Funny prize, fiction prize and Katie Morag on TV

Two prize announcements this week - the Guardian Fiction Prize was won by Rebecca Stead for Liar & Spy. I've not read it yet, but When you reach me was a wonderful, intriguing novel so I have high hopes of loving this one too. It's the first time an American has won this prize apparently.

The short list for the Roald Dahl Funny Prize was also announced. I don't, I'm ashamed to say, know any of the books but I'm sure titles such as Noisy bottoms will have a certain appeal.

Finally - something I do know about: Katie Morag. CBeebies has now filmed 26 episodes of these delightful stories about a little girl living on a fictional Scottish island. Although Katie Morag's Struay was based on Coll, one-time home of author Mairi Hedderwick, the programmes were made in Lewis. I hope they boost tourism to all the Hebridean islands when they air next month. It's been too long since I had an island-hopping holiday myself!

Katie Morag is coming to TV

Doesn't she look just the way Mairi Hedderwick's Katie Morag should look? I think so!

Cherry Campbell from Glasgow has landed the lead role in Katie Morag, a new CBeebies drama. Well done Cherry! twitter.com/BBCScotland/st…
— BBC Scotland (@BBCScotland) April 23, 2013

Katie Morag on TV!

The BBC might be taking a kicking at the moment, but here's something great it is doing! Mairi Hedderwick's wonderful Katie Morag stories are to be made into 26 fourteen-minute live action films for CBeebies - read more here. Katie Morag lives on the fictional Scottish Isle of Struay, but the themes will be familiar to small children everywhere - sibling rivalry, losing a favourite toy, and so on. If you haven't read these books yet, try your local library - the films won't go out till the end of next year so there's plenty of time to catch up.