Judith Kerr, author of The Tiger Who Came To Tea, dies age 95
The beloved author and illustrator published over 30 books, including the Mog series and When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit
Judith Kerr, the children's author and illustrator known for the Mog series and The Tiger Who Came To Tea, has died aged 95.
Born in 1923 in Berlin, Kerr fled Germany with her family in 1933, eventually settling in England. The beloved writer published over 30 books, and recounted growing up against the backdrop of Hitler's rise to power in When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit.
In a statement, Kerr's publisher Harper Collins said that she had died at home following a short illness.
"It is with great sadness that we announce that Judith Kerr OBE, author and illustrator of The Tiger Who Came to Tea, When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit, Mog the Forgetful Cat and many other classic children’s books, died at home yesterday aged 95 following a short illness," said the publisher.
Adding that Kerr "never stopped working", Harper Collins said that the writer's final book, The Curse of the School Rabbit, is currently scheduled for publication in June this year.
In 2014, the beloved author illustrated Radio Times' iconic Christmas issue, featuring a child unwrapping a cat as a present.
On designing the cover, Kerr said: "I couldn’t think what to do. Eventually I said, “What about a child holding a cat?” I had no trouble at all drawing the child, or the cat, but the bloody parcels!"
She also revealed that decades earlier she'd drawn a "grinning" racehorse for Radio Times, revealing it to be the publication of choice for illustrators.
"When I was at art school in London in the 1940s I drew a racehorse for Radio Times.
"I didn’t know what racehorses looked like so I drew one grinning. I’d never been asked to do anything else… until now! It’s terribly flattering."
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