Jill Murphy Bio
Jill Murphy was a British author and illustrator of children’s books. She is best known for the Worst Witch novels and the “Large Family” picture books. She has been called “one of the most engaging writers and illustrators for children in the land”.
Jill Murphy Age \ Birthday
He was born on 5 July 1949 in London, England.
Jill Murphy Family
His Family information is still under review.
Jill Murphy Education
She attended Ursuline high school and graduated from Chelsea College of Art and Design.
Jill Murphy Husband \ Spouse
She was married to potter Roger Michell but ended in divorce. Murphy lived in St Mabyn, Cornwall, until her death from cancer on 18 August 2021.
Jill Murphy Children
Murphy gave birth to her son Charlie in spring 1990
Jill Murphy Career
Murphy started to write The Worst Witch — “the magical tale of an accident-prone girl attempting to navigate the magical codes and murky corridors of Miss Cackle’s Academy for Witches” — while still at school but put the book on hold while she attended Chelsea and Croydon Art Schools. She continued to write it during a year living in a village in Togo, West Africa, and later while working as a nanny back in the UK.
After receiving rejection letters from publishers to whom she offered the book (as she recalls, “They said children would be frightened about a school for witches…”), in 1970 when she was 21 she decided to try the new young company Allison and Busby (founded by Clive Allison and Margaret Busby), and, she says, was “thrilled to find the publishers were quirky like me”. “They accepted it immediately, and printed 5,000 copies, and I remember wondering how many aunts and uncles I had, and what we would do with the rest,” she said in an interview with The Telegraph.
However, the book proved an instant success, selling out within two months of publication in 1974. Murphy continued working as a nanny until the publication in 1980 of The Worst Witch Strikes Again prompted her to devote herself to writing full-time. In 1986, a television film with the same title as her fantasy novel premiered on ITV. It later aired on The Disney Channel during the 1990s around the time of Halloween.
The Worst Witch stories have become some of the most successful titles on the Young Puffin paperback list and have sold more than three million copies. They were also made into a successful 1986 film and an ITV series, airing on CITV between 1998 and 2001.
Murphy was also known for picture books, especially the “Large Family” series, which detail the domestic chaos of an elephant family. First published in 1986, Five Minutes Peace has sold more than five million copies worldwide and has been translated into 19 languages.
For the second book, All in One Piece (1987), she was a commended runner-up for the Greenaway Medal from the British Library Association, recognizing the year’s best children’s book by a British subject (the second of her two commendations). “The Large Family” is now a TV series on CBeebies and ABC Kids. In 1996 The Last Noo-Noo was adapted as a play and performed at the Polka Theatre, London.
Jill Murphy Nationality
She has an English nationality.
Jill Murphy Height and Weight
This information is under review.
Also Read : Gavy Friedson Bio, Age, Family, Education, Height, Wife, Career, Net Worth, Twitter
Jill Murphy Net Worth
Information about his net worth is still under review.
Jill Murphy Death
She lived in St Mabyn, Cornwall, until her death from cancer on 18 August 2021.
Jill Murphy Honours
In 2007, Murphy received an honorary fellowship from University College Falmouth.
