In the forest with Percy the Park Keeper

The forest is the perfect place for a story. Our friends at HarperCollins Children’s Books agree! That's why our Forest Rangers have incorporated Percy the Park Keeper into their Little Wild Ones activity. The immersive session has been entertaining guests since the summer, and we are looking forward to seeing Percy’s stories change in time with the seasons.

We sat down with bestselling author Nick Butterworth in Blackwood Forest to discuss the collaboration that is guaranteed to get imaginations running wild!

Percy the Park Keeper and Forest Holidays have teamed up on their Little Wild Ones activity, what makes this partnership so perfect?

It’s a fantastic partnership - having fun and exploring the great outdoors with family and friends is so good for us. It makes us happy, it brings us together, and being connected to the world around us gives us a greater understanding of nature and how we can look after it, so it can continue to look after us.

 

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Percy the Park Keeper has been a favourite for over 30 years. What keeps inspiring you to write new adventures for him?

Ideas can come to me at any time and any place. They might be big, they might be small – sometimes they lead me to think, "I wonder what Percy and his friends are up to?” Then I wonder if my ideas might work as a Percy story, if they do, then I definitely know it’s time to find out what Percy and his friends are doing!

 

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The story features familiar animal friends. Do you have a favourite character to write, and why?

I like writing for all the characters – they’re all so important to what makes a Percy the Park Keeper story. Sometimes I will write a story which features one character more than another, but this is because their personality fits the story I am writing. I can’t imagine one of the characters not being there. It would be a like a group of friends playing in the park but they know somebody is missing, it wouldn’t feel the same!

 

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Do you have a favourite childhood memory of playing outside that shaped your love of nature?

There are so many! When I was growing up I loved playing in the parks, some were small with swings and roundabouts, some were huge country parks with trees to climb and places to explore. Percy’s park is a combination of all the places I loved to explore when I was growing up and the places I have played with my children and grandchildren.

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You’ve created Percy’s adventures in every season, but which is your favourite?

I really like spring. For the new flowers and fresh days that come after winter. I also really like winter, for the frosty days, and winter sunsets. I also really like autumn, for the colours in the trees as the leaves fall and kicking up leaves when walking in the woods. Oh, and I really like summer, the long sunny days, holidays and going to the beach with family and friends. I can’t seem to decide, they’re all my favourite! Which is why I have written books such as One Snowy Night, One Springy Day, Once Upon A Journey and A Flying Visit!

 

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