It’s been a full and fun-packed ‘Summer of Jane Austen’ at Festival Place with visitors of all ages commemorating the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen’s death by visiting the remarkable BookBenches which have been situated in centre.
Budding young writers have also been busy penning their very own works of fiction for the chance to win a £100 Waterstones voucher and Festival Place is delighted to announce Beatrice Hawkins (8, Beggarwood) as the winner of the 4-9 year old category and Rachel Cleal (11, Eastleigh) as the winner of the category for 10-13 year olds.
Beatrice’s story entitled ‘The Magic Land’ takes the reader to an enchanted land filled with fairies, dragons and a chocolate river, whilst Rachel’s quirky tale, ‘The Cat Who Shrank the Moon’, follows the adventures of a loveable kitten, Fizzy, as he travels into space.
Both winners were extremely pleased to have won in their respective age categories:
"I was so surprised when I won, it made me so happy. I love writing and reading, and am really excited to have my story published." Beatrice Hawkins
“I was really excited when I entered the competition as I love writing and when I found out I had won, I was over the moon!” Rachel Cleal
As well as being published in a special book, both compositions have been recorded by actress Emilia Fox, who has narrated many audiobooks for both adults and children. Although perhaps best known as the star of the BBC series Silent Witness, Emilia is no stranger to the world of Jane Austen — she made her television debut in the acclaimed BBC production of Pride & Prejudice. Download the audiobooks at www.festivalplace.co.uk/tales.
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