Tuesday, 5 June 2012

Where it all started

It was Alfred Bestall's illustration of Nutwood, the fictitious English village where Rupert Bear lived. First introduced to me through my big sister's hand-me-down annuals from the late 1950's.

1956. A.E. Bestall
1962 A.E. Bestall

Rupert Bear was originally created and illustrated in 1920 as a strip in the Daily Express Newspaper by Mary Tourtel, who retired in 1948.

Throughout the late 1960's to the mid 70's, I got my own Annuals every Christmas. It was always the portrayal of the British countryside that I adored and couldn't wait to see. Note the red not grey squirrels...

1969 A.E. Bestall
The stories were absolute fantasy yet because of the realism in the landscape detail, I believed everything was true.    

1 comment:

  1. Aah - thank you for posting the illustration of the woodland pool by Alfred Bestall. That illustration made such a great impression on me in 1956 that I can still recall it now 57 years later...

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