‘Julia Donaldson and I don’t meet while working on a book’

Twenty years ago the classic children’s book The Gruffalo was published and now it’s illustrator, Axel Scheffler is working with the author Julia Donaldson on a sequel.

Scheffler told 5 Live Breakfast that during the process of creating a book, the two “don’t meet” in person, adding that “it seems to work alright”.

“For 20 years I’ve been saying I won’t do a sequel and now she’s written this wonderful text and there’s no way out for me.”

The third Gruffalo book will be published in September 2026 in the hope it will tempt parents who read its predecessors to share the new one with their children.

This clip is originally from BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast on Wednesday 4 June 2025.