Flying into Llandudno! Zog and the Flying Doctors is the latest Julia Donaldson book that has been adapted for the stage, and it comes to Llandudno next month…
Best known for her popular rhyming stories for children,
to the now-iconic Gruffalo, animals are often Julia’s most
especially those illustrated by Axel Scheffler, Julia Donaldson
memorable creations.
is the multi award-winning author of some of the world’s best loved children’s books, most notably the modern classic The
“It’s often used as a convention – like in Aesop’s Fables, where
Gruffalo which has sold over 18 million copies worldwide.
the animals aren’t really animals, they represent a quality or a characteristic,” continues Julia. “I also think it would be far
Many of Julia and Axel’s books have made the journey from
more boring for the reader, if Mouse in The Gruffalo was just a
page to stage, and this year the bestselling Zog and the Flying
small but clever person, or The Gruffalo itself was a big, scary
Doctors joins them. A follow-up to Freckle Productions’ smash-
but rather stupid person. Or in The Snail and the Whale, if the
hit adaptation of Zog, the origin story about the eponymous
Whale was just a big person and the snail a little person – I think
dragon, the sequel follows Zog and his Flying Doctor crew,
you need animals to represent the qualities of the character.”
Princess Pearl and Sir Gadabout, as they tend to a sunburnt mermaid, a unicorn with one too many horns and a lion with
One facet of the enduring success of Julia’s stories is
the flu.
her partnership with illustrator Axel Scheffler who has brought so many of her characters to life. So how does this
Zog and the Flying Doctors flies into Venue Cymru next
collaboration work?
month as part of its World Premiere tour. But where did the idea for Zog come from? “Well that one was actually quite
“It’s always through the editor,” Julia explains. “I never exchange
unusual, in that the initial idea didn’t come from me,” explains
a word with Axel about the pictures until my editor shows him
Julia. “My editor said to me ‘it would be lovely to have a story
the book – and then I have a nail-biting moment wondering if he
about a dragon’, so I started thinking about it and the name
likes it and wants to do it. Then he’ll do some character sketches
‘Madam Dragon’ came into my head, which I thought had a
which I’ll look at. Sometimes, after he’s created sketches for
nice sound.
every picture, I’ll think ‘oh hang on, I’m going to change that little bit of text, because I like what he’s done with that’.”
“And then I thought what could Madame Dragon do, who could she be? I came up with various ideas and a schoolteacher was
The stage adaptations of Julia and Axel’s books, from Zog to
one of them, so I took it from there. Originally it was going to
Stick Man, are often a child’s first time experiencing live theatre,
be about a knight and a dragon, but it ended up being about a
something Julia clearly takes pleasure in. “I remember going to
Princess and a dragon – the story came to me bit by bit.
see The Nutcracker when I was a child and I found the whole thing completely magical. I can still remember how I felt when
“My husband Malcolm, who is a doctor, also had some input
the curtain went up. I suppose in a way it’s the same thing that
here. Because when I was planning the story, I knew that Zog
a book gives you, in that while you’re reading or watching, you
would keep meeting the Princess, and originally I was going to
believe in a different reality. And if it’s a good show, parents love
have them play together and toast marshmallows. And Malcolm
to see that their children – even very young ones – can just be
said that’s a bit soppy, couldn’t it be something with a bit more
transfixed by it.” n
oomph? And then I came up with the doctor angle.” Zog and the Flying Doctors plays at Venue Cymru from Of course Zog is not the first animal to star in one of Julia’s
2nd to 4th August. For information and tickets visit
stories. From a cat in Tabby McTat, to a fish in Tiddler,
www. venuecymru.co.uk
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