ON PREVIOUS DAYS:
- YESTERDAY:
The Man Who Lived in the Airport - DAY BEFORE:
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One Direction: The Movie - DAY BEFORE BEFORE THAT:
The CIA's Iranian Coup
ON THIS DAY
The Birth of Ladybird Books
The British Museum Library registered the legal deposit of the first ever ‘Ladybird Series’ titles, from publishers Wills & Hepworth (later ‘Ladybird’) on 27th August, 1914.
The books – ‘Hans Andersen’s Fairy Tales’ and ‘Tiny Tots Travels’ – didn’t look at all like the classic Ladybird books we think of today – but were the beginning of a publishing legacy that changed children’s books forever.
In this episode, Olly, Rebecca and Arion explain how the classic Ladybird look – fashioned from one massive sheet of paper – was a response to World War Two; review how the publisher dealt with accusations of sexism and colour-blindness in the ’70s; and explain the M.O.D.’s connection to one of the most valuable Ladybirds ever published…
Thanks to Ladybird collector and historian Helen Day for helping us dig up this date from the archives! Discover more about Helen and her passion for Ladybird on her excellent website:
https://ladybirdflyawayhome.com/so-whats-the-story-the-kitchen-table/
Further Reading:
• ‘Ladybird Books at 100: The series that inspired millions of children to read’ (Daily Mirror, 2015): https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/ladybird-books-100-series-inspired-5335319
• ‘Ladybird Books: The strange things we learned’ (BBC, 2015): https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-30709937
• ‘The Ladybird Books Story’ (Little Car, 2020):
ON THIS DAY
The Birth of Ladybird Books
The British Museum Library registered the legal deposit of the first ever ‘Ladybird Series’ titles, from publishers Wills & Hepworth (later ‘Ladybird’) on 27th August, 1914.
The books – ‘Hans Andersen’s Fairy Tales’ and ‘Tiny Tots Travels’ – didn’t look at all like the classic Ladybird books we think of today – but were the beginning of a publishing legacy that changed children’s books forever.
In this episode, Olly, Rebecca and Arion explain how the classic Ladybird look – fashioned from one massive sheet of paper – was a response to World War Two; review how the publisher dealt with accusations of sexism and colour-blindness in the ’70s; and explain the M.O.D.’s connection to one of the most valuable Ladybirds ever published…
Thanks to Ladybird collector and historian Helen Day for helping us dig up this date from the archives! Discover more about Helen and her passion for Ladybird on her excellent website:
https://ladybirdflyawayhome.com/so-whats-the-story-the-kitchen-table/
Further Reading:
• ‘Ladybird Books at 100: The series that inspired millions of children to read’ (Daily Mirror, 2015): https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/ladybird-books-100-series-inspired-5335319
• ‘Ladybird Books: The strange things we learned’ (BBC, 2015): https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-30709937
• ‘The Ladybird Books Story’ (Little Car, 2020):
ON PREVIOUS DAYS:
- YESTERDAY:
The Man Who Lived in the Airport - DAY BEFORE:
The Godfather of Graffiti - DAY BEFORE THAT:
One Direction: The Movie - DAY BEFORE BEFORE THAT:
The CIA's Iranian Coup
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OLLY MANN
Olly Mann made his name with another trivia-wielding podcast, Answer Me This! with Helen Zaltzman – and now presents The Modern Mann, The Week Unwrapped, and Four Thought for BBC Radio Four. He also has an A-Level in History, so Dan Snow beware.
REBECCA MESSINA
Rebecca got a passion for podcasting working at The Week magazine and a passion for trivia appearing on University Challenge in 2011, making The Retrospectors her natural home.
ARION MCNICOLL
Arion started out in satirical news in Australia, then moved to the UK to work for ostensibly serious publications including The Times, CNN, and The Week… before realising that since around 2016 the news has all been satire really.
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