From Peru to Paddington station, a quick hop on the tube to Euston via the British Library, and finally Carlisle!
A very special bear is planning a trip to Tullie House Museum & Art Gallery this November.
From November 20 to February 20, Tullie House will welcome Paddington: The Story of a Bear, a brand new touring exhibition from the British Library.
Paddington: The Story of a Bear is a new family-friendly exhibition at Tullie House celebrating one of the world’s most beloved fictional characters over 60 years on from when he was first published by HarperCollins Children’s Books in 1958.
Visitors will follow Paddington’s journey from the mind of Blue Peter camera operator Michael Bond to children’s book favourite and eventual film star.
The exhibition will explore how Michael Bond took inspiration from his own experiences and family in bringing Paddington to life, looking at Paddington’s migration from Peru to London and finding a new home with a new family.
Paddington is a timeless and universal story of desire for home, acceptance, and a sense of belonging, appealing to all ages. Featuring books, documents, film clips and original illustrations, highlights of the exhibition will include:
- First edition of A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond given to his parents, illustrated by Peggy Fortnum, published by HarperCollins Publishers in 1958
- The original review of A Bear called Paddington by Barbara Ker Wilson, 1958
- A selection of memorabilia owned by Michael Bond on loan from his family, including Bond’s typewriter used in the 1960s
- Clips from some of the film and TV adaptations and a sound recording of Bond talking about the process of creating Paddington’s stories
- Original illustrations of Paddington stories by artists including Peggy Fortnum, David McKee and R.W. Alley
The story of Paddington is the inspiration behind From Peru to Paddington, a community project created for the exhibition, which explores the experiences of those who have migrated to Carlisle.
Whether someone has travelled 50 or 5,000 miles to make Carlisle their home, Tullie House will work with people to share their stories as part of the exhibition.
Alongside the objects, images and video clips on display, Tullie House will be adding their own elements to bring the exhibition to life for our youngest visitors.
This will include storytelling and dressing up areas, drawing and adventure postcard writing, as well as our hands on Story Lab. Inspired by Paddington’s adventures, the interactives in the Story Lab are designed to help you create your own Paddington tale and get those creative juices flowing.
The award-winning education team will also be offering bookable workshops for primary schools, giving pupils the chance to discover the story behind the bear and stretch their own creative writing skills.
Jill Goodfellow, exhibitions manager at Tullie House said: “Tullie House is thrilled to be the first touring venue for Paddington: The Story of a Bear created by the British Library. The amazing illustrations and original books will give lifelong fans a wonderful blast from the past, while younger visitors can get caught up in the magic and adventure of Paddington with fun and interactive activities. We’re so excited to have a new exhibition for the whole family to enjoy over the winter months.”
Alison Bailey, lead curator of Printed Heritage Collections 1901-2000 at the British Library said: “We are thrilled Paddington: The Story of a Bear is touring to Carlisle after it charmed visitors of all ages at the British Library earlier this year.
“The Library’s collections are for everyone so we are delighted that more people will have the opportunity to see this fun, family-friendly exhibition. Paddington is a timeless and universal story of desire for home, acceptance and a sense of belonging and we hope visitors to Tullie House enjoy discovering his stories and following his adventures.”
