Five Children and It
Samantha Bond reveals how a rootless childhood and terrible personal tragedy led Edith Nesbit to create a new kind of children's fiction, a blend of magic and realism.
Edith Nesbit is probably best known these days for The Railway Children, but her earlier book Five Children and It was even more influential, its blend of magic and the everyday paving the way for the Narnia stories and Harry Potter. A classic fantasy story about a group of siblings who discover a creature that can grant wishes, Nesbit's warm, witty children's fable was shaped by her own troubled family life.
In this film, actress and Nesbit fan Samantha Bond discovers how a rootless childhood and terrible personal tragedy influenced Five Children and It, delving into the origins and legacy of a book that can be arguably said to have kick-started modern children's fiction.
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Clips
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The place of inspiration for Five Children and It perhaps?
Duration: 00:53
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A complicated love triangle
Duration: 01:27
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Resurrection of a long lost son
Duration: 01:03
Credits
Role | Contributor |
---|---|
Presenter | Samantha Bond |
Executive Producer | Richard Bright |
Producer | Bill MacLeod |
Director | Bill MacLeod |
Broadcasts
Featured in...
The Magic of Children's Books
A collection of programmes celebrating the wonder of children's literature.
Awesome Authors—Books
A celebration of children's literature, centred on Roald Dahl's centenary
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