The Beast and the Berkhamsted: Author Jack Meggitt-Phillips visits Prep

Prep pupils had a dreadfully fun day as they were visited by Jack Meggitt-Phillips, author of the book series, ‘The Beast and the Bethany.’ This darkly comic book series is a favourite amongst our pupils, and there was great excitement in the air as Jack hosted readings and workshops for all of Prep.

Each year group had a chance to listen to Jack read a section of his book, with the help of his puppet friend, Patrick. Then, it was their turn to craft a short story. To create this, our writers first had to imagine their ‘happy place.’ We had pupils on the Berko rugby pitch, at home with family, and even at beach barbecues with dragons! Something then had to go wrong in their stories to kick-start the action. Our pupils showed their inventiveness in designing wacky scenarios that sent their dream worlds into a spin. Earthquakes, annoying next-door neighbours and friendly barbecuing dragons turned evil were amongst the many nuisances imagined. To end their tale, pupils were then given a choice: would they finish with a dastardly disaster like in Jack’s books, or find a cheery resolution? We’re happy to report that the majority of our pupils chose a happy ending- as Jack remarked, “Well done Berkhamsted, you’re clearly not a beastly school!”

As peals of laughter resounded around Churchill Hall, it became clear that the Prep loved their writing workshops. One pupil told us that her favourite part was “writing the stories, because they were really fun.” Another agreed, and said he appreciated how “he [the author] taught us how to improve our storytelling.”

These short stories make particularly perfect practice for our Year 5 pupils, who are soon to enter the BBC 500-word writing competition. Jack’s advice on structuring creative writing will be a great help as our pupils set off to wrangle their ideas into an especially short 500-word piece.

Pupils also had the chance to have their copies of ‘The Beast and the Bethany’ signed by Jack- each with a personalised message. Some pupils took this opportunity to ask their burning writer questions, and one even had Jack sign her notebook, in which she has started writing a fantasy series about a group of dragon riders. We hope Jack has encouraged her to continue her writing exploits!

Having an author visit the Prep has been a wonderful opportunity for the children. Elizabeth Benson, Head of Year 5, says:

“Author visits for the children are the perfect way to inspire our young writers. Meeting real authors that they have heard about or read their books captures their imagination and sparks so much creativity. The workshop today was one of the best that we have had at Berkhamsted Prep, because it focused on the writing of stories rather than the author themselves. Within the hour, the children had written a short story that they could be proud of, that made others laugh, that had a moral or was a dream imagined, showing them that story writing is accessible and achievable for all!”

It was wonderful to see so many pupils embrace their imagination and take advantage of the opportunity to practise their creative writing. Thank you to Jack Meggitt-Phillips for visiting, and we can’t wait to see what our pupils write next!