Coloured postboxes for World Book Day 2021.

The last time Royal Mail decorated their postboxes with a new colour was for the Christmas ones in December.  Now they have unveiled five special postboxes across the UK, honouring British authors and illustrators who have been doing wonderful work using literature to help keep children entertained during lockdown.

Each postbox is digitally activated, containing a QR code linking through to the free services offered by the author it celebrates, for example a YouTube channel offering free online readings

Pictures of a Belfast double-aperture postbox were posted on Twitter by @DJJarlath.

The Belfast box honours Northern Irish writer Sam McBratney, author of Guess How Much I Love You, who sadly passed away last year. The book has been read online by numerous celebrities and high-profile organisations during lockdown and will remain an iconic part of British literature for generations to come. Royal Mail hopes that the beautiful cream postbox in Sam’s birthplace of Belfast is a fitting tribute to his legacy.

Other boxes are located in Oban, Scotland, Shepherd’s Bush in London, Sheffield, and Cardiff, honouring the following authors:

Cressida Cowell, Waterstone’s Children’s Laureate and author-illustrator of How To Train Your Dragon and The Wizards of Once. As Children’s Laureate, Cressida has filmed hundreds of videos of readings, creative challenges and masterclasses for children in lockdown – all available on her YouTube channels CressidaCowellOfficial, the BookTrust HomeTime website, and Cressida Cowell’s Creativity Camp.

Her postbox, lavishly decorated with Hiccup and Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon, and with gold trim, is located in Oban, Scotland, where ferries to the west coast islands are caught. Cressida spent her childhood summers on an uninhabited island off the coast of Oban, and its beautiful backdrop was the inspiration for the How To Train Your Dragon series of books – now a hugely-popular film and TV franchise. The postbox also features a photo of Cressida writing on that island as a nine-year-old. 

THANKYOU TO @RoyalMail who have teamed up with ⁦@WorldBookDayUK to create specially designed postboxes celebrating books and #readingmagic! Mine is in Oban, Scotland, near the incredibly beautiful place that inspired How to Train Your Dragon. @CressidaCowell on Twitter

Nathan Bryon and Dapo Adeola, Waterstone’s Children’s Book Of The Year winners 2020. Nathan and Dapo’s “utterly joyful” book about a science-mad young black girl trying to distract her brother from his phone actively looks to challenge perceptions around race and gender. In addition to writing one of the most popular recently released children’s books, Nathan and Dapo have been keeping thousands of children entertained with their lively and entertaining digital events, including their Puffin Storytime event which has been viewed over 25,000 times. The bright yellow postbox is in Shepherd’s Bush in London, where Bryon was born.

Happy World Book Day! Totally honoured and flattered to have our own Royal Mail Postbox dedicated to LOOK UP! - @NathanBryon on Twitter

Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks. The striking yellow parcel postbox gives a beautifully designed nod to Lydia and Julia’s work, in particular their recent ‘What The Ladybird Heard’ series of books. Stories from this iconic author and illustrator duo include ‘Sharing A Shell’ and ‘Princess Mirror-Belle’, among many others. Julia has been working on the second series of ‘Julia Donaldson and Friends’ during lockdown, which offers free weekly broadcasts of stories, songs and poems, accessible through The Gruffalo Facebook Page. 

Lydia has also been running her popular ‘How To Draw’ films on her website, which allow children to create many of her characters, as well as animals and vehicles. This postbox is located in Sheffield, where Lydia Monks lives.

"There is a special What the Ladybird Heard postbox in Sheffield!" - @LydiaMonks on Twitter

Eloise Williams, Children’s Laureate Wales 2019-21 – a project run by Literature Wales. From setting weekly writing challenges for children to providing workshop resources for schools, Eloise has had a busy lockdown! Her postbox is in striking regal navy with gold trim, inspired by her much-loved novel Gaslight, and is situated in Cardiff, where she spent much of her childhood.  The picture is captioned with a tweet by Eloise Williams.

I am THRILLED to have a Royal Mail postbox in Cardiff! Thank you @RoyalMail & @WorldBookDayUK. It celebrates #Gaslight which is set in Cardiff & the work I've been doing with @LitWales as @Laureate_Wales. It is a thing of absolute beauty & I am totally honoured.

 

(All details provided in Royal Mail Press Release. Pictures from other sources)

We also have a World Book Day postmark slogan again this year.

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