Michael Morpurgo Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Ben Croll Originally developed as an eight-episode series, the WWI-era adventure “Lucy Lost” will instead hit the silver screen now that Paris-based powerhouse Xilam Animation has retooled the project as a feature. “Klaus” alum Olivier Clert has boarded as co-writer and director, joining BAFTA-winning screenwriter Helen Blankman for a seaside family tale adapted from “War Horse” author Michael Morpurgo’s 2014 novel “Listen to the Moon.” Xilam has shared this first-look with Variety ahead of the reformatted project’s pitch at Cartoon Movie in Bordeaux.

EXCLUSIVE: Paris-based Superprod Group has acquired top Luxembourgish animation companies Studio 352 and Mélusine Productions in a move that consolidates its position as one of Europe’s leading animation production groups.

The Centre, Livingston Book Club is set to welcome the multi award-winning author and illustrator Catherine Rayner to its next get-together.

Loki season two is set to be screened at the BFI London Film Festival next month.Ahead of its release on Disney+ on October 5, the Marvel show’s first two episodes will be screened on Wednesday October 4 at the festival with an introduction from director Dan DeLeeuw and executive producer Kevin R Wright.Tickets for the event, which are free, will be available from 10am BST on Monday September 25 here. The BFI London Film Festival runs from October 4-15.As part of the LFF For Free programme, there are other free events planned for the festival beyond screenings, including a Chicken Run model-making workshop for families, talks with writer Michael Morpurgo (Kensuke’s Kingdom) and screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce, along with various DJ nights inspired by cult films.

Michael Morpurgo’s 1999 children’s book comes vividly to life in Neil Boyle and Kirk Hendry’s joint feature debut, a castaway fantasy in which a young boy learns vital lessons about the natural order of things. Seasoned screenwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce is on board too, and yet this is likely one of his sparsest screenplays yet, leaning into the subtleties of the animation: traditional hand-drawn 2D with mixed-media elements for the background. Older kids will likely love it, but a beautifully stark encapsulation of the bombing of Nagasaki in 1945 may rule it out as something for the whole family.

Michael Morpurgo has paid tribute to the Queen saying she was “very much the heart and soul of who we are”. Sir Michael, whose works include the 1982 children’s book War Horse, was named in the 2017 New Year Honours list and knighted for his services to literature and charity.

EXCLUSIVE: Doctor Who star Catherine Tate’s Netflix comedy Hard Cell is a tonal shift from her previous work, according to exec Kristian Smith, who revealed the mockumentary’s producer Leopard Pictures is working on a feature film adaptation of a Michael Morpurgo novel.

LONDON -- British children's author and illustrator Shirley Hughes, best known for her popular “Alfie” series and classic picture book “Dogger,” has died, her family said Wednesday. She was 94.Hughes died “peacefully at home after a short illness” on Friday, the family said in a statement.“Shirley’s books about everyday family life are adored by generations of families and she is held in the highest esteem by her peers," the family statement said.“Dogger” tells the story of a little boy who loses his stuffed dog toy.

‘Toto’ Animated Musical Prepping At Animal Logic Studio

Animated feature Kensuke’s Kingdom, based on the Michael Morpurgo novel, Terence Davies’ Siegfried Sassoon biopic Benediction and the Studiocanal-released Saint Maud were among the films to receive the highest level of support from the British Film Institute’s production and distribution funds this year.

Julie Walters is among a group of more than 100 high-profile parents calling for a green economic recovery following the coronavirus pandemic.

Michael Morpurgo has said that literature should not shy away from tackling “deeply uncomfortable” topics.

Michael Morpurgo’s 1990 children’s book, set in France during World War Two is brought to the big screen, placing a coming of age tale against the backdrop of the darkest chapter in human history. 

Holocaust-themed films geared to younger audiences inevitably have a certain defanged quality. It's the inevitable trade-off for softening the horrors attendant to the subject matter, and there's something to be said for making the historical period more accessible to viewers who may not be familiar with it.

We’ve just heard that Waiting For Anya, the film based on the book by Michael Morpurgo and starring Netflix’s Stranger Things star, Noah Schnapp, has had a February release date set.

By Mike Fleming Jr