Even the skies wept for John, the genius behind Postman Pat

Creator Cunliffe dies, aged 85

AS Postman Pat creator John Cunliffe died at home following a short illness, a timely downpour marked the sad end of this gentle genius.

Everyone remembers the man who, inspired by the beauty of the Lake District where he grew up, created a sunny world where he could escape life’s trials and losses.

Generations of children have loved the tales of rural postman Pat Clifton, who travelled everywhere in his red van with his black-and-white cat Jess.

John was passionate about his creation, rather than revelling in the glory of being its creator. Once at a BBC bash, director Ivor Wood was wrongly credited with creating Postman Pat, but John refused to make a fuss about it. “Life’s too short,” he said. “On to the next project.”

This was to be 1990s kids’ TV favourite Rosie & Jim. But he could only watch from the sidelines as Pat became a multi-million pound marketing bonanza, having signed the rights for his creation to Wood and his firm Woodland Animations.

But the thing that did make him sad was to read the Postman Pat stories that came after his.

He had agreed a deal to be the sole author of the stories. So when he found others in the shops he complained – only to be told they were not books but “merchandise” because they were printed on card rather than paper. But he was not new to adversity.

His father having vanished when John was born in Colne, Lancashire, he grew up in poverty with his mother. She worked in a shop but barely earned enough to feed them, so they lived with his aunt and uncle.

He grew up in Kendal, Cumbria, in a small terraced cottage on a hill with a post office at the end of the street.

He was bullied at school, and was regularly beaten up on his way home.

Later in life he drove a mobile library around rural Northumberland, which inspired his writing.

His first story, Farmer Barnes Buys a Pig, was published in 1964, and he went on to write around 200 books for children. When asked to create an outline for 13 episodes of a programme for pre-school kids, he did not know it was to be animated.

He sat down to write it when wife Sylvia went away to study, and his son Edward was at a boarding school.

He created the happy world of Greendale, where everyone treated each other with kindness and respect.

Announcing his death, the local paper in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, where he lived at the end of his life, said: “Left his home in a deluge of rain. Even the skies wept for John.”

BBC Children’s boss Alice Webb said: “John created a real and relatable world that will continue to entertain for a long time to come.”

Beloved character with his cat Jess Cunliffe with Pat and Jess On boat with rag dolls in 1999