Exhibition Reveals How Chiswick Has Shaped Children's Literature
Displays at St Michael & All Angels launched on World Book Day
Kaye Webb launched the Puffin Club from her Chiswick riverside home
March 4, 2026
A new exhibition celebrating Chiswick’s remarkable contribution to children’s literature, television and theatre has opened at St Michael & All Angels Church to mark World Book Day (5 March).
The aim is to shine a light on a creative legacy that organisers say has gone largely unrecognised until now.
The Untold Story of Chiswick’s Books for Children brings together more than a century of work by writers, illustrators, editors and performers who lived in or were shaped by the neighbourhood. Running until Sunday 15 March, the exhibition traces a line from Victorian illustrators through to the creators of some of the most beloved characters in modern children’s culture.
Among the highlights are images by Cecil Aldin, who designed the cover and colour plates for Black Beauty, and Balliol Salmon, famed for his work with Angela Brazil. There is the first cover of Puffin Post, created by legendary editor Kaye Webb, who grew up in Chiswick and launched the Puffin Club from her home by the river.
A Japanese poster for the film Miss Potter recalls the work of Sally Floyer, who oversaw Beatrix Potter’s publishing at Frederick Warne & Co and later led Ladybird Books and BBC Books. Original covers from Jane Nissen Books show how classic children’s titles were brought back into print for new generations.
Panels also explore Chiswick’s role in children’s television and theatre. Richard Briers, who voiced characters in Roobarb, Noddy and Watership Down, appears alongside Vicky Ireland of Words & Pictures and Jonathan Cohen of Play Away and Jackanory. A section devoted to “The Coles of South Parade” celebrates the creators of Bod, Play School and Fingerbobs, with images from a new Bod series currently in development.
The exhibition draws on volunteer research for the Chiswick Book Festival’s expanding online archive, including a new Timeline of Chiswick Artists and Illustrators launched this week.
Book covers by Balliol Salmon (left) and Cecil Aldin (right)
Torin Douglas, director of the Chiswick Book Festival, said the exhibition reveals a creative network that has shaped children’s culture for more than a century. “It is remarkable how influential Chiswick’s residents have been in the world of children’s books, TV and theatre – and that this story has been unrecognised till now,” he said. He described a “golden thread” running from Kaye Webb’s transformation of Puffin Books to the work of Jane Nissen, Sally Floyer, Dotti Irving and Barry Cunningham, who later published Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone after working in a Chiswick bookshop.
The exhibition forms the backdrop to the Festival’s Children’s Books Day on Saturday 7 March, held at St Michael & All Angels and the Tabard Theatre. Writers, illustrators, publishers and broadcasters will discuss what Douglas calls “the golden age of children’s books, TV and theatre”.
Speakers include Janet Ellis, Vicky Ireland, Jonathan Cohen, Lucy Briers, Alison Cole and Greg Childs. Ellis will also chair a discussion with Jane Nissen and Sally Floyer on the legacy of Kaye Webb. Afternoon sessions will open the church to families for readings, screenings and craft activities, while the Tabard Theatre will host a conversation on children’s theatre with Vicky Ireland and playwright David Wood.
The Festival is partnering with local schools, Chiswick Library and national organisations including Action for Children’s Arts, the Children’s Media Foundation and the Cultural Policy Unit. Tickets for the three sessions are available via the Chiswick Book Festival website, with proceeds supporting Action for Children’s Arts and the church’s Heritage Conservation Fund.
The day will conclude with the launch of the Timeline of Chiswick Artists and Illustrators at a free evening event, Chiswick Artists Night, in the Tabard pub.
See the artists' timeline here.
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