Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} by Wombles creator Elisabeth Beresford dies, aged 84. Elisabeth Beresford, the writer best known for creating the much-loved children's television programme,The Wombles, has died. The 84-year-old invented the characters of the Wombles of Wimbledon Common, who became household names in the 1970s. Beresford died at 10.30pm yesterday in the Mignot Memorial hospital on , in the , after suffering heart failure, her son Marcus Robertson said. The first Wombles book was published in 1968 and, after it was broadcast on Jackanory, the BBC decided to make an animated series. Beresford wrote over 20 Wombles books within a decade, which were translated into more than 40 languages. She also wrote a Wombles stage show, one version of which ran in the West End. A total of 35 five-minute films were broadcast on BBC One accompanied by Mike Batt's music and the programme's synonymous theme tune, Underground Overground, . The characters were voiced by actor and the puppets created by Ivor Wood. Beresford was inspired to create the characters by a child's mispronunciation one Christmas, when she took her children to Wimbledon Common for a Boxing Day stroll and her daughter Kate referred to the area as "Wombledon". A number of the characters she developed were based on members of her family. Great Uncle Bulgaria was based on her father-in-law, Tobermory on her brother (a skilled inventor), Orinoco, on her son, and Madame Cholet on her mother. Beresford was born in in 1926, although her family home was in England. Her father, JD Beresford, was a successful novelist and book reviewer and friends of the family included HG Wells, , W Somerset Maguham and DH Lawrence. Her own literary career began as a ghost writer, specialising in speeches, including for Conservative MPs. She then began training as a journalist and obtained work for the BBC as a radio reporter. In 1949, she married sports commentator sports Max Robertson, with whom she travelled to Australia, South Africa and the West Indies. The couple had a son and daughter together but divorced after 35 years. As well as the Wombles she wrote two TV series, Seven Days to Sydney and Come to the Caribbean. Beresford was awarded an MBE for her services to children's literature in the 1998 New Year's Honours List. This article was amended on 6 January 2011. The original said that Elisabeth Beresford was born in Paris in 1928. This has been corrected. ISBN 13: 9781408808375. The Wombles is the first in the Wombles series of books and introduces many of the favourite Womble characters, including the stern but kindly Great Uncle Bulgaria and Orinoco, fond of his food and a subsequent forty winks.Illustrated throughout in full colour by the talented Nick Price, this hardback edition of the first in the much-loved and classic Wombles series will make the perfect gift. "synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title. Elisabeth Beresford first came up with the idea for the Wombles characters one day when walking on Wimbledon Common with her two children. The Wombles have since so charmed the nation that they were chosen as the mascots for the Tidy Britain campaign. Elisabeth Beresford was awarded an MBE for her services to children's literature in 1998. The Wombles. `There's something wonderfully old-fashioned and charming about the "short, fat, furry" creatures. They are simple without being simplistic, innocent without being naïve, civic minded for its own sake' --Irish Examiner. `The rubbish collecting eco message has a new resonance' --Angels and Urchins. `More than 40 years since the Wombles first hit Wimbledon Common, the six original titles by Elizabeth Beresford are back in print, with an environmental message that has never been more relevant. Perfect for 8-to 10-year-olds' --Telegraph Magazine. `A genuine classic returns . . . A new generation will delight in the adorable Wombles of Wimbledon Common and, with their passion for recycling, they couldn't be better role models. Nostalgic adults will also love getting re-acquainted with the furry crew' --Saga. `This charming series is as relevant for young readers today as it was in the 1960's' --Primary Times. `Those of us of a certain age will be delighted to see the return of those famous residents of Wimbledon Common. Orinoco, Uncle Bulgaria and the rest are a charming and entertaining bunch, plus, with their litter-picking way, they can teach us all a thing or two about recycling' --Sunday Express. 'No kid should grow up without having the Wombles in their lives' --The Bookbag, June 2011. `The Wombles are back! A new generation of readers can delight in them, discovering their ethos and sharing in their most excellent and innocent of adventures. This is a masterstroke - I love them!' --Books Monthly. `Endearing adventures involving gathering and sorting rubbish, braving meetings with humans and dogs and, in the nicest possible way, making sure the world is a better place' --Julia Eccleshare Love Reading 4 Kids. Book Description : The classic, first ever Wombles book now available as a gift edition hardback with full-colour illustrations throughout and an audio CD containing three Wombles stories, read by Bernard Cribbins. Die größten Hörerlebnisse nur bei Audible. Erlebe Audible auf dem Smartphone, Tablet, am Computer oder deinem Amazon Echo. Auch offline. Die größten Hörerlebnisse. Entdecke genau das, was du hören willst: Wähle aus 200.000 Titeln und inspirierenden Audible Original Podcasts. Natürlich werbefrei. Genieße dein Hörerlebnis ohne Unterbrechung. Einfach ausprobieren. Teste Audible 30 Tage kostenlos. Du kannst jederzeit kündigen. Hör die Welt mit anderen Augen. Mit Audible Originals und exklusiven Geschichten. Wir können dich kaum erwarten! Entdecke Audible einen Monat lang völlig kostenlos. Genieße jeden Monat ein Hörerlebnis deiner Wahl - und so viele exklusive Audible Original Podcasts, wie du willst. Keine Bindung, keine Frist – du kannst dein Abo jederzeit pausieren oder kündigen. Elisabeth Beresford: Children's author who created the Wombles. Elisabeth Beresford was inspired to create the Wombles by her daughter's mispronunciation during a Boxing Day romp across Wimbledon Common. The idea blossomed and the children's books and highly successful television series went on to conquer the world, being