Christmas TV
Superworm is the latest of author Julia Donaldson’s stories to be turned into a festive family TV animation. She tells GEMMA DUNN what we can expect
IT wouldn’t be Christmas without a TV adaptation of a Julia DonaldsonAxel Scheffler title.
The dynamic duo’s book-toscreen adaptations are a lynchpin of the BBC Christmas schedule – and this year they look set to continue their festive reign with the wonderful Superworm.
For those yet to be acquainted with this unlikely comic hero, the super-long and super-strong Superworm is always saving the day. But who can save him when he gets too full of himself and is captured by the evil Wizard Lizard?
It has a first-rate voice cast, including Olivia Colman as narrator, Matt Smith as Superworm himself, Patricia Allison as (the newly added) Butterfly, and Rob Brydon as the Crow. Here Julia, 73, reveals how she came up with the idea.
Can you sum up Superworm for those who don’t know the story?
The story is really that Superworm is a... super worm. He hasn’t really got particular superpowers, but he’s just very strong and big and helps the other creatures out. He turns himself into a lasso to stop a baby toad being run over; he himself into a fishing line to save a drowning beetle; and he turns himself into a skipping rope to help some bored bees have some activity.
“Then the wicked Wizard Lizard hears about this worm and thinks that maybe he can burrow treasure in the ground and so gets his evil servant Crow to capture Superworm. But there’s a rescue; all the animals that he’s helped club together and work out a clever plan...
Where did the inspiration for this particular tale come from?
Well, Axel Scheffler is very good at drawing bugs – if you look at any of the other books, there are always little butterflies or ants that he’s created, which weren’t in the text at all. For a long time, I thought I’d love to do a book about insects and bugs and garden creatures, but I couldn’t really think of a hook to hang it on. But then, separately from that, I thought I’d never done a superhero book – probably at the stage that one of my grandchildren was really into Batman and Superman themturns selves. So then I just put the two things together: my superhero would be this worm.
You must be thrilled to be a key part of the Christmas schedules year on year?
I suppose it has (become quite the tradition), really. I’m sure there’s plenty of people who watch The Snowman every year still – not all my stories are very Christmassy but, touch wood, up until now they have always been shown on Christmas Day. We always watch the animation, but it’s a bit mind blowing to think that there are all these millions of people in the UK watching at Christmastime too.
How does it feel to then watch your characters come to life on screen?
I suppose it’s an extension of what it’s like when I write a story and it’s illustrated. It’s not a sudden thing; it’s not as if I’m sitting there on Christmas Day like, ‘I wonder what it’s going to be like,’ because I’m involved throughout the whole process.
What’s your biggest tip for aspiring writers?
Well, I think, just the story. The plot needs to be good. And the language. For me those are the two things that are really important because the character is usually quite broad, quite bold, and you can describe it. Like Superworm is strong and helpful. And the Wizard Lizard is greedy and controlling. Then the illustrator will bring out those characters.
Actually, from the writer’s point of view – I’m talking about writing for very young children when you’ve got very few words – it’s much more the storyline with a nice twist in it and a happy ending, but maybe not in the way people could predict.
Superworm is on BBC1, Christmas Day at 2.30pm