Page 26 • The HERALD • 1st August 2024 v SAY YOU SAW IT IN THE HERALD v SOLENT FORMWORK LTD Est. since 2007 Insitu formwork, steel reinforcement and concrete placement. All types of reinforced concrete structures undertaken, such as slabs, ground beams, walls, columns, decks, basements etc. Call Mark and leave a message on 07913 145994 or email: solenformwork@yahoo.co.uk Acorn Building Contracts Ltd u Reliable, local builders offering affordable, quality workmanship u Our employees are fully qualified and fully insured u All aspects of building undertaken including extensions, structural alterations, roofing, ground works, kitchens, bathrooms, carpentry and plastering u Drawings arranged u Insurance work undertaken u Local Authority Approved Contractor For free quotations and friendly advice please call Office: 023 8024 3336 Mobile: 07786 656865 Email: acornbuilding@gmail.com or visit our website: www.acorn-builders.co.uk You will not be disappointed AUSTIN WINDOW CLEANING Professional Window Cleaning Service established 25 years From £18 per house Tel: 07733 205341 www.austinwindowcleaning.co.uk FREE ESTIMATES • 10 YEAR GUARANTEE HYTHE: office.atlaswindows@gmail.com FAX/PHONE 023 8084 0441 Unit 2, Hardley Ind Est, Southampton ESTABLISHED FOR 30 YEARS THE LOCAL WINDOW COMPANY WITH THE BIG REPUTATION SUPPLY & INSTALL • Windows • Porches • Conservatories in PVCu • Doors • Choice of Colours & Woodgrain 30 Years of New Forest Friends & The Litterbugs by Simon Chadwick, Ceratopia Somehow, it’s 30 years since New Forest Friends & e Litterbugs was rst published. It’s no exaggeration to say that this book utterly changed my life, and I’m incredibly pleased that it’s still popular today. I was at the Orchard Schools’ Fete recently where a parent bought one for her child having so enjoyed it herself all those years ago. at’s happened a lot in the last ten years or so, and it always wrong-foots me. I mean, I don’t feel 30 years older, so how can these people who read it as children be buying it for their children? Makes my head spin. I did the illustrations with colouring pencils on A2 board, and they took an age. At the time my ngers would ache from all the cross hatching and I went through a ridiculous amount of pencils and pencil sharpeners. So o en would I end up using a stub in a desperate attempt to get a page nished. e original plan had been for me to go to university and study animation a er my A-levels but I, somewhat optimistically, took a year out to have a go at a book. I had a part-time job to keep me going, spending much of the rest of the time drawing. I didn’t have a publisher or any clue how to get one. I was just lost in this notion of giving it a try. Because the story involved litter in the New Forest an old teacher from secondary school got it under the noses of the Forestry Commission who in turn showed it to New Forest District Council. Back then it was a prose story, and the suggestion was made that it would work better in rhyme – so I re-wrote it. NFDC published 5000 copies, got Chris Packham involved for the book launch, and the lady that created Aslan for the BBC’s e Lion, e Witch & e Wardrobe made four amazing heads of the main characters that could be worn. Lord Montagu lent his Rolls Royce Silver Ghost and four children from Beaulieu Village Primary School donned the character heads while riding past Bolton’s Bench to the launch. Press, radio and TV coverage, plus the fact that WHSmith’s in Southampton had a dedicated stand at the foot of the stairs, meant that all 5000 copies were sold out in two weeks. It went straight to a reprint and hasn’t been out of print since. Some of you will remember Playdays, the BBC kids’ TV show. ey chose the book as their Patch Stop story, so Litterbugs got a whole new audience via that too. Another little gem was that Bill Oddie o ered to read it as an audiobook. And I never did go to university. I was o ered a job in advertising on the back of the book, and so went and did that instead, creating two further New Forest Friends books in my spare time. I have a huge so spot for the book and the characters. Its story of litter as seen from the animal’s point of view never seems to be less relevant (sadly) and it’s gratifying to still see it used in schools, and to be able to use it when I do school talks and workshops. It’s opened all sorts of doors for me, and, I like to think, made a bit of a di erence in the New Forest. When it was rst published it was just £3.99 a copy. It was a deliberate pocket money price to ensure it and its message about litter reached as many people as possible. Even now, 30 years later, it’s only £4.99. Bargain! BUT, because it is now 30 years old, I’m making it £3 throughout the summer. If you know of anyone that might like a copy, point them to www.ceratopiabooks. co.uk
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