Kate Pankhurst

British writer and illustrator

Kate Pankhurst

Occupation| Writer and illustrator
Language| English
Nationality| British
Alma mater| University of Central Lancashire
Genre| Picture books
Website
www.katepankhurst.com

Kate Pankhurst is a British writer and illustrator, known for a series of children's picture books. She won second place in the 2002 Macmillan Prize for Picture Book Illustration.

## Early life[edit]

Kate Pankhurst was raised in Liverpool, England.[1] She later credited an independent bookshop that she passed on the way to school as introducing her to books.[2] Pankhurst was inspired by an issue of British comic The Beano to create her own comic, and after selling copies to her school friends, decided that she wanted to work in illustration when she grew older. Initially she sought to become a shoe designer, but while undertaking Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees at the University of Central Lancashire in illustration, she realised that she could work as a children's book illustrator.[3]

## Career[edit]

After winning second place in the 2002 Macmillan Prize for Picture Book Illustration,[3] she began working on the Mariella Mystery Investigates series. This was the published work which Pankhurst both wrote and illustrated. The series was acquired by Plum Pudding Illustration.[4] She subsequently published through Bloomsbury.[2]

Her first non-fiction work Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World led Pankhurst to discover that she was distantly related to suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, whom she featured in the book. Although she thought for a period that there was no connection, another family member confirmed the link through her paternal line. Pankhurst said that she had enjoyed promoting lesser known stories of women in the book, such as Gertrude Ederle and her crossing of the English Channel.[1] As part of promoting the book, she spoke at schools and talked of her writing process,[5][6] as well as appearing at the WayWord festival in Chester.[7] A follow-up book is due to be published in February 2018.[2]

In addition to working as an illustrator, Pankhurst also works with teachers and children to share and inspire a love for reading and the stories of notable women.[8]

## Personal life[edit]

Pankhurst lives in Leeds with her family, and creates her books in a studio located in a former spinning mill.[9] She has a dalmatian named Olive.[3]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b "Illustrator draws inspiration from women who changed the world". Yorkshire Post. 7 September 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
2. ^ a b c Wood, Heloise (14 June 2017). "Bloomsbury illustrators open up their sketchbooks". The Bookseller. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
3. ^ a b c "About". Kate Pankhurst.com. 14 October 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
4. ^ Williams, Charlotte (17 July 2012). "Orion Children's acquires Pankhurst series". The Bookseller. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
5. ^ "Descendent of suffragette Emmeline Pankhurt visits Castle Newnham School". Bedfordshire on Sunday. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
6. ^ "Pupils Hear Story From Descendent of Suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst". Bedford Today. 22 May 2017. Archived from the original on 22 May 2017. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
7. ^ "WayWord festival returns for February half term". Chester Chronicle. 15 January 2017. Retrieved 18 November 2017.
8. ^ "About" Kate Pankhurst.com. Retrieved 2 March 2022.
9. ^ "Kate Pankhurst"Pan Macmillan.com. Retrieved 2 March 2022.

## External links[edit]

* Children's literature portal
* Official website

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* Czech Republic

Other|

* IdRef