Rupert's Creators

There are now, happily, several books that give fare greater detail on Rupert's creators:-

Caroline Bott's nice biography of Alfred Bestall.

Brian Stewart's Rupert Dossier - now only available second-hand

and George Perry's "Rupert, a Bear's Life" - also now out of print but relatively easily available on the s/hand market.

STUART TROTTER'S RUPERT

Rupert's artist is now Stuart Trotter - a real Rupert enthusiast and an experienced children's illustrator/storyteller. He has illustrated Postman Pat, Winnie the Pooh, Kipper and Thomas the Tank Engine. He has his own characters and publishing company, Rockpool. We are delighted to be reading the first new Classic Rupert Stories for some time, Stuart is developing his own style of Rupert artwork, based on that of his hero, Alfred Bestall. We are optimistic that Stuart's genuine love of Rupert and respect for his tradition will eventually carry him into the ranks of the great Rupert artists.

JOHN HARROLD'S RUPERT

After a patchy spell in the 1970's when a series of artists drew Rupert - some well, some less-than-well - the highly-skilled work of John Harrold appeared. John established himself firmly as the worthy successor to Bestall and Tourtel. The stories that are currently appearing in the Express are a mixture of Bestall and Harrold stories.

ALFRED BESTALL'S RUPERT

He is also unusual in that he became MORE popular after a change of artist in the 1930's - when the immensely talented Alfred Bestall , an erstwhile Punch artist, took over from Mary Tourtel, Rupert's creator. Mary Tourtel's traditional style of writing and drawing was replaced by Bestall's more fluid storytelling style and exquisite drawings. While Tourtel has her fans, most Rupert fans regard Bestall as the doyen of Rupert illustrators.

MARY TOURTEL'S RUPERT

Rupert is an almost unique example of a character whose main characteristics were fixed at his inception by his creator, Mary Tourtel - and have remained essentially constant ever since.

The Followers of Rupert Bear : Official "Rupert the Bear" Website

Rupert's Creators