Jean Adamson author page

Jean Adamson biography

Jean Adamson was a British children’s author and illustrator best known as the co-creator of the Topsy and Tim books. She studied Illustration at Goldsmiths and later worked on children’s books with Gareth Adamson, with Jean developing the illustrations and Gareth shaping the storylines.

Topsy and Tim first appeared in Topsy and Tim’s Monday Book, published by Blackie in 1960. The series followed twins through everyday childhood experiences, including starting school, visiting the dentist, going to the zoo, learning to swim and welcoming a new baby.

More than 140 Topsy and Tim titles have been published, with worldwide sales of more than 21 million copies. Ladybird later became the publisher of the series, keeping many of the books in print for new generations of young readers.

The characters were also adapted for television. Sixty animated episodes were made, and a live-action Topsy and Tim series was broadcast on CBeebies. The CBeebies adaptation won the BAFTA Pre-school Live Action award in 2016.

Adamson was awarded an MBE in 1999 for services to children’s literature.