New Viking series with Francesca Simon!

I'm very excited to announce that I'll be teaming up with best-selling 'Horrid Henry' author Francesca Simon for a new series for Faber & Faber which "features a marauding band of terrible Vikings, led by terror twins Hack and Whack, who are adored by their parents for being the worst Vikings in the village" 

I'm very excited to be working with Francesca, I've already caught myself laughing out loud at the text which is ALWAYS the best sign and I'm relishing the chance of bringing Hack and Whack's terrible exploits to life. (Getting to draw a baby wolf called Bitey Bitey is also a magnificent bonus too!)

Here's a link the the article at The Bookseller

Yule Cat says "BÖO!"

Jólakötturin, the Icelandic Yule Cat is 'a vicious cat who lurks about the snowy countryside during Christmas time and eats people who have not received any new clothes to wear before Christmas Eve.'(!)

Praying you ALL get new socks this year!

The Knückle Crüshers

Celebrating Halloween & the 'unnëcessary hëavy mëtal ümlaut'!


(from an idea by Rachel Delahay Lefever)

Diana Ditch (Boris Johnson's drag name)

(from an original tweet by Mark Gatiss)

National Poetry Day - Holes - Spike Milligan

A Bestiary of (dimly remembered) Literary Terms

I was following a thread by @katemond on Twitter about 7 year olds being forced to learn about 'fronted adverbials' at school & after looking the term up realised the reality was a hell of a lot duller than my original idea of what a Fronted Adverbial looked like.

I proceeded to draw some more dimly remembered terms from studying English literature back in the mists of time.

The Unlucky Eleven - publication day!

The Unlucky Eleven which is published today is my second collaboration with author Phil Earle for Barrington Stoke as part of their Little Gems series.
I really enjoyed illustrating this funny action packed story about a rather shambolic & comical football team with a supposedly cursed football kit! It's a very nicely produced & designed book & you can either by it online or even better head down to your nearest independent bookshop & ask for it.
"The action flows, both on the pitch and in the dressing room, and the story feels as real and authentic as a pair of muddy football boots. Steve May’s illustrations are bang on...A winner!"

(Andrea Reece)

The Haunted Tie (& other stories)

Excerpt from a series of horror stories I will never probably get around to writing...

Sir Henry Rawlinson...

A fine quote from an eminently quotable movie 'Sir Henry At Rawlinsons End' written by the late great ginger geezer himself Viv Stanshall.

Pigs & monkeys!

All sorts of flying gubbins...

World Sleep Day

World Book Day 2019

Happy World Book Day 2019 !
(but spare a thought for some of the less popular days too World Cook Day, World Rook Day, World Crook Day) 

Spread the love & happy reading!

Monster Facts #016

Monster negotiation is always best attempted AFTER lunchtime!

(preferably with SWAT team back up)

See also Monster Facts #03

Newham Word Festival with Guy Bass

I had a great time with author Guy Bass at the Manor Park library with the the kids from Monega Primary School  for the Newham Word Festival today. We covered everything from childhood vices, potato shaped children, dinosaurs, superheroes & not to forget our recent collaborations 'Noah Scape - Can't Stop Repeating Himself'  & 'Laura Norder - Sheriff of Butts Canyon'.

Guy's exuberance & expert storytelling went down really well with the kids & the morning gave me plenty of scope for plenty of live drawing to prove I was definitely 'quick on the draw' (see what I did there?!?!)

Thanks to the staff at Manor Park library for making us so welcome!

 Look at all our lovely books!

A meat pie, Tarzan & angry giraffe...

 Noah Scape

 Various superheroes (& Hulk's tiny trousers)

 Ten Gun Ben (& startled horse)

 Ten Gun Ben says "NO RULES!"

 A wild west 'good morning' pussycat (& rogue TARDIS)

 Potato shaped child & Guy's mum laying down the law 

(NB I have never met Guy's mum so this is purely invented)

 Noah Scape's favourite things!

 Laura Norder & Duncan Disorderly drawn from life in double quick time
(see below)

Down To Earth

Here's a couple of pictures from a recent book I illustrated called Down to Earth by Carmel Reilly for Oxford University press which I can find no trace of but anyone who knows me will know I'm fond of drawing aliens etc. so here you go!

Laura Norder - Sheriff of Butts Canyon PUBLICATION DAY!

Laura Norder - Sheriff of Butts Canyon, my third collaboration with author Guy Bass for Barrington Stoke is published today, Friday 15th February
In this pun-tastic & funny Western adventure Laura Norder lives her life by the Golden Rules and so should everybody else. But being Sheriff of Butts Canyon at the age of ten is a big job to handle, and when a no-good rule-breaking bandit causes chaos in the town, enough is enough! It's time for Laura to step up to the plate and catch the masked mischief-maker before he breaks any more of her rules!

This was a great fun book to work on & I particularly loved visualising all of the subsidiary characters like Tad Tipsy the drunk bartender, Walter Spitty the town scruff & Mort L. Coil the undertaker.

You can order it here or even better, pop into your local bookshop & pick up a copy

Spooky Valentines Day!

I'm THOR!

Thor the thundergod went for a ride

Upon his favourite filly

"I'm Thor!" He cried

The horse replied,

"You forgot your thaddle, thilly."

(rhyme courtethy of @OddsonDamian)

Dry January

Krampus in his Christmas jumper has some advice...

Bass! How low can you go?