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Preparing the sky-blue story box

Who wouldn’t pay good money to find themselves sandwiched between Michael Rosen and Philip Ardagh?Ìý It has its drawbacks, though, as I discovered at the Pop-Up Story Festival this weekend.Ìý

ÌýÌýHeroine of the piece, “Sleeping Super Princessâ€�

Villain of the piece, “Jack Ginautibus�

I had been given a circus tent to mind for six hours and to fill up with story and children.ÌýÌýÌý I’ve never done anything like it before, and arrived in fear and trembling.Ìý As the crowd poured in on a glorious sunny Sunday, and theÌý Pop-Up team transformed my empty tent into a cosy myth-making opportunity (complete with sound effects) the noise built up and up.Ìý Rock and poetry and hilarity from Michael’s tent on my left; oos and aahs from Philip’s tent on my right.

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Michael is the consummate showman.Ìý Philip’s tent was an illusory world of Victoriana boasting an upside-down room, a ferocious growwow in a cave, a magician, a hall of mirrorsâ€�. What chance did I stand?Ìý For an hourÌý nobody set foot in my tent.Ìý Then Beardy Ardagh lent me his walking hedge â€� I mean, who can resist a topiary that talks to you? â€� and the first brave souls were lured inside.Ìý Others followed, and by midday storming along towards a new made-in-a-day myth.

ÌýShadows of their former sleves

It was a glorious summer day â€� a park full of people (not to mention walking hedges); parades and dancers, an igloo, face-painting and a wonderful bookshop.Ìý But the three-day weekend event in Coram Fields, Bloomsbury, was only the kink in the tail of an astonishing tiger.Ìý 87 school evens had already taken place in venues all over London.Ìý It has to be the most ambitious undertaking I have ever come across and it was really good to have been part of the very first Pop-Up Festival.

ÌýHanging the villain out to dry

I thought one tent was a challenge.Ìý Head honcho Dylan Calder had a tent the size of London and not just six hours to fill but six week.Ìý Rather him than meâ€�

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Still, I hope he pulls it off again next year.

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(Oh, and thank you to the hedge, wherever you have put down root.)

Our monster and denizen of Indalia Island