appropriate guest to sing the praises of one of Britain’s greatest ever athletes. But no, I was asked.
You may ask why? Well, it’s probably not what you think.
But if you click on the link here you’ll find out. I’m on at the start of the programme, but the rest is well worth a listen too.
It was a great giggle and an honour!!
It’s the 7th July, meaning it is World Chocolate Day – but you knew that already.
So, click here to read a serious (ahem!) piece of investigative journalism I wrote for The Guardian a while back.
You’re welcome.
Incredibly honoured to be Middlesbrough Libraries‘ Author of the Month.I’ve had the pleasure of doing many events in libraries and schools in the Middlesbrough area and always received a warm welcome (in spite of the fact I come from Newcastle!!) and my audiences have always been a lot of fun.There is such a wonderful culture of reading for pleasure in this area. I am hoping that as libraries continue to reopen and expand their services and activities once restrictions allow, that everyone in Middlesbrough will rediscover what fantastic libraries and librarians they have there.
Please check out here to see me talking about my books and banging on about why libraries are so great.
Thank you to everyone at Middlesbrough Libraries.
