Paddington and Michael Bond

DEBORAH CROMBIE:  On Christmas Eve in 1956, Thomas Michael Bond, a camera operator for the BBC, was on his way home from work when he spotted a stuffed bear in the window of Selfridge's department store. He thought the bear looked rather forlorn, so he bought him and took him home as a Christmas present for his wife, Brenda.

Ten days later, he'd completed a novel detailing the bear's adventures, which he sold to William Collins and Sons for 75 pounds. Bond lived in the Maida Vale area of London, near Paddington Station, so he called the small brown bear "Paddington." The original Paddington arrived in London from darkest Peru with a small leather suitcase, a tag reading, "Please look after this bear. Thank you," and wearing only a "dirty-colored" hat. It was Mr. and Mrs. Brown, of 32 Windsor Gardens, Notting Hill, who first bought Paddington his distinctive blue duffel coat.

Paddington, the disaster-prone, lovable bear with the predilection for marmalade sandwiches, did not become a hit in the U.S. until the 70s, when the animated series based on the character began appearing on PBS.

Having been brought up on Winnie the Pooh (I still have my 1950s first editions!) you can imagine that Paddington holds a special place in my heart. My daughter grew up on Paddington stories, and for many years, the first thing I did when arriving in London through Paddington Station was visit the Paddington Bear kiosk in the main floor of the terminus. But the Paddington kiosk has now been moved upstairs and is a proper shop--good for merchandising but less welcoming for visitors arriving at Paddington!

Paddington has had many changes of costume over the years, depending on the illustrator and the company making the stuffed toys. Nowadays, Paddington is usually portrayed wearing a red hat, a blue duffel coat, and red Wellington boots. My daughter's Paddington had a yellow rain hat. Mine, bought quite a few years ago (an anniversary--although I'm not now sure now which one--special) has Paddington in his original "dirty-colored" hat. My Paddington has place of honor on the chaise in my office, which I'm sure he quite appreciates. And, so far, anyway, he's managed to stay out of trouble!

I adore the 2014 movie, PADDINGTON, with himself voiced by the marvelous British actor, Ben Wishaw, and starring Downton Abbey's Hugh Bonneville as Mr. Brown. If you are a Paddington fan and have not seen it, watch it now. If you don't know or care anything about Paddington, watch it anyway, and I promise you will be smitten.

Sadly, Michael Bond died on June 27th. He was 91, so had a good long life, and left a legacy that will live beyond him. Still... such a loss.

Reading this quote, however, made me regret his passing even more. Born in 1926, Michael Bond was much affected by the plight of evacuated children during WWII. In an interview with the Guardian in 2014, he said, “They all had a label round their neck with their name and address on and a little case or package containing all their treasured possessions. So Paddington, in a sense, was a refugee, and I do think that there’s no sadder sight than refugees.”

Here's Paddington, in Paddington Station, immortalized in bronze by artist Marcus Cornish, and I will have to pay special respects when I'm there in September.

REDS and readers, what childhood literary character holds a special place for you?