A beautifully illustrated history of royal animals in Britain from 1066 to the present day, with a foreword by Sir Michael Morpurgo. Why do the three lions on the British crest look so much like leopards? When did the first elephant set foot on British soil? Was there really a polar bear who fished in the river Thames? The perfect sumptuous gift for animal lovers, this large hardback includes a jacket with elegant red foil detailing, gold corgi endpapers and stunning hand-painted illustrations on every page from renowned artist Emily Sutton. Full of astounding facts and amazing true animal stories, delve in to discover royal giraffes, elephants, spaniels, parrots, ravens, pelicans and, of course, Queen Elizabeth II’s corgis. Royal Animals is engagingly written, with artwork from Emily Sutton, the illustrator of Everyone Sang, William Sieghart’s poetry collection. Emily is also the illustrator of Paddington creator Michael Bond’s Castle Mice series. This fascinating exploration of 1000 years of royal animals is written by Julia Golding, the author of The Queen’s Wardrobe, illustrated by Kate Hindley.

Julia Golding is the award-winning author of numerous books for children and adults, including The Diamond of Drury Lane, winner of both the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize and the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize, as well as The Queen’s Wardrobe illustrated by Kate Hindley and Royal Animals illustrated by Emily Sutton. A former British diplomat and Oxfam policy adviser, Julia has a doctorate in English Literature from Oxford University, and was writer-in-residence at the Royal Institution in 2019. Her Jane Austen-themed podcast ‘What Would Jane Do?’ offers a 19th century take on modern life.