translated into over 40 languages. The Wombles' motto, "Make Good Use of Bad Rubbish", and their passion for recycling was years ahead of its time and captured the imagination of children everywhere, who began to organise Womble Clearing Up Groups. In all, 35 five-minute films were broadcast on BBC1, accompanied by Mike Batt's music and The Wombles theme song, "Underground, Overground, Wombling Free". There was even pop chart success with "Remember You're a Womble", which reached No 4 in 1974, and then again in 2000 with "I Wish It Could Be a Wombling Merry Christmas Every Day". The inspiration had come to Beresford when, in order to give her parents-in-law some quiet after Christmas, she took her two young children to Wimbledon Common to let off some steam. While there, her daughter Kate shouted, "Ma, isn't it great on Wombledon Common?" Beresford recalled thinking, "that's it, that's where the Wombles come from." That same day, she made a list of names and based each Womble on a different family member. At the head of the Womble hierarchy was Great Uncle Bulgaria, based on her father-in-law; Tobermory was based on her brother (a skilled inventor); Orinoco her son; and Madame Cholet Coburg-Womble was inspired by her royalty-obsessed mother. The Wombles' names came from sources as different as the town where Beresford's daughter went on a French exchange and the name of the college attended by a nephew. The first Wombles book was published in 1968, and the stories made their television debut the same year, broadcast on BBC1's Jackanory series. The BBC were delighted by the response and decided to make an animated series. They were, however, less enamoured by Beresford's own character drawings. Thus, the head of children's programming, Monica Sims, commissioned the puppeteer Ivor Wood to create the Womble characters and direct the series. He later animated Paddington Bear and Postman Pat. After some set-backs, Wood's designs for creatures with long pointed snouts, thick prehensile fingers and ill-fitting costumes and headgear were accepted. Characterised by actor Bernard Cribbins's wonderful voices, the first animated series of The Wombles appeared on the nation's screens in 1973. It was an overnight success and the series soon went global. As its popularity grew, fan-mail arrived by the sackful and Beresford found herself on live phone-ins and travelling all over the world. She was tireless in promoting these initiatives around the world, as well as supporting the cause of recycling. Wombles mania took hold during the 1970s and 80s, spawning all sorts of merchandising including soft toys, mugs, annuals, soaps and stationery – a relatively rare feat at the time. Beresford wrote 20 Wombles books, which were sold worldwide, and she adapted the stories into a stage show herself (1974), one version of which ran in the West End. This was followed by the film Wombling Free (1977), directed by Lionel Jeffries and starring David Tomlinson, Frances de la Tour and Bonnie Langford. In 1998, on the 25th anniversary of their first TV appearance, the Wombles were relaunched in a cartoon version. The food chain McDonald's even went so far as to give away nearly 13 million collectible mini-Wombles in a four-week Happy Meal promotion in 1999. Wombles character Orinoco subsequently featured in several other McDonald's promotions. Although the family home was in England, Elisabeth "Liza" Beresford was born on 6 August 1926 in Paris, where her family had moved to avoid the Inland Revenue. Her father, John Davys Beresford, was himself a successful author and critic. Perhaps her destiny was foretold, as she grew up around the Edwardian literary greats; her parents' friends included H G Wells, George Bernard Shaw, Rudyard Kipling, , Somerset Maugham and D H Lawrence. Her godfather was the poet Walter de la Mare and the children's writer was her godmother. Despite witnessing the comings and goings of the literary geniuses of the time, Beresford seldom had the chance to speak to them – it was an era when children were "seen and not heard". The house, however, was full of books and soon she became a compulsive reader. Beresford was still a child when her father ran off with another woman, forcing her mother, Beatrice, to move the family to Brighton, where they took in lodgers to make ends meet. Despite this, Beresford corresponded in secret with her father until his death in 1947, although her mother burnt the letters when she stumbled across them years later. Educated at St Mary's Hall and Brighton and Hove High School, Beresford trained as a shorthand typist and then served for 18 months as a wireless telegraphist in the Women's Royal Naval Service towards the end of the Second World War. Following a stint as a ghostwriter, specialising in speeches for the rich and famous, she trained as a journalist in the 1950s. Her work soon led to writing radio, film and television columns, including in Woman's Weekly and Punch, and working for the BBC as a radio reporter on the Today programme and Woman's Hour among others. She later admitted that it was a somewhat hit-and-miss career – and so she coupled this with writing fiction, as she found herself having to support her family. This included her husband Max Robertson, the sports commentator, whom she had married in 1949 and who was out of work, her mother, who was in a nursing home, and their two children, Kate and Marcus. Beresford's first book for children, The Television Mystery, was published in 1957, and she wrote over 45 more. Her first for adults was published in 1963; these were largely what she described as "romantic thrillers", although they were never hugely successful. Her last romance was A Passionate Adventure (1983). In 1964, Beresford had her first children's series success when Awkward Magic was published; another eight were to follow. Beresford was awarded an MBE for her services to children's literature in the 1998 New Year's Honours List. Beresford died on 24 December at the Mignot Memorial Hospital on Alderney in the Channel Islands following heart failure, aged 84. Elisabeth Beresford, writer: born Paris 6 August 1926; married 1949 Max Robertson (divorced 1984, died 2009, one son, one daughter); died Alderney, Channel Islands 24 December 2010. Join our new commenting forum. Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies.