A video of the conservation between The Queen Consort and the children’s laureate, Joseph Coelho, is being released by BookTrust.
It comes as thousands of children arrive at school and nursery dressed as their favourite book characters for World Book Day 2023.
The Queen Consort has a longstanding commitment to championing the importance of reading and is a long-time supporter of BookTrust. As Duchess of Cornwall, Her Majesty became Patron of the charity in 2011, taking over the role from HRH The Duke of Edinburgh.
On the importance and benefits of reading, during the conversation Her Majesty said, ‘When you see the pure enjoyment that children are getting out of reading, and if you get that at a very early age, it’s going to help you so much in future life… the more books you read, the more you are going to understand about different places, different cultures, different ways of life.’
During the conversation, children’s Laureate, Joseph Coelho also shared one of his favourite childhood books with Her Majesty, There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly by Pam Adams and his fond memories of his reception teacher reading it again and again. Joseph says the story that was “a little bit silly and felt a little bit naughty” and delighted him every time it was read.
In the video, Her Majesty also tells Coelho about reading to her grandchildren and how nurturing this habit helped them to become ‘bookworms’. The Queen Consort explains how reading together was a wonderful bonding experience.
Following the conversation, Joseph Coelho, Children’s Laureate, said, ‘When we open a book there’s no telling where it may take us or the profound impact it may have on our lives, and so, it is an honour to mark World Book Day by talking to Her Majesty about the meaning and memories of stories, and a love of reading.”
Diana Gerald, Chief Executive of BookTrust, added, ‘Sharing stories is a fantastic way to spend time as a family and the benefits of reading together are huge.
'As a long-time supporter of BookTrust and a true advocate for children’s reading, Her Majesty's experiences of shared reading both as a child herself and with her grandchildren really brings home the point that every family can benefit from reading together."
‘At BookTrust, we know that shared reading is important because reading with children, especially in their early years supports bonding and early childhood skills such as language and cognitive development.’
Most popular children's bedtime stories
Separately, research carried out by My 1st Years has revealed the world’s most popular children’s bedtime stories.
Researchers from the brand analysed Google data to reveal the number of searches for over 370 children's books in 181 countries over the past year, to discover every country's most popular stories, as well as the most loved children's books globally.
Alice in Wonderland was found to be the world's most popular bedtime story, topping the charts in 57 countries
According to the research, the Top 5 Most Popular Children’s Books In The UK are:
- Mr Men by Roger Hargreaves
- Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
- Coraline by Neil Gaiman
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
- Horrid Henry by Francesca Simon
Speaking separately about World Book Day 2023, Cassie Chadderton, chief executive of World Book Day, said, ‘Our charity’s mission is to change lives through a love of books and reading. In 2023, as the cost of living crisis puts increasing pressure on families across the UK and Ireland, we are doing everything we can to ensure every child has access to a book at home. With reading for pleasure in decline and at its lowest levels since 2005, this is more important than ever